Ivory Merchant

Some recent listings on eBay, chosen at random: elephant ivory bangles originally bought in Senegal, a blue whale figurine carved from Alaskan walrus ivory, a set of ivory scrimshaw piano keys. The Internet is now a handy tool for poachers and dealers to circumvent restrictions on the trade in wildlife products. No surprise there. But eBay, home of the vintage Beanie Baby?

In a recent report, "Bidding for Extinction," the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) charges that the global online auction house is complicit, both directly and indirectly, in the poaching and sale of products made from endangered wildlife, especially ivory. IFAW researchers tracked eBay sites in eight countries, and the record of most nations, including the United States, was dismal. EBay USA does have a policy restricting trade in wildlife, but IFAW found this "not only confusing and ill-defined but hopelessly weak." Of 90 ivory items examined on the eBay USA site, only four were fully compliant. None had a permit for ivory from CITES, an international treaty aimed at protecting wildlife through the regulation of trade. The auction house has told IFAW it welcomes the report and will review its policies.