Malaysia and Indonesia may have waited to long to give protection to the last Sumatran rhinios
(Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) hanging on to existence. Less than one hundred have survived man's onslaught of forest clearance and poaching. If these few remaining representatives of their kind are not fully and successfully protected, it will end their 20 million year old presence on Earth. The last two subspecies live in protected forest on Sumatra and Sabah, Malaysia. They once roamed as far as the Himalayas in Bhutan. The belated agreement was reached at the Sumatran Rhino Crisis summit convened by the International Union for Conservation (IUCN) in Singapore. A two year emergency action plan was suggested by rhino conservation experts for implementation by the two governments. Whether the realization of the rhino's extreme plight will translate into action on the ground remains to seen. Hopefully Sumatran rhinos will not disappear before they get help.
The near extinction of these animals is caused by the irrational demand for rhino horn as a medicinal "cure all" and for use in creation of art objects. If someone tries to interest you in a "libation cup" or other object they say is made from rhino horn, simply walk away, regardless of erroneous estimates of value you may have heard on your favorite antiques TV show. There is definitely a good chance the species can be brought back from the edge if humans refuse to encourage their destruction by coveting their keratin. Captive breeding efforts have met with limited success. Just two captive females have reproduced in the last 15 years. That is one reason concerted protection of more forest habitat is critical to stabilizing their numbers. All forest creatures and plants benefit when rhinos are protected
in situ. WWF Indonesia announced recently that monitoring teams found new traces of rhino in the "Heart of Borneo", a conservation area in Kutai Barat, East Kalimantan
[photo credits: WWF-Indonesia]. Follow-up studies will be made to develop a plan for protection of this previously undetected wild rhino population.
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The near extinction of these animals is caused by the irrational demand for rhino horn as a medicinal "cure all" and for use in creation of art objects. If someone tries to interest you in a "libation cup" or other object they say is made from rhino horn, simply walk away, regardless of erroneous estimates of value you may have heard on your favorite antiques TV show. There is definitely a good chance the species can be brought back from the edge if humans refuse to encourage their destruction by coveting their keratin. Captive breeding efforts have met with limited success. Just two captive females have reproduced in the last 15 years. That is one reason concerted protection of more forest habitat is critical to stabilizing their numbers. All forest creatures and plants benefit when rhinos are protectedin situ. WWF Indonesia announced recently that monitoring teams found new traces of rhino in the "Heart of Borneo", a conservation area in Kutai Barat, East Kalimantan [photo credits: WWF-Indonesia]. Follow-up studies will be made to develop a plan for protection of this previously undetected wild rhino population.