The Malayan Pangolin is so few in numbers that it could go extinct due to over-hunting. Is this true?
Verdict:
TRUE
According to Sabah Wildlife Department director Augustine Tuuga, the Malayan pangolin (also known as the Sunda or Javan pangolin) has been the focus of poachers and smugglers in the state which has caused its numbers to greatly decrease.
Illegal hunting has had such a dramatic effect on the curiously armoured animal that it is considered to be the world's most trafficked mammal and may go extinct.
From 2015 to 2021, 330 tonnes of pangolins have been seized in Asia with 91% of the total volume originating from China, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore.
According to Tuuga, an accurate number of the animals could not be determined in Sabah but said that five arrests involving illegal hunting of the animal in the state.
"The statistics, however, do not show the real scenario involving poachers of the pangolins because, based on research, only 30% of the criminals are caught," he told Bernama in a recent report.
The only country to have accurate figures of the crusty critter is Singapore, who the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said was home to 1,068.
The World Wildlife Fund Malaysia (WWF-Malaysia) had urged the authorities to upgrade the animal's status in Sarawak to that of a totally protected species earlier this year.
The head of its Sarawak conservation programme Dr Jason Hon said that the status change was necessary due to the seriousness of pangolin trafficking, which had harmed its population in the state.
"A higher penalty could serve as a deterrent factor for future crimes, but this must be done with concerted efforts on the ground to ensure that enforcement is adequate to prevent perpetrators from slipping away from the grip of the law," he said in a statement on Jan 19.
Currently, pangolins were listed as protected animals under the the state's Wildlife Protection Ordinance.
Pangolins are hunted both for bush meat a well as for their scales, which are used in traditional medicine.
While their scales are touted for a variety of treatments, including improving lactation and reducing swelling, all studies done so far show that there were no medical benefits to consuming pangolin scales.
Like rhino horn, pangolin scales are made of the same material that makes up human fingernails and hair, keratin.
However, great demand in East Asia for the supposed "medical benefits" of its scales has pushed all sub-species of the pangolin to the brink of extinction.
References:
3. https://www.rage.com.my/
4. https://www.
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