SUNDA PANGOLIN in SABAH
Getting to Know the Silent Night Creeper
Have you ever wondered how does a pangolin looks like? Where does the word “pangolin” come from? Pangolin is an anteater of which, is an unique nocturnal mammal as its body is covered with hard scales. The name “Pangolin” was actually originated from the Malay word “Penggulung” means rolling as this beautiful creature responses to threat and protecting its soft underpart body by rolling their body into the shape of a ball. There are 8 species of pangolins in the whole wide world. Each of this fascinating species is an endemic to certain region.
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The species of pangolin that can be found in Sabah is known as the Sunda Pangolin. Apart from having a scaly body, this species has a shorter forelimb claw and a long slender tail that makes it efficient for climbing trees and making burrows. The size of an adult Sunda Pangolin can reach up to 65cm and weight up to 10kg. This species moves silently during the night and feeds on ants and termites. It rests during the day inside tree holes or in the burrow. Interesting facts about Sunda pangolin is that it has a strong sense of smell to locate the ants and termites as well as strong claws of which, it uses to tear down the termites’ mounds and digging into the deep soil for the ants’ nests. But how does it was able to eat the small sizes of ants or termites as a whole? This species actually uses its’ long, thin and sticky tongue to gather the ants or termites and swallowed them. Sunda Pangolin can feed an average of 200,000 of ants or termites per day that makes it one of the important biological control agent in the forest for ants and termites. Sounds pretty awesome right? Image what would happen to the forest ecosystem if this species has extinct? The forest will be filled with ants nests and termites mounds everywhere. Photo 1 showed a baby Sunda Pangolin resting on a fallen log.
Photo 1: a cute baby Sunda Pangolin resting on a fallen log
(Credits to: Mr. Zaharil)
The ugly reality faced by Sunda Pangolin
The sad truth about the Sunda Pangolin is that this innocent species is often hunted by poachers and illegally traded at the markets. The high demand for the pangolin’s meat and scales that was claimed to have medicinal value has caused the rise of the market value for this species. Hence, it leads to more active poaching and illegal trade markets shipping this species from Sabah to China and Vietnam making it one of the worst case scenario of animal traffic activity over the recent years. This species is now one of the fully protected species in the Sabah Wildlife Conservation Enactment 1997 as its status is currently Critically Endangered. The video produced by "Oak & Coral Production" as shown below reveals the situation faced by Sunda Pangolin being hunted and illegally traded.
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What can we do to help?
In order to help raising the awareness about the Sunda Pangolin, everyone is encouraged to help us spreading these information through the social media such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Apart from that, you can also help by donating for the conservation work of Sunda Pangolin in our website by clicking on the “Donate Now” button. The action from each and everyone of us does matter in order to make this world a better place for all sentient beings. Come and join the movement with us to make these good changes!!
Article prepared by:
Ms. Emily A. Gilbert
