Malaysia: Tigers spotted in Kampung Besul

Rosli Zakaria New Straits Times 18 Jul 19;

KUALA TERENGGANU: Yesterday, a pair of killer whales made a huge splash all over the news when they appeared near the oil rigs in Dulang, off the Terengganu coast, and today, villagers in Kampung Besul in Dungun were shocked when a pair of usually nocturnal tigers roamed along a road in the village in broad daylight.

Facebook user Adli Mohamed uploaded three pictures of the tigers, one leaning against a car and another resting under a tree.

He claimed in his posting that the pictures were authentic and that the incident happened today.

“They appeared before my eyes and I now know the experience of trying to escape from dangerous animal on a motorcycle,” he said, adding that the pictures were taken with his mobile phone camera.

State National Parks and Wildlife Department director Dr Abdul Malik Yusof confirmed the sighting of the tigers which had now returned to its jungle habitat.

“I have directed my men to monitor the situation and we will take the necessary action. We will not try to capture the animal at the moment because of its proximity to residential areas and may endanger villagers,” he said when contacted.

He advised villagers not to harm the protected animal or make attempt to capture them.

“We will act when necessary,” he added.

Malaysia's wildlife department confirms tiger spotted in Terengganu
Channel NewsAsia 19 Jul 19;

KUALA TERENGGANU: Malaysia's Department of Wildlife and National Park (Perhilitan) confirmed on Thursday (Jul 18) that it had received a report regarding the presence of a tiger in Dungun, Teregganu.

Two videos went viral on Facebook when the tiger was recorded roaming in the middle of the highway in Hulu Dungun at 11.30am on Thursday.

Terengganu's Department of Wildlife and National Park (Perhilitan) director, Dr Abdul Malek Mohd Yusof told Bernama news agency that its staff were in the location and in the process of capturing the tiger.

He said the department was still investigating the cause of the tiger’s presence.

This is the third of such incidents to have happened in Terengganu.

In February 2016, a tiger died after being hit by a multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) in an accident at Kilometre 321.2 East Coast Highway (LPT2) near Kemaman.

In November 2018, a black panther died after being hit by a car at Kilometre 356, East Coast Highway phase 2 (LPT2) near Dungun, Terengganu.

Source: Bernama/de


Roaming tiger captured by Perhilitan in Dungun
The Star 19 Jul 19;

DUNGUN: The state Wildlife and National Park Department (Perhilitan) has captured a male tiger that was roaming around Kampung Besul Lama, Bukit Besi here.

Its director Dr Abdul Malek Mohd Yusof said the tiger is estimated to weigh about 130kg, adding that it was caught at about 3.30pm on Friday (July 19) after being shot with a tranquilliser dart.

He added that the tiger is about five years old and said that it was caught when it was resting in bushes some 500m from the main road of Kampung Besul Lama.

"We needed eight men to carry the tiger into the lorry. It will be sent to the Perhilitan National Wildlife Rescue Centre in Sungkai, Perak for treatment," he said when met by reporters at Kampung Besul Lama after the operation was conducted.

Meanwhile, Kampung Besul Lama Community Management council chairman Nasharudin Mohd Salleh said the villagers are relieved and can sleep soundly with the tiger's capture.

He represented the villagers and thanked the police and Perhilitan for working around-the-clock to ensure the safety of villagers and to capture the tiger.

"Based on information from Perhilitan, the operation will continue for the next three days to find the other tiger.

"However, this information is based on the claim made by villagers, as the operation found evidence of only one tiger," he added.

Captured tiger found roaming in Dungun dies
rashvinjeet s. bedi The Star 23 Jul 19;

PETALING JAYA: The Malayan tiger that was found roaming in a village in Dungun, Terengganu has died, says the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan).

It said the five-year-old tiger, nicknamed "Awang Besol", died at about 5.30am on Tuesday (July 23) at the National Wildlife Rescue Centre (NWRC) in Sungkai, Perak.

This was despite the intensive efforts to treat and save the tiger, said Perhilitan.

It added that the tiger was infected by the Canine Temper Disorder virus, that could easily infect domesticated pets such as dogs or other wildlife, including tigers.

“If the disease infects a tiger, it will display behaviour of not being afraid of humans and the possibility of healing is very small,” Perhilitan said in a statement on Tuesday.

Perhilitan added that it did not rule out the possibility that the virus was spread by other wild animals around Kampung Besul Lama in Dungun, where it was found roaming.

The tiger, that was estimated to weigh about 130kg, was caught at about 3.30pm on Friday (July 19), after being shot with a tranquilliser dart.

Videos of the tiger in the village were widely circulated recently.

Perhilitan said that to ensure the safety of the villagers there, it was monitoring the area and had placed tiger traps.

It also urged the public to contact them at 1-800-88-5151 if it came across other tigers.