It is the giant African harvester ant queens, which are large and coloured red, that are most prized by international ant collectors – one can fetch up to £170 ($220) on the black market, which tends to operate online. The suspects - from Belgium, Vietnam and Kenya - had packed the test tubes and syringes with moist cotton wool, which would enable each ant to survive for two months, according to the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). Some conservationists are now calling for greater trade protections for all ant species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites), the global wildlife trade treaty. "The reality is that no ant species is currently listed under Cites," Sérgio Henriques, a researcher into the global ant trade, told the BBC. In fact, Kenya's cabinet did approve policy guidelines last year aimed at commercialising the wildlife economy, including the ant trade.

Source: Daily Nation March 29, 2026 08:39 UTC