01 Sep
2006 - Jakarta, Indonesia/Gland, Switzerland –
Scientists have found signs of four Javan rhinos
born in recent weeks in Indonesia, a surprising
baby boom for a species that may be reduced to
fewer than 60 individuals worldwide.
Signs of the rhino calves were
discovered in Indonesia’s Ujung Kulon National
Park by a team of biologists, including park rangers
and WWF staff, and local people checking on the
rhinos after the recent earthquake on the island
of Java. These are the first known births for
the Javan rhinos in three years.
"Javan rhinos are probably
the rarest large mammal species in the world and
they are on the very brink of extinction,” said
Arman Malolongan, Director General of Forest Protection
and Nature Conservation at Indonesia’s Ministry
of Forestry.
“To discover that this population
is breeding, and even slowly growing, gives us
hope for the species’ future.”
Javan rhinos are the rarest
of the world’s five rhino species and are critically
endangered. It is estimated that between 28 and
56 Javan rhinos live in Ujung Kulon. The only
other known population is in Cat Tien National
Park in Vietnam, where no more than eight rhinos
are thought to survive.
The team found the first sign
of a calf a few weeks ago, with the discovery
of a small footprint (about 16–17 cm) along with
a larger footprint belonging to the mother. One
day after this first discovery, another set of
mother and calf footprints of slightly different
size was found in a different area. Both signs
were estimated to be three days old or less. On
the same day, a second team came face-to-face
with a mother and female calf. And the following
day, the team found a fourth small footprint in
a different location.
Because of the distance between
the four areas where the discoveries were made
and the differences in the size of the footprints,
the team concluded they are evidence of four different
calves.
“Javan rhinos live deep inside
the rainforest and it’s very unusual to catch
a glimpse of them,” said Adhi Rahmat Hariyadi,
WWF-Indonesia Site Manager in Ujung Kulon National
Park.
“Our team was lucky to actually
be able to observe a mother and calf in the Ujung
Kulon Peninsula while checking camera traps installed
in the area.”
WWF and park staff hope to capture
photos of the newborns from remote-triggered camera
traps used to monitor the rhinos.
With this new evidence that
the Javan rhino population in Ujung Kulon is breeding,
WWF recommends that the park authorities find
ways to reduce the main threats to this rare species,
such as habitat and food competition with wild
cattle within the park, and invasive vegetation
that limits the expansion of the rhinos’ favoured
food sources. WWF also calls for the establishment
of a second population of Javan rhinos outside
the park to protect the species from disease or
natural disasters that could wipe out the entire
population.
END NOTES:
• WWF-Indonesia has been working
on Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus) conservation
since 1962 when Dr Rudolph Schenkel studied many
aspects of the rhinos’ behaviour, distribution
and biology. Over the years the species has faced
many threats such as poaching, shrinking habitats
and catastrophes like the eruption of the Krakatoa
volcano in 1883. At a certain point in the past
century, there were only 25 individuals left in
the wild. Today, competition for food and space
is an enormous challenge facing the Javan rhino.
The animals have to share the Ujung Kulon National
Park with wild cattle, and their habitat is under
threat by an invasive palm species.
• Through the work of WWF-Indonesia
and the Ujung Kulon National Park Authority, effective
law enforcement in Ujung Kulon National Park has
resulted in the complete elimination of rhino
poaching since the early 11000s. This has enabled
the rhino population to reach its current numbers.
• WWF-Indonesia has also started
extensive research on the Javan rhino and collected
information on population size, age and sex distribution.
DNA analysis from dung samples has revealed important
information on the population’s genetic diversity.
Camera traps were installed to collect photo evidence
of individual animals, their size, age distribution,
sex and health.
Desmarita Murni / Joanna Benn
/ Olivier van Bogaert
