John Aspinall's zoos, Howletts and Port Lympne, breed rare species to return them to the wild.

On Tuesday, the International Fund for Animal Welfare highlighted the illegal trade in wild animals online.

Howletts spokesman Neil Spooner said the problem, familiar to most zoos, had just entered the public domain and the key was to make people aware.

This year, Port Lympne has become home to a pair of broad-nosed gentle lemurs which are among the top 25 most endangered animals in the world - and a family of Guinea baboons threatened by the loss of their habitat of savannah and forest in Africa.

'Lax laws'

The International Fund for Animal Welfare had claimed traders were taking advantage of the internet's anonymity, after a three-month investigation.

It said it found 9,000 live animals or products for sale in one week on trading websites.

Speaking to BBC Radio Kent on Tuesday, Mr Spooner said governments across the world needed resources to enforce the laws properly, especially in areas which had particularly lax laws such as some African countries and some south east Asian countries.

But he also said: "The key is to make people aware through education and try to get the general message across that people should not be buying endangered species or indeed any species of wild animal that they cannot properly look after."