A new report has shown that “most traded wild animal” is the pangolin, a unique mammal that is being illegally trafficked and slaughtered for its meat and scales – the latter being highly sought after in traditional Chinese medicine.

The scale of the trade is so great that a recent report from Chinese law enforcement and British researchers warns that the Chinese pangolin (one of eight species of pangolin) is in danger of being “eaten to extinction”.

Analysing records of seized goods since 2010 the team found 2.59 tonnes of scales representing approximately 4,870 pangolins, along with 259 intact creatures – 220 of which were living, 39 of which were dead.

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"The numbers of pangolins traded are shocking, and all the more so considering the pharmaceutical pointlessness of the trade,” Professor David Macdonald of Oxford University and a co-author of the paper, told the BBC. “This trade is intolerably wasteful,"

Prices for pangolin scales have rocketed since the 1990s. According to the study published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, a kilogramme of scales that used to sell for £8.50 now fetches up to £360.

Shape Created with Sketch. Pangolins: 8 things you didn't know about these 'scaly anteaters' Show all 8 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. Pangolins: 8 things you didn't know about these 'scaly anteaters' 1/8 A pangolin in Indonesia When they feel threatened, pangolins curl up into a defensive ball. Their scales are made from keratin (the same material as rhino horns and human nails) AFP/Getty Images 2/8 Rescued baby pangolin When in this position the pangolin is too big for a lion or hyena to get its mouth arnd get a grip - and the scales are too tough to penetrate 3/8 The ground pangolin The name pangoling comes from the Malayan dialect word for 'pengguling' meaning 'something that rolls up 4/8 A hand-reared baby pangolin Pangolins are also nocturnal and are only active for between four and eight hours each night, hunting for ant nests and termite mounds REX/Maria Diekmann 5/8 A baby pangolin clinging to its mother Pangolin have no teeth but their claws are hard enough to dig through concrete. They also have a long, pencil-thin tongue that can probe into a nest for 16 inches REUTERS 6/8 The Malaysian pangolin Pangolins are either ground-dwelling (and spend most of their time in burrows) or arboreal (and hang out in nests in trees AFP/Getty Images 7/8 A long-tailed pangolin Unfortunately, the pangolin's defensive curl is no help with human predators, who simply pick up the animal without any fuss REX 8/8 A rescued pangolin Of the eight pangolin species, three are in danger - the ground, Chinese, and Sunda pangolins REUTERS 1/8 A pangolin in Indonesia When they feel threatened, pangolins curl up into a defensive ball. Their scales are made from keratin (the same material as rhino horns and human nails) AFP/Getty Images 2/8 Rescued baby pangolin When in this position the pangolin is too big for a lion or hyena to get its mouth arnd get a grip - and the scales are too tough to penetrate 3/8 The ground pangolin The name pangoling comes from the Malayan dialect word for 'pengguling' meaning 'something that rolls up 4/8 A hand-reared baby pangolin Pangolins are also nocturnal and are only active for between four and eight hours each night, hunting for ant nests and termite mounds REX/Maria Diekmann 5/8 A baby pangolin clinging to its mother Pangolin have no teeth but their claws are hard enough to dig through concrete. They also have a long, pencil-thin tongue that can probe into a nest for 16 inches REUTERS 6/8 The Malaysian pangolin Pangolins are either ground-dwelling (and spend most of their time in burrows) or arboreal (and hang out in nests in trees AFP/Getty Images 7/8 A long-tailed pangolin Unfortunately, the pangolin's defensive curl is no help with human predators, who simply pick up the animal without any fuss REX 8/8 A rescued pangolin Of the eight pangolin species, three are in danger - the ground, Chinese, and Sunda pangolins REUTERS

The creature is also in demand as part of the Chinese love of “wild taste” – the national, and slightly nostalgic, appetite for various wild and exotic animals including monkeys, birds and snakes. Chinese officials say that due to the risks of disease only farm-raised exotic animals are allowed to be consumed, but demand for the ‘real thing’ continues.

For the pangolin this is proving to be disastrous. The scaly anteater, as it is sometimes known, gives birth to a single offspring once a year, and conservations worry that its plight is being overlooked in favour of megafauna such as elephants, rhinos and tigers.

"We've uncovered a disastrous situation and currently all the omens for the pangolin are bad but hopefully by drawing attention to this useless trade, international opinion may contribute to changing the situation of the pangolin," said Professor Macdonald.