A list of valuable endangered species

A list of valuable endangered species

FILE- in this Aug.1, 2010 file photo, a greater one horned rhino eats water plants from a river in Janakauli community forest bordering Chitwan National Park, about 70 kilometers (44 miles) southwest of Katmandu, Nepal. The 175-nation U.N. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, known as CITES, is based in Geneva and regulates nearly 35,000 species of animals and plants. Experts rank wildlife smuggling among the top aims of criminal networks, along with drugs and human trafficking. CITES says wildlife crime remains poorly studied but it says international estimates of the scale of illegal wildlife trade range from between $16 billion and $27 billion a year. Tiger parts, elephant ivory, rhino horn and exotic birds and reptiles are among the most trafficked items.

U.N. conservation delegates at a weeklong CITES meeting in Geneva approved sanctions against seven nations - Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Paraguay, Nepal, Rwanda, Solomon Islands and Syria - if they do not either strengthen their laws or provide national reports that are required of them before October 1. Here are some of the more valuable species found in those countries that conservationists worry about:

Comoros Islands: Lemurs, a rare and exotic species.

Guinea-Bissau: Marine turtles, manatees and chimpanzees.

Paraguay: Jaguars, tamarins and forestland.

Nepal: Tigers, rhinos, elephants, snow leopards and red pandas.

Rwanda: Mountain gorillas, chimpanzees, black rhinos Solomon Islands: Parrots, cockatoos and other wild birds.

Syria: Lizards, snakes, parrots, ibis, flamingos and other birds.