A data directory to facilitate investigations on worldwide wildlife trafficking

Figures & data

Table 1. Records in the directory on worldwide wildlife trafficking are alphabetically organized by data types. Records were assigned one of the eight data types.

Data Type	Description
Article	Data which has been referenced in an article, but is accessible in another location; can be comprised of a subset of a single source of data or amalgamation of multiple sources of data
Dashboard	These file types can only be viewed online, without exportable data or only exportable figures
Report	Written documents that include discussion, analysis, figures, data tables, and other representations
Structured Database	Data that needs to be accessed with advanced software, but which can be readily parsed by a machine (e.g. in a relational database, behind an API, GIS data)
Structured Human Readable Data	Data that can be understood by a person with standard software: spreadsheets, numerical survey results
Tool	Requires explicit input to provide subsequent information; typically, a visualization type of tool
Unstructured Database	Unstructured data that needs to be accessed via advanced software: images, text, hyperlinks, in blob store or behind API
Unstructured Human Readable Data	Unstructured data that can be understood by a person with standard software but contains some information that is difficult for machines to automatically parse: images, text, hyperlink

Table 2. Records in the directory on worldwide global wildlife trafficking are alphabetically organized by degree of accessibility. Records were assigned into one of the five degrees of accessibility.

Degree of Accessibility	Description
Limited Access	These file types can only be accessed by a limited population or through purchase. However, some reports or other content may be publicly accessible
Publicly Available	These file types can be freely accessed and downloaded without registration
Registration Required	There is a formal registration process for accessing the data. These file types require a special login or API key to access and may require a purchase
Upon Request	These file types may require a special login or API key to access. Access is not guaranteed and is obtained through direct communication with a point of contact
View-Only	These file types can only be viewed online without exportable data

Table 3. Records in the directory on worldwide wildlife trafficking are alphabetically organized by source categories. Records were assigned one of the 11 data categories.

Data Category	Description
Donor	Information regarding various forms of donor funding as it relates to wildlife trafficking
E-commerce	Aggregate data or explicit listings from a platform where products are purchased/sold
GIS	GIS data on infrastructure or trafficking networks
Legal	Information on the penalties, legal status, and enforcement abilities of various countries
News	News articles and media information on wildlife violations or enforcement
Offender	Information on the types and motivations of offenders and their behaviors
Population	Information on the population status of various species
Remote Sensing	Satellite and other related images of trafficked ’species’ habitats or trafficking routes
Seizure	Records of items transported illegally that were seized by enforcement officials
Social Media	Publicly available social posts/documentation containing evidence of IWT or outcomes
Trade	Records of items that were exported/imported from various countries

Figure 1. A screenshot of the IWT Data Directory landing page shows the multiple columns used to organize records such as title, type of data, accessibility. Each column can be used to search the directory using the filter function.

Data availability statement

There is no custom code associated with this research. The data directory is available at Zenodo open repository (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7096921). The visualization is available at http://conservationcriminology.com/iwt-data-directory.