Roy Gohroygoh, New Straits Times 23 Sep 09;
HEALTHY and well fed, Kertam, an adult male rhino caught in the jungles of Sabah, is the most eligible bachelor in captivity.
The only thing left now is for a partner to be caught and paired with Kertam to reproduce one of the most endangered species in the world.
Until then, the authorities are taking round-the-clock care of the animal in a small plot of jungle within the 120,000ha Tabin Wildlife Sanctuary in Lahad Datu.
The three-hectare area called the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary was set up by the State Wildlife Department in collaboration with the organisation, the Borneo Rhino Alliance.
Herman Stawin of the sanctuary said their task now was to ensure that Kertam remained healthy and once a partner was found, he would be released in a 4,500ha fenced area within Tabin.
"Kertam is like a royal stud just waiting for a partner and we are keeping our fingers crossed for that to happen, the sooner the better," he said of the 638kg Sumatran rhino.
In what was described as a lucky break, the department captured Kertam in August last year in the Kertam Forest Reserve in the same district. He was eventually relocated to Tabin for rehabilitation and full-time care by a team of four keepers.
Justin Endi, one of the four keepers, said Kertam had grown bigger since he arrived here, with a steady supply of food and the absence of threats, natural or otherwise.
"He appeared weak when he first came and his right foreleg had a scar," said Justin recently as he called out to Kertam in a metal enclosure, linked to the open paddock, where it could be fed, washed or treated when necessary.
The ring-like scar on his right foreleg also showed that Kertam may have been snared previously but managed to release himself.
Justin said snares were commonly set by hunters or even plantation workers to catch animals such as deer or wild boar but other animals were known to have got trapped.
As Justin fed Kertam with fruits, roots and leaves, he recalled how the rhino was apprehensive when he first arrived but gradually allowed the keepers to pat, wash and even hand-feed him.
When Kertam is hungry he would let out a high-pitched wail almost similar to that of a young buffalo to call his keepers, stationed about a stone's throw away, be it in the morning, afternoon, or at night.
"He likes bananas and certain types of roots which we collect from the jungle. We also feed him salt once in a while," he said, adding that the keepers keep a record of what type of roots or leaves the rhino consumed or rejected.
As Justin patted the rough hairy shoulder with skin like a tree bark, he also demonstrated how the rhino liked to be scratched with a plastic rake while lying on its side.
"We look after him as if he were our own child," said Justin, who speaks to Kertam when feeding him and even scolds him for playing in the mud too long.
"Most of the time Kertam would be out in the forest roaming about for food or just wallowing in several mud pits we made or even playing in a nearby river.
"But we keep the door leading to the enclosure open at all times for him to come in and be pampered by us," quipped Justin, who shares a special bond with the animal.
"I find Kertam to be a friendly animal. It's a pity there are not many of them left in the wild because I don't see them as a threat to anything."
He has the huge responsibility of saving his species
New Straits Times 23 Sep 09;
KERTAM, one of two rhinos in captivity in Sabah, is a national treasure, state Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister Datuk Masidi Manjun said.
"It's one of 30 or less left in the state and they are critically endangered, on the brink of extinction, unless we do something about it," he said when met recently.
Poaching and loss of habitat are among key reasons why their numbers have dwindled at an alarming rate, Masidi said, adding that serious conservation efforts were needed.
"Sabah is one of the last bastions for the Sumatran rhino and we are in a position to do something about it. I for one want to leave this world knowing I did something to save the rhinos."
Masidi said because of the threats, rhinos were not able to reproduce.
"As more development comes into the state, land is cleared, and their habitat is fragmented. Because of this, they are not able to see each other to mate.
"Poaching, too, is a problem. Not because they hunt rhinos but because in the attempt to trap other wildlife like wild boar or deer, poachers can hurt rhinos or even kill them with their snares or weapons."
That was one of the reasons why the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary programme was introduced at the 120,000ha Tabin Wildlife Sanctuary in Lahad Datu.
Eventually, 4,500ha of forest will be fenced up within the sanctuary to place rhinos that are rescued from other parts of the state. Kertam, a healthy male of about 638kg, was the first to be rescued.
Rhinos are solitary animals and only meet during the mating season. Records of surveys in the past showed that they roam in an area that would stretch thousands of hectares.
State wildlife director Laurentius Ambu said the fragmentation of habitat appeared to have caused reproduction problems among the animals because they rarely meet and mate.
"Its small numbers in the wild, too, is a hindrance in the effort to increase its population," he said, adding that maintaining and protecting the species in the wild was their only option now to prevent the rhino from extinction.
The Borneo Rhino Sanctuary programme, which involves the department and the Borneo Rhino Alliance, took a positive turn with the rescue of Kertam last year. Subsequently, Sime Darby Foundation pledged RM7.3 million to fund the sanctuary.
Establishment of the sanctuary was part of Sime Darby's "Big 9" campaign aimed at protecting endangered animals which include the sun bear, orang utan, pygmy elephant, clouded leopard, Malayan tiger, proboscis monkey, hornbill and the seladang.
The programme's coordinator, Dr Senthilvel Nathan, said Kertam was ready for a partner and hoped that one could be captured soon as there have been reports on the presence of a few rhinos in several locations in the east coast of Sabah.
"We are keeping our fingers crossed that at least one of them is a female," he said, adding that the other rhino in captivity, at the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park, was a female called Gelugub but she has aged.
"All we can do now is wait and make sure that Kertam is ready for his task, which to his species will be a big responsibility."
