The multi-billion dollar underworld hunting Africa's rarest prehistoric survivor

Nature · Published 26 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Ben Fogle goes undercover to expose the illegal trade of the pangolin, a species that has survived for 85 million years but now faces extinction.

The pangolin is a critically endangered mammal that has existed for approximately 85 million years. Despite its prehistoric lineage, it is currently the world's most trafficked animal, caught in a multi-billion-dollar illegal trade network.

The video follows Fogle's journey from South Africa to Uganda, where he infiltrates black markets and joins armed ranger units. These teams work on the front lines to protect the remaining population from traffickers who threaten to make the species vanish forever.

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