The illegal animal trade is a global industry estimated to be worth $20 billion, according the United Nations. "CBS Saturday Morning" heads to Yuramaguas, Peru, for a closer look at how the black market threatens endangered species, and how some people are trying to help.

Yurimaguas

A CBS News report highlights the persistent illegal trade of endangered species in the Amazon, despite recent international agreements to strengthen wildlife protections. Authorities in Yurimaguas, Peru, regularly intercept trafficked animals, including endangered turtles and rare birds, many of which are destined for the United States black market.

Conservationists, such as those from NPC Peru, work with officials to rescue and rehabilitate these animals, though the scale of trafficking remains significant. The global demand for exotic pets fuels a $20 billion criminal enterprise, with many trafficked animals suffering cruelty before being rescued or confiscated.

Inside the illegal trade of endangered species in the Amazon

Earlier this month, the 20th World Wildlife Conference closed with new agreements on protecting endangered and threatened species. The goal of the meeting was to strengthen global conservation and ensure that wildlife trade does not drive some species toward extinction. More than 6,600 animal species are protected from exploitation through international trade. But oftentimes, these agreements aren't enough. CBS News National Environmental Correspondent, David Schechter, went to the Amazon rainforest where some of those animals are captured to be sold in the United States. Under the cover of darkness, endangered animals are being trafficked out of the Amazon rainforest, jeopardizing their very survival. It's 5.30 in the morning. The authorities have set up a roadblock here on the only road that comes out of the Amazon and they're looking for smugglers. In this car, police find about 100 eggs from an endangered turtle that are likely to be sold on the black market. That is a threatened species, a protected species. That's 100 potential animals which are no longer gonna continue in the population. We're in the town of Uramaguas, Peru, the gateway to the Amazon. Most illegal animal trade coming down through the forest funnels through here. There's so many animals coming through. The authorities are always short of where to place them. Sam Shani runs the nonprofit NPC Peru. He works with authorities to rescue and rehabilitate trafficked wildlife. How cruel is the black market trade in these animals? It's incredibly cruel. If it's a monkey, the hunter will go out and shoot a mother carrying the infant on its back. With birds, they'll take a large net to a nesting tree and then drag that down to the ground and many of the birds will get injured or die. Shani is undercover in Uramaguas' sprawling daily market looking for illegal animals. Here, hidden in this orange tub, police sees a giant South American river turtle. The species is endangered here and in the last five years, more than 11,000 of them have been smuggled out of Peru and confiscated in America. Just one animal trapped in a vast criminal enterprise worth an estimated $20 billion with the U.S. one of its largest export markets. At a wildlife center, they asked me to help release the turtle from the market and give it a second chance. Wow, that was awesome. But joy is a fleeting emotion in the illegal animal trade. It's every single day, these animals coming in alive or dead. If you knew that there was this long chain of death and suffering, then I think many people would decide against keeping these animals as pets. Rare birds are particularly at risk. In the U.S., they can sell for thousands, such as these Amazonian parrots seized at the San Diego border in June. We went with Shani and wildlife police to locate and confiscate threatened birds being held in captivity. At this meditation retreat, the owner says this macaw is her pet, but like most trafficked birds, it lives in a cage with its wings clipped to keep it from doing what it's meant to do, fly away. Shani says it's important that the owner turn it over. Authorities take it, along with other rescued birds, to one of the Amazon's few reputable animal sanctuaries, where once they recover, they'll be released back into the wild. How is taking one macaw out of this situation an important but small piece of what you're doing? It's important because it's not just one macaw. You have to think that that individual is representative of hundreds of thousands that are being extracted from the wild and trafficked. It's a trail of cruelty that starts at the gateway of the Amazon, driven by a global demand for animals that were never meant to be anyone's pet. For CBS Saturday Morning, I'm David Schechter in Yeramaguas, Peru.

The Justice Department released more documents related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on Saturday after failing to meet Friday's deadline to release all the documents, as required by the law signed by President Trump last month. The Justice Department said the delay was, in part, to ensure that victims' information was protected.

Washington

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Caracas

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Ukraine Invasion

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Taipei City

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Washington County

Justice Department releases new tranche of Epstein files

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Moscow

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Council of the City of Sydney

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Los Angeles

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Breakdown