1,936 wild animals from 76 species seized by Wildlife Dept

KUALA LUMPUR: The Wildlife and National Parks Department confiscated 1,936 wild animals, involving 76 species, in operations to curb smuggling of protected wildlife conducted between September last year and last April, the Parliament was told today.
Natural Resources and Environment Ministry said 269 of the animals comprised 21 species of exotic wildlife.
"The exotic wildlife are from other countries where trade and cross-border movement of these species are subjected to the regulations stipulated by the Convention on International Trade In Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Wild Flora (CITES)," it said in a written reply to a question by Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali (BN-Bagan Serai).
Noor Azmi wanted to know efforts by the ministry to protect and prevent death of exotic animals which were seized by the Wildlife Department.
The ministry said the death rate of wild animals in captivity was 10.2% and the cause of death was, among others, trauma, stress and injury.
However, it said efforts were being made by the Wildlife Department to improve the existing Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) on the care of wildlife seized by the department.
In response to a question by Datuk Rozman Isli (BN-Labuan) on the ministry's action plan to save the Sumatran rhinoceros from extinction, where there are reported to be only 275 of the animals in Malaysia and Indonesia, it said it would be carried out through a Sumatran RhinocerosTransboundary Conservation project with Indonesia. — Bernama