Sumatran Rhinos Disappeared: Jambi, Sumatra, Indonesia

By Barrie | December 20th, 2006 | No Comments

It had to happen eventually with all the blatant destruction of rainforests within the archipelago. I’m talking about the loss of a beautiful creature in this part of the world – the Rhinoceros.

Rhino disappearing from national park

An official has warned that poaching and illegal logging had destroyed almost all the remaining Sumatran rhinoceros in Kerinci Seblat National Park.

Park head Soewartono estimated there were only two or three remaining animals in the park, probably in Air Hitam district in Bengkulu Utara regency, Bengkulu province.

The Sumatran rhino population in the park was about 300 in the 1970s, he said.

Kerinci Seblat National Park covers 1.37 million hectares spread across four provinces — Jambi, West Sumatra, South Sumatra and Bengkulu.

“We based our estimate of the Sumatran rhino population on a survey conducted recently in the park,” he said. — JP