Three men in India were arrested for trying to sell a leopard pelt in November, the Times of India reported.

The special crime unit of Bhubaneswar police arrested Rohit Mohapatra, Manjit Sabat, and Sambhu Bisoy at Jaydev Vihar Square on Nov. 2, based on reports that they were trying to sell a leopard skin.

"Acting on credible intelligence, the raid was conducted around 5 p.m. on Sunday. The accused, including the main accused, Rohit, were caught attempting to finalise a deal for a leopard skin. The operation marks a crucial step in the ongoing efforts to curb wildlife trafficking in the region," said police commissioner S Dev Datta Singh, per the Times of India.

Across the globe, there is a thriving black market for poached animals and animal parts. While authorities crack down on these types of infractions wherever they are found, it is a thorny problem, with more incidents occurring every day.

Leopards are one of many species in a precarious position in today's changing world. The expansion of human civilization, the widespread use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, the increasing temperature worldwide due to air pollution, and the long history of hunting and poaching against these animals all combine to push these animals toward extinction.

There are protections in place to help the most threatened species recover -- but poachers circumvent these laws, specifically targeting the most vulnerable animals because of their rarity, which makes them valuable, and threatening the very existence of the species.

While in this case, the specimen in question was only a skin, other instances of wildlife trafficking include live animals, which can sometimes escape or be released into the wild.

This contributes to the growing problem of invasive species: plants and animals that are transplanted to new areas where they start to take over, doing so much better than native species that they start to crowd out or devour those species, leading to extinctions and the destabilization of entire ecosystems. That, in turn, can harm human beings' livelihoods and food supplies, not to mention recreational areas such as hiking trails and fishing spots.

The three accused wildlife traffickers are believed to have been involved in this type of crime for longer than just this one incident, and the skin is believed to have come from outside of the state. It is being kept for further testing to specifically determine its origin. The three accused traffickers appeared in court the next day, while investigations continue into the wider smuggling ring.

💰Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips to save more, waste less, and make smarter choices -- and earn up to $5,000 toward clean upgrades in TCD's exclusive Rewards Club.