The rate at which pangolins are disappearing from our planet is truly horrifying. Up to 2,7 million of these critically important mammals are mercilessly hunted every year for the illegal wildlife trade.

Credit: Umoya Khulula

Archie, an infant Temminck’s pangolin in South Africa, is a survivor of this sickening scourge.

His mother, tragically, was not so lucky.

In a wicked act of wildlife cruelty, mother pangolin Sarabi was beaten about the head with a spade as she tried to protect her infant baby from poachers.

It ultimately killed her.

Sarabi was poached from the Kalahari Desert in Southern Africa, and suffered a terrible head wound when poachers attempted to uncurl her with a shovel.

Their frenzied attack on this helpless, fragile creature fractured her skull and gouged out a big piece of flesh.

They were most likely trying to force her to uncurl as she was tightly wrapped around her newborn infant, desperate to keep him safe.

Credit: ASI/Dejan Radic

After a successful sting operation, Sarabi was confiscated from the poachers and rushed for medical treatment. But the abuse she had endured was just too much, and heart-breakingly, she died as a result of her extensive injuries, stress and trauma.

Her baby, Archie, was just six weeks old and weighed 280 grams (less than 10 ounces) when he was left orphaned.

Sarabi’s baby, Archie, was entrusted to our partner, Umoya Khulula Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre in Tzaneen, South Africa, for life-saving care.

At just six weeks of age, his survival was uncertain – especially as he lost 35 grams between the time he was confiscated and when he arrived in our partner’s care. That is a massive amount of weight for such a tiny creature.

Archie’s mother, Sarabi, receives a CT scan. Despite efforts to save her, she succumbed to her terrible head wound.

Credit: Umoya Khulula

Archie received expert 24/7 care, began to suckle, and gained weight. He now weighs 11 pounds (5 kg), and once he reaches 12 pounds (5,5 kg), he will be released into a protected reserve where he can be kept safe and monitored while still enjoying life in the wild.

Our partner is currently seeing some of the WORST cases of cruelty towards pangolins.

It costs an average of $5,000 (around £3,980) to medicate and rehabilitate each one that survives…

THIS is why it is CRITICAL we fight to save every one.

Pangolins are the most trafficked mammal in the world, relentlessly hunted from the wild for their meat, skins and scales.

The animals are consumed as a delicacy in Asian countries like Vietnam and China, while their skins are turned into bags and belts. As for their scales, some people believe they can cure ailments, even though this has never been proven by science. Pangolin tongues may be dried and carried as good-luck charms; their fetuses consumed as aphrodisiacs.

Credit: WCRU/ZXZhang

Because of sickening, widely held misconceptions about pangolins in Asia and Africa, it is easy to see why this timid nocturnal creature is being hunted to the brink of extinction.

Help us rescue and save every pangolin life we can!

All eight species of pangolin are threatened with extinction, with three being listed as critically endangered and perilously close to being wiped out.

Archie is almost ready to be released, but our partner has other pangolins in its care that urgently need critical treatment and care in order to survive.

Sweet Pea, a rescued pangolin who weighs less than 9 pounds (4 kg), desperately needs supplementary feed and continued long-term rehabilitation in order to regain her strength. Without the support of people like you, she will not have a fighting chance. Can Sweet Pea count on you today?

Credit: Umoya Khulula

For every $5,000 we raise (around £3,980), we can help save the life of a pangolin and give hope to the entire species.

Given the alarming pace at which pangolins are hurtling towards extinction, EVERY PANGOLIN LIFE COUNTS.

So please, be as generous as you can right now. The survival of the species relies on the survival of each individual pangolin – and you have the power to help save lives now.