Nearly 600 pangolins or scaly ant eaters, and more than 700 monitor lizards, both protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, were burnt on Monday in the capital Hanoi.

The majority were dead when destroyed, officials said.

The animals were smuggled to Hanoi from Malaysia on two Singapore Airlines in February and March.

When airport customs discovered the consignments, both the receivers of the shipment in Vietnam and senders in Malaysia refused to take the animals.

"We were left with no choice but to destroy them in order to protect the environment and prevent new diseases, as more and more animals were dying every day due to the changes in their natural habitat," said an official from the local forest ranger department.

Vietnam has an appalling conservation record, with endangered species, favoured for their status value, regularly appearing on dining tables in the political capital.

The country is also the transit point from wild animal trafficking from Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia and Laos to China.

SPACE.WIRE