Songbirds such as canaries were among the most popular wild imports hanif66 via Shutterstock
Nearly 3 billion plants and animals have been imported into the US over the past two decades, most of which were taken from the wild.
鈥淭he numbers are absolutely massive,鈥 says at the University of Hong Kong. She says that estimate still probably falls short, as it only includes legal exchanges, and there is no comprehensive way to track the total trade of wildlife around the world. 鈥淲e are just scratching the surface,鈥 she says.
