JAKARTA, 11 December 2012. 

The aim to work together to save this rhino species which is nearing extinction was further cemented during a recent visit to the Way Kambas National Park Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) in Lampung Province, Sumatra in Indonesia.

Globally, there are only 11 live Sumatran rhinos in managed breeding facilities namely in Way Kambas, Borneo Rhino Sanctuary (BRS) in Sabah and Cincinnati Zoo in USA, while the numbers in the wild are believed to be dwindling in a continuing trend, with less than 150 rhinos currently in existence.

The Sumatran rhino is Malaysia’s most endangered wildlife species, and very small wild populations are believed to exist only on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo.

Tun Musa Hitam and Erwin Arifin, Bupati of Lampung Timur District, exchange gifts at Way Kambas National Park, 4 November 2012

Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD), the philanthropic arm of the Sime Darby Group, has committed RM11.4 million over six years from 2009 towards efforts to breed the Sumatran rhinos at the BRS in Sabah.

Efforts to share and exchange technological, genetic and biological information and experience, and possibly even gametes (eggs and sperm), were among the discussion topics during the trip to SRS made by officials from the Borneo Rhino Alliance (BORA), Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD) and Yayasan Badak Indonesia (YABI).

The trip to the SRS by the officials was to see the new baby rhino, Andatu, born five months ago, and the first ever Sumatran rhino birth in captivity in Indonesia.

Led by YSD chairman Tun Musa Hitam, the delegation also made a courtesy call on Indonesian Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan in Jakarta, the day after the trip to Lampung.

Tun Musa said the Minister agreed that both parties could and should work together to breed the rhinos in managed sanctuaries, in order to increase the depleting population.

“We want to ride on the success of our Indonesian counterparts to breed the rhinos as we are also trying hard to do the same. We can learn from their experiences and collaborate.

“We need to have the endorsement of both the Indonesian and Malaysian governments for the exchange of information, biological materials and expertise.

Andatu, born 23 June 2012 at Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Way Kambas National Park, with his mother Ratu, who was captured from the wild near Way Kambas in 2005. Andatu’s father Andalas was born in Cincinnati Zoo in 2001. This success story supports the notions that the Sumatran rhino might be saved from extinction only through intensive care in fenced sanctuary conditions. And that collaboration between Indonesia and Malaysia with global zoos and research institutions will be needed in order to provide enough gametes (eggs and sperm) and the best reproductive technology.

“We should work on all areas of cooperation and consideration should also include exchange of rhinos,” he added. Andatu’s father, Andalas, was the first Sumatran rhino born in captivity after 112 years in 2001, in Cincinnati Zoo. He was paired with Ratu in 2009, at the Sumatran Rhinoceros Sanctuary within the Way Kambas National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia. Despite two consecutive miscarriages, Ratu delivered Andatu after a 16-month third and successful pregnancy.

Efforts are now underway at the BRS in Sabah for Puntung to conceive. She was airlifted from a solitary life on a hill range in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve on 25 December 2011, in a dramatic operation, as a mate for the male rhino Tam, who is also at the BRS facility. It is hoped that the duo would be able to produce an offspring to help save their species from impending extinction.

Puntung’s foot is believed to have been ripped off in a poacher’s snare trap when she was a small infant but, miraculously, the wound healed and she survived. However, she has problems with endometrial cysts in the lining of her womb, possibly as a result of long periods in the wild without reproductive activity. This problem is being addressed with the help of rhino reproductive experts from the Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin.

The BRS programme, initiated by the Sabah government in 2009, aims to prevent the extinction of the Sumatran rhino, the only wild species of rhino in Malaysia.

A Sumatran Rhino Crisis Summit themed “Last chance to act!” will be held in Singapore in April 2013 to bring together existing local experts and concerned people and others who have been involved with similarly endangered species in other parts of the world over the past few decades.

Among the success stories of bringing back other species “on the edge” of extinction include the Californian condor, black footed ferret, crested Ibis, red wolf, Indian rhino and white rhino, all of which nearly went extinct but are now increasing in numbers.

The Summit is also a global effort to save the rhinos from suffering the same fate as the now extinct Yangtze river dolphin (2007), the Javan rhino in Vietnam (2010), and the northern white rhino (extinct in the wild by 2008, but with a small number in captivity).

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By Sujadi Siswo, Channelnewsasia

JAKARTA, 11 December 2012: There is a ray of light at the end of the tunnel for the conservation of the almost extinct Sumatran rhinos. In collaboration with non-governmental organisations, enhanced cooperation and joint efforts are being considered by relevant authorities in Malaysia and Indonesia to increase the remaining tiny rhino populations in both nations.

The aim to work together to save this rhino species which is nearing extinction was further cemented during a recent visit to the Way Kambas National Park Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary (SRS) in Lampung Province, Sumatra in Indonesia.

Globally, there are only 11 live Sumatran rhinos in managed breeding facilities namely in Way Kambas, Borneo Rhino Sanctuary (BRS) in Sabah and Cincinnati Zoo in USA, while the numbers in the wild are believed to be dwindling in a continuing trend, with less than 150 rhinos currently in existence.

The Sumatran rhino is Malaysia’s most endangered wildlife species, and very small wild populations are believed to exist only on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo.

Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD), the philanthropic arm of the Sime Darby Group, has committed RM11.4 million over six years from 2009 towards efforts to breed the Sumatran rhinos at the BRS in Sabah.

