The
Gecko Factories
of Guangzhou.
PLUS
Paradox beardies, pied
iguanas and giant bullfrogs.
John McGrath investigates.
Image by Eric Isselee.
“That’s easy,” said Mai Yui Hua. “The pet market is well
known and there is a subway station right outside.”
I had limited free time in Guangzhou and had been told
that I should take a look at the aquarium fish market,
which also contained a few small reptile shops sand-
wiched in a corner. Mai, the very helpful girl who
managed the serviced apartments I was staying at, was
assisting me to make use of the excellent Metro rail
system. And she was right; I walked out of the subway
exit directly outside the front entrance of Huadiwan
market.
Huadiwan is huge, and despite time constraints I was to
visit the market three times during my stay in Guang-
zhou. Besides ornamental aquarium fish, aquariums and
accessories, there are large areas that specialise in pets
(birds, along with cats, dogs and other small animals),
turtles, potted plants and landscaping, and rosewood
furniture. Like some other markets in China, Huadiwan
(also known as Yuehe pet market, or Fangcun pet
market) has acquired a certain notoriety over the years
due to trade in protected or endangered wildlife, and the
less than ideal circumstances in which animals are held.
However, this appears to be slowly changing. I was
informed by industry sources of a government raid a few
months back, in which approximately 90 vendors were
questioned over illegal sale of coral; apparently at least
some did time in jail. As a result I did not see a single
piece of live coral in the market.
Visitors in previous years have also reported seeing large
numbers of presumably wild-caught African tortoises and
caiman for sale, together with signs warning of the sale of
illegal reptiles. Again, I didn’t
see a single caiman or
tortoise in the entire
market. Several writers have
been critical of the treat-
ment of dogs and cats, in
particular. I wasn’t overly
interested in the pet section,
but I must admit that
conditions in this area were
not so good. Hundreds of
budgerigars were packed
into small cages like sardines
and left in full sun without
water. I wondered how
many would succumb to the
heat on a daily basis; surely,
at the very least, this could