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Two endangered tigers born in North Sumatra
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Tiger cub during a vaccination. (Shutterstock/File)
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Sumatran tiger named Gadis gave birth to two healthy cubs at the Barumun Nagari Wildlife Sanctuary in North Padang Lawas regency, North Sumatra, on Dec. 8.
The 4-year-old tiger had her right front paw amputated after it was caught in a pig trap in Mandailing Natal district in 2016.
Henry Wijaya of the sanctuary said the cubs were healthy and are under the supervision of a team of veterinarians.
The sex of the two newborns has not yet been determined.
Hotmauli Sianturi of the North Sumatra Natural Resources Conservation Agency described the birth of the two cubs as good news for Sumatran tiger conservation in the province.
“Now we have two cute Sumatran tigers,” she said.
An official estimate from the Environment and Forestry Ministry states that the Sumatran tiger population currently stands at no more than 600 because of a loss of habitat and poaching.
Meanwhile, a report in the Nature Communication Journal estimated that there were 618 adults in 2012, or a 20 percent drop from 742 in 2000.
Conservationists have long criticized law enforcement officials for their failure to deter animal exploitation and illegal trade and what they describe as the weak implementation of the Natural Resources Conservation Law.
This article was originally published in The Jakarta Post's print edition on Dec. 20, 2018, with the title "Island focus: 2 endangered tigers born in N. Sumatra".
