Here’s a wakeup call for everyone.
Photo: Sabah Wildlife Department
Malaysian’s last Sumatran Rhino died at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary last Saturday, marking the extinction of the species in Malaysia.
“It is with great sadness that the Sabah Wildlife Department announces the death of Iman, the last Sumatran rhinoceros in Malaysia, at 1735 hours on Nov 23, 2019, ” said State Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew.
“The death was a natural one and the immediate cause was categorized as shock. Iman was given the very best care and attention ever since her capture in March 2014 right up to the moment she passed. No one could have done more, ” she said
Photo: Facebook Christina Liew Page
According to the Director of Sabah Wildlife Department, Augustine Tuuga, Iman’s death came sooner than they had expected.
“But we knew that she was starting to suffer significant pain from the growing pressure of the tumours into the bladder,” she said in a statement.
Iman, who also suffered from cancer, apparently had been close to death on several occasions due to sudden massive blood loss from her uterine tumours over the years.
Photo: Borneo Rhino Alliance
The 25 year old rhinoceros (at the time of her death) was brought to The Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in 2014 after being captured in the Danum Valley, Lahad Datu.
Borneo Rhino Alliance shared a photo of Iman describing her as “the sweetest soul, who brought so much joy and hope to all of us.”
Iman’s death comes six months after the last male Sumatran rhino of the country, Tam, died of kidney failure on May 27.
Both Iman and Tam’s death signifies a great loss for the world as there are only about 80 Sumatran rhinos left in the wild, mainly on the nearby island of Sumatra and Indonesian Borneo.
It signifies the complete loss of the Sumatran rhino in the country and the hope of ever seeing this species in the wild is forever gone, ” said WWF-Malaysia chief executive officer Sophia Lim.
Decades of poaching and loss to animal’s habitats has left many species of endangered animals such as the tiger, elephant, seladang, tapir, and orangutan to be nearly extinct.
“There must be better policies and stronger legislation on wildlife conservation… ultimately, ensuring the survival of wildlife is a responsibility that is shared by all.” said Sophia.
Photo: Borneo Rhino Alliance
The Sabah Wildlife Department plans to preserve the carcass of Iman as they did with Tam’s, where it will be displayed at the Sabah Museum to ensure that people are aware of the existence of the species.
By: Siti Farhana Sheikh Yahya
