The illegal cycad trade in South Africa uniquely targets a primarily domestic market, unlike abalone and rhino horn which flow to Asian consumers. Poaching operations typically involve a lead poacher or intermediary who often recruits workers under false pretences—not informing them about the protected status of cycads or the illegal nature of the activity. These groups uproot the endangered plants from wild populations and sell them through a chain of intermediaries before reaching retailers who market them to wealthy South African consumers in urban economic hubs. This deceptive recruitment practice demonstrates how criminal networks exploit uninformed labour to extract protected species.