Efforts to share and exchange technological, genetic and biological information and experience, and possibly even gametes (eggs and sperm), were among the discussion topics during the trip to SRS made by officials from the Borneo Rhino Alliance (BORA), Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD) and Yayasan Badak Indonesia (YABI).

The trip to the SRS by the officials was to see the new baby rhino, Andatu, born five months ago, and the first ever Sumatran rhino birth in captivity in Indonesia.

Led by YSD chairman Tun Musa Hitam, the delegation also made a courtesy call on Indonesian Forestry Minister Zulkifli Hasan in Jakarta, the day after the trip to Lampung.

Tun Musa said the Minister agreed that both parties could and should work together to breed the rhinos in managed sanctuaries, in order to increase the depleting population.

Manggala Wanabakti, Jakarta. (left to right) Drs. Widodo Ramono, executive director, Indonesian Rhino Foundation; H. Zulkifli Hasan, Minister of Forestry Indonesia; Tun Musa Hitam, Chairman, Sime Darby Foundation; Hjh. Yatela Zainal Abidin, chief executive officer, Sime Darby Foundation; Mohd. Ghozali Yahya, Minamas Plantation.

“We want to ride on the success of our Indonesian counterparts to breed the rhinos as we are also trying hard to do the same. We can learn from their experiences and collaborate.

“We need to have the endorsement of both the Indonesian and Malaysian governments for the exchange of information, biological materials and expertise.

“We should work on all areas of cooperation and consideration should also include exchange of rhinos,” he added. Andatu’s father, Andalas, was the first Sumatran rhino born in captivity after 112 years in 2001, in Cincinnati Zoo. He was paired with Ratu in 2009, at the Sumatran Rhinoceros Sanctuary within the Way Kambas National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia. Despite two consecutive miscarriages, Ratu delivered Andatu after a 16-month third and successful pregnancy.

Efforts are now underway at the BRS in Sabah for Puntung to conceive. She was airlifted from a solitary life on a hill range in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve on 25 December 2011, in a dramatic operation, as a mate for the male rhino Tam, who is also at the BRS facility. It is hoped that the duo would be able to produce an offspring to help save their species from impending extinction.

Puntung’s foot is believed to have been ripped off in a poacher’s snare trap when she was a small infant but, miraculously, the wound healed and she survived. However, she has problems with endometrial cysts in the lining of her womb, possibly as a result of long periods in the wild without reproductive activity. This problem is being addressed with the help of rhino reproductive experts from the Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin.

The BRS programme, initiated by the Sabah government in 2009, aims to prevent the extinction of the Sumatran rhino, the only wild species of rhino in Malaysia.

A Sumatran Rhino Crisis Summit themed “Last chance to act!” will be held in Singapore in April 2013 to bring together existing local experts and concerned people and others who have been involved with similarly endangered species in other parts of the world over the past few decades.

Among the success stories of bringing back other species “on the edge” of extinction include the Californian condor, black footed ferret, crested Ibis, red wolf, Indian rhino and white rhino, all of which nearly went extinct but are now increasing in numbers.

The Summit is also a global effort to save the rhinos from suffering the same fate as the now extinct Yangtze river dolphin (2007), the Javan rhino in Vietnam (2010), and the northern white rhino (extinct in the wild by 2008, but with a small number in captivity).

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Animal care: Veterinarians Dr Hildebrand, Dr Robert Hermes and Borneo Rhinoceros Alliance’s Dr Zainal Abdul Hamid (standing) doing an ultrasound on Puntung.

By Ruben Sario

KOTA KINABALU: A team of veterinarians is treating a female rhino in the east coast Lahad Datu district in the hope that the animal will eventually be able to breed.

Puntung, the sole fertile female Sumatran rhino at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary (BRS) in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve, had been examined and treated in the past several months to improve her chances of conceiving.

Borneo Rhinoceros Alliance (Bora) executive director Dr Junaidi Payne said the examination was carried out by specialist veterinarians from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW) in Berlin, led by Dr Thomas Hildebrand.

The veterinarian team was roped in after an ultrasound examination on Feb 24 showed that Puntung was suffering from endometrial cyst growth, a painful condition that could hinder the sperm from reaching the ova as well as prevent the implantation of embryos on the uterine wall.

Dr Payne said BRS officials were now deciding whether to let Puntung breed naturally or opt for artificial insemination.

Sabah Wildlife Department rangers had airlifed Puntung from a solitary life on a hill range at Tabin two years ago to be a mate for the male rhino, Ketam, at the sanctuary.

Wildlife conservationists were hoping that both animals would eventually be able to produce an offspring to help save the highly endangered species, of which only an estimated 200 were left in the wild in Sabah and Sumatra.

The Sabah government had initiated the BRS in 2009 to stave off the extinction of the Sumatran rhinos here with Yayasan Sime Darby, contributing RM5mil to the cause over the past three years.

The foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Sime Darby Group, had also committed another RM6.4mil for the development and operation of the BRS programme over the next three years.

Meanwhile, Bora chairman Dr Abdul Hamid Ahmad said the priority in the husbandry of captive wildlife was the animal’s health, including reducing all forms of biological and mental stress.

“There is no point in maintaining a breeding programme if animals die through poor hygiene and if their reproductive potential is depressed through stress,” he said.

Read the article in The Star