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Pangolin parts are also used for medicinal purposes in other Asian countries such as India, Nepal and Pakistan. In some parts of India and Nepal, locals believe that wearing the scales of a pangolin can help prevent pneumonia. [98] Pangolin scales have also been used for medicinal purposes in Malaysia, Indonesia and northern Myanmar.
The official pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China continues to include Chinese pangolin scales as an ingredient in TCM formulations, and there is a legal market for scales. [19] Today the main uses of pangolin scales are to unblock blood clots, promote blood circulation, and to help lactating women secrete milk.
Pholidotans range in size from the giant pangolin, at 30 kg (66 lb) and 68 cm (27 in) in length, to the tree pangolin, at only 2.3 kg (5.1 lb) and 34 cm (13 in) in length. They have large, hardened, keratin scales which cover their skin, and long claws which they use for digging or climbing trees.
The Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata), also called thick-tailed pangolin and scaly anteater, is a pangolin native to the Indian subcontinent. [2] Like other pangolins, it has large, overlapping scales on its body which act as armour. The colour of its scales varies depending on the colour of the earth in its surroundings.
However, they are of little medicinal value and contain the carcinogen aristolochic acid. [64] The over-use of this plant family in TCM is thought be a significant cause of upper urinary tract cancer and kidney failure in Taiwan; in 2012, approximately a third of all herbal prescriptions in Taiwan contained AA.
Scale armour is armour in which the individual scales are sewn or laced to a backing by one or more edges and arranged in overlapping rows resembling the scales of a fish/reptile or roofing tiles. [3] The scales are usually assembled and strapped by lacing or rivets. Lorica squamata is an ancient Roman armour of this type. [1]
The scales alone account for 20% of the black market in protected animal parts; [11] they are boiled off the body and used for traditional medicines. Pangolin meat is sold as a high-end delicacy in China and Vietnam, the blood is believed to be a healing tonic, and pangolin fetuses have alleged health benefits and aphrodisiac qualities. A ...
The tail is 49–62 cm (19–24 in). Each dark brown to brownish yellow scale has three points, to which the specific name tricuspis refers. These scales cover the whole body besides the face, underbelly, and insides of the legs. [5] The scales are made of keratin, as are human fingernails, and are anchored at the base to the pangolin's skin.