New Jersey Has Officially Banned the Import of Endangered Trophy Animals

New Jersey has made it illegal to import, sell, or own trophy animals as of Thursday.

According to NJ.com, New Jersey is the second state in the United States to make it illegal, so big kudos to us!

Apparently New Jersey introduced this legislation after the killing of Cecil the lion by an American hunter in Zimbabwe. Now, officially on Thursday, Gov. Chris Christie signed the bill into law, says NBC10 Philadelphia. No reason was given for how he came to the decision to sign it.

The animals that are considered as 'trophy animals' are:

• elephants
• leopards
• lions
• tigers
• rhinos
• cheetahs
• pangolins
• marine turtles
• rays

NBC10 says if the ban is violated, those responsible face a penalty of $1,000 for the first offense, and $3,000 for a subsequent offense.

Hopefully with this ban, this will help in the effort to protect these endangered species.

Read more on NJ.com or NBC10 Philadelphia.