Sun Bears remain at Risk in Malaysia

Sun Bears remain at Risk in Malaysia

Another day, another development involving one of Malaysia’s perennially beleaguered sun bears. Thankfully, though, this one was a welcome one. Wildlife Department officials in Sabah captured a one-year-old runaway sun bear cub that escaped from her owner in Kg Pangkalan Abai. The young bear, a female, is now safe and…

Perhilitan Officials roll back a major Exotic Pet Network

Perhilitan Officials roll back a major Exotic Pet Network

Score yet another victory up for Malaysian wildlife officials. In a string of five raids conducted simultaneously in the states of Kedah, Selangor and Kelantan, officials from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia (Perhilitan) seized a total of 32 wild animals, worth more than RM500,000, and arrested…

Nations vow to Save Helmeted Hornbills

Nations vow to Save Helmeted Hornbills

Unless we act, helmeted hornbills will go extinct in the wild. This isn’t a bit of alarmism; it’s a fact. The beautiful birds have been poached mercilessly across their range for their casques (helmet-like structures atop their beaks), which are highly prized as decorative items in China and Vietnam. In…

Two Tigers are ‘Killed Each Week’

Two Tigers are ‘Killed Each Week’

On average, two tigers are killed every single week for their parts, despite ongoing efforts to protect the critically endangered predators across their ranges in Asia. So say two leading conservationist groups, TRAFFIC and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), in a joint report. Based on data from the…

Malaysian Facebook group is shut down for Selling Exotic Pets

Malaysian Facebook group is shut down for Selling Exotic Pets

They were selling slow lorises, binturongs, barred eagle owls, leopard cats and dusky leaf monkeys. On Facebook, no less. The protected animals were being peddled on the Facebook group Peminat Haiwan Exotic Malaysia (“Exotic Animal Fans in Malaysia”), which had nearly 8,000 members who could freely post pictures of exotic…

Poachers Beware! Malaysian Wildlife Officials may soon be Packing Heat

Poachers Beware! Malaysian Wildlife Officials may soon be Packing Heat

Wildlife rangers in Malaysia are regularly understaffed and underfunded. At times they are also outgunned. This, though, may be just about to change. “Hunters go to the forest carrying guns, but our people carry parang (a machete-style knife),” Natural Resources and Environment Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar explained in a…

Malaysia is a ‘global hub’ of Smuggling and Trafficking: UN

Malaysia is a ‘global hub’ of Smuggling and Trafficking: UN

This should come as no surprise to Malaysians, especially those who are familiar with the sorry state of affairs when it comes to extensive deforestation and wildlife poaching: The country is a leading exporter of illegally logged wood and is a hub of wildlife trafficking. That’s according to the United…

Malaysian Smugglers are caught red-handed with rare green Snakes

Malaysian Smugglers are caught red-handed with rare green Snakes

They are relentless. Wildlife traffickers, that is. They keep trying to smuggle endangered species out of Malaysia and they keep trying to smuggle them in too so as to sell them on the black market. A case in point: Two Malaysian men, bound for Kuala Lumpur, were arrested at Jakarta’s…

Just How Bad is Wildlife Trafficking on Facebook in Malaysia? Very Bad

Just How Bad is Wildlife Trafficking on Facebook in Malaysia? Very Bad

The criminal syndicates and individuals behind illegal wildlife trafficking are a resourceful lot. They won’t think anything of exploiting ever newer avenues to sell endangered species. And if that means subverting a hugely popular social medium for their criminal purposes, so be it. We’ve known that Facebook has become a…