Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia is the only country that has successfully preserved the Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus) amid the animal's shrinking population, the country’s Forestry Ministry has stated.
The ministry's Director General of Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation Satyawan Pudyatmoko explained that out of the Asian countries that once hosted Javan rhinoceros populations, only Indonesia has managed to maintain them.
Estimates suggest there are 87–100 Javan rhinos living in Ujung Kulon National Park, Banten province.
Pudyatmoko noted that in the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) list of the 10 most critically endangered animals, half of which are found in Indonesia.
Historically, the Javan rhinoceros was known to be distributed not only on the islands of Java and Sumatra but also across Southeast Asia, extending to India, Bhutan, and China. Currently, this species is found only in Ujung Kulon National Park and is considered extinct elsewhere.
It is now classified as critically endangered on the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). According to the latest data, its population is estimated to be between 87 and 100 individuals.
Besides the Javan rhinoceros, Indonesia continues its conservation efforts for the Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis), which is also critically endangered.
Indonesia houses the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Way Kambas National Park, Lampung province, to protect and attempt to boost the population of the species./.
