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Endangered Sumatran Rhino Caught on Camera on Borneo Island

Jakarta Globe, April 21 , 2010

Wildlife experts on Wednesday were beaming over new photos of a rare Sumatran rhinoceros, thought to be pregnant, in Malaysian Borneo, saying a new calf would be a lifeline for the near-extinct species. 

Only 30 rhinos are thought to remain in the wild on Borneo island, and researchers are only able to monitor the reclusive animals through images captured on remote camera traps. 

The news comes after Ratu, a young female Sumatran rhino at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Way Kambas National Park, had a miscarriage last month, seen as a major blow to efforts to pull the species back from the brink. 

Images of the Borneo rhino, believed to be a pregnant female under 20 years old, were captured by a camera trap in February, the Malaysian branch of the World Wildlife Fund said in a statement. 

“There are so few Sumatran rhinos left in the world that each calf represents a lifeline for the species,” international rhino expert Terry Roth said. 

The Borneo subspecies is the rarest of all rhinos, distinguished from other Sumatran rhinos by its relatively small size, small teeth and distinctively shaped head. 

The Sumatran rhino is one of the world’s most endangered species, with only small pockets left on Sumatra, in the north of Borneo and on peninsular Malaysia. 

Laurentius Ambu, wildlife director for Malaysia’s Sabah state, where the rhino was spotted, said two rhino calves had also been seen in the same area and urged the central government to do more. “Habitat protection and enforcement have been recognized as the main strategies in ensuring the survival of the rhino population in forest reserves,” he said. 

The WWF said the rhino’s future on Borneo depended on efforts to preserve its habitat, which was under threat from expanding palm oil plantations.

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