Catastrophic declines in Tachypleus tridentatus in Hong Kong due to over-harvesting by a Japanese pharmaceutical company

Between 1980 and 2001, a Japanese pharmaceutical company set up a clandestine horseshoe crab bleeding facility in Hong Kong, to extract Tachypleus Amoebocyte Lycate (TAL) from local populations of the Chinese horseshoe crab Tachypleus tridentatus.

This clandestine bleeding facility was set up in a shark fin warehouse in Sheung Wan District, Hong Kong and horseshoe crabs were delivered there on a daily basis from the local trawling fleet. The crabs were bled dry, then returned to the fishermen for disposal.

In parallel with these clandestine bleeding activities, populations of T. tridentatus in Hong Kong collapsed, with conservative scientific estimates putting population declines at around 90%. Anecdatal accounts suggest declines in excess of 99%

Japanese pharmaceutical company has set up other clandestine horseshoe crab bleeding facilities

Having bled the Chinese horseshoe crab population of Hong Kong dry, this pharmaceutical company tried to set up similar clandestine facilities in China, but State Law prohibits the export of horseshoe crab products, so they moved their attention to Vietnam and Indonesia, where they now operate similar clandestine bleeding facilities.

Fish and marine invertebrates are not protected in Hong Kong under Wild animals Protection Ordinance, Cap 170

Article 8 (In-situ Conservation), Para (k) of the Convention on Biological Diversity states Contracting Parties shall:

“Develop or maintain necessary legislation and/or other regulatory provisions for the protection of threatened species and populations”.

Because of these activities T. tridentatus, the Chinese horseshoe crab, a marine invertebrate has become a locally threatened species in Hong Kong, yet there are no provisos in the Wildlife Animal Protection Ordinance, CAP 170 to protect it, fish or any other marine invertebrates.

Photographs of clandestine horseshoe crab bleeding facility in Hong Kong

Photographs of the clandestine horseshoe crab bleeding facility in operation in Hong Kong in the early 2000’s are posted below:

Horseshoe crabs were delivered from the local trawling fleet on a daily basis.

Bleeding being conducted in a shark fin warehouse.

Quality control - Japanese pharmaceutical company style!