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1,000 wild orang-utans poached a year says WWF Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com August 6, 2005 
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a leading conservation group, estimates that 1,000 orang-utans are poached annually from the wild, often for sale as pets for the wealