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A wake up call for Sumatran rhino conservation
The population of Sumatran rhinos is believed to be fewer than 50 individuals in the wild and scattered in very isolated populations in Sumatra and Kalimantan, reducing the chances for breeding and increasing the possibility of extinction.
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Hitting puberty: Andatu, a male Sumatran rhino and the older brother of Delilah. (JP/Syafrizaldi)
T
he death of Sudan, the last male northern white rhino, was devastating news. The white rhino that died in Kenya in March was among one of the most endangered species on earth; the population is extinct in the wild and now only two females are left in captivity.
Its wild population declined dramatically in the last century due to extensive poaching in Central Africa. Sudan’s death is clearly a tragedy and a huge failure of humanity, which could not prevent the extinction of one of the planet’s most magnificent large mammals, even in an era of advanced technology.
In Indonesia, we have two species of rhinoceros, both considered as critically endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. These are the Javan rhino and Sumatran rhino. The status of the Javan rhino has been relatively stable over the last 50 years.
But the population of Sumatran rhinos is believed to be fewer than 50 individuals in the wild and scattered in very isolated populations in Sumatra and Kalimantan, reducing the chances for breeding and increasing the possibility of extinction.
