In Indonesia, hunting lizards provides livelihoods and boosts traditional Chinese medicine

Felling quotas set

The lizard, also known as the Asian gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) and rumah cicak Asia in Indonesian, is believed to still be abundant, according to herpetologists and hunters interviewed by CNA.

The house lizard is not the only gecko species used in traditional medicine, and the Indonesian government has set quotas for various species.

This year’s catch quotas are about 2.5 million for Asian geckos, about 2.5 million for flat-tailed geckos (Hemidactylus platyurus), and about 2 million for four-clawed geckos (Gehyra mutilata).

They can be captured as pets or for consumption, said Dr Satyavan Pudyatmoko, director of the Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation Department of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry.

Dr Satyavan said West Java, Central Java, East Java and Yogyakarta provinces were allowed to hunt the three species of elephants as they were seen as potential export areas.

He said there are more than five export permit holders working with small businesses and hunters in the village.

“The villagers helped in catching, collecting, sorting (the lizards) by size, drying and finally packaging,” Dr Satyavan said.

“These activities can become a primary or additional source of income.”

The Ministry of Environment did not provide information on export quotas and actual export volumes.

In the past, it has been found that actual exports of some species, such as giant geckos, exceeded quotas.

According to a report released last year by Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency and the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, Indonesia exported more than 79.5 million giant geckos from 2013 to 2019, significantly exceeding its harvesting quota at the time, according to data from the Indonesian Trade Ministry.

Furthermore, the environment ministry reported only about 1.7 million legal export permits between 2013 and 2019.

The reason for this difference is that at that time, exporters did not need to obtain permission from the Ministry of Environment. In 2019, the giant gecko was listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora to regulate its trade.

China is a major importer of giant geckos, which are believed to have the ability to suppress asthma, relieve coughs and treat diseases such as diabetes.