Tam, a male Borneo rhino who was rescued two years ago after being injured by a poacher’s snare, could finally have a mate.

Wildlife officials in Malaysia are planning to capture a female Borneo rhino that was spotted by a camera trap, and introduce her to Tam, a male rhino under the care of the Borneo Rhino Alliance (BORA).

It is believed that fewer than 40 of these small rhinos still survive in fragmented pockets of forest, but they are isolated from other rhinos. The two main populations, numbering perhaps 13-15 rhinos each, are in Danum Valley Conservation Area and Tabin Wildlife Reserve, with a few other isolated individuals scattered elsewhere.

The Borneo rhino (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis harrissoni) is the world’s smallest rhino, and a subspecies of the Sumatran rhino (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis sumatrensis).

According to CEO of the Borneo Rhino Alliance (BORA), John Payne:

Sabah now represents the last hope of saving the species in Malaysia and in Borneo.

Sen Nathan, rhino conservation programme coordinator noted that poachers are the number one threat to Borneo rhinos.

We have reached a stage now where even habitat loss is not so much the main reason for extinction, rather the ruthless hunting of the last few remaining individuals, to supply ridiculous markets for horns, bones and other body parts.

BORA is assisting with the development of the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary – a 4,500ha reserve protected by an electric fence. Tam, a male Borneo rhino rescued from a palm oil plantation, is so far the first Sanctuary resident. He currently resides in a 2,500ha fenced area, where he will soon be joined by the female, once she is successfully captured.

To learn more about how you can help Borneo rhinos, please visit the Borneo Rhino Alliance website.

Source: AFP

Photo via Borneo Rhino Alliance

Rhishja Cota-Larson

I am the founder of Saving Rhinos LLC, which publishes news and information about the global rhino crisis. Besides writing Rhino Horn is Not Medicine, I am the author of the book Murder, Myths & Medicine, the Editor of Project Pangolin, and a writer for the environmental news blog Planetsave. When I'm not blogging about the illegal wildlife trade, I like to rock out to live music.

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