Baby pangolin rescued 2 years ago released into the wild
Wildlife Reserves Singapore has placed it in an undisclosed forest location
A stranded pangolin taken in by Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) was released back into the wild yesterday, almost two years after he was rescued as a baby.
Named Sandshrew, he was taken by WRS and the National Parks Board (NParks) to an undisclosed forest location, where he will be in an enclosure for up to 10 days.
The enclosure's gate will then be opened to allow Sandshrew to move freely.
"This is the very first documented case in the world where a hand-reared pangolin is being released back into the wild and tracked," said Dr Sonja Luz, WRS' director of conservation, research and veterinary services.
Observers have attached a radio tracking device to the pangolin to monitor his movements in the wild, where he will be watched 24 hours a day for up to a month to ensure he is coping well in the rainforest.
Dr Luz said the enclosure's location is being kept secret to protect the pangolin from poachers, but added: "The thing I'm most worried about is him running onto a street or into the wrong habitat."
ENDANGERED
Sandshrew, who is named after a Pokemon character, is a Sunda pangolin - a critically endangered species and one of the world's most widely trafficked animals.
He was found alone at a construction site in the Upper Thomson area in January last year when he was just 1½ months old.
WRS had hoped to release the pangolin in a matter of months, but it later decided to track Sandshrew, which meant he needed to grow large enough to fit the tracking device.
The former 500g baby has since grown to a healthy 6kg.
"We also gave him more time for the re-wilding process to disconnect from humans. He's quite feisty now - he runs away from the keepers," Dr Luz said.
Also launched by WRS and NParks yesterday was an action plan that laid out the conservation strategy for Sunda pangolins in Singapore for the next 50 years. The five goals in the plan include gathering information on the endangered creature, ensuring that it has a breeding population and establishing wildlife-conscious urban planning policies.
In 2016, there were only an estimated 100 wild pangolins in Singapore.
Speaking at the launch of the plan at the Singapore Zoo, Second Minister for National Development Desmond Lee talked about including young Singaporeans in conservation efforts.
"I hope that we… use the Sunda pangolin and other native wildlife as icons in our school textbooks and materials to allow young children to get a better feel of what we have on this island," he said.
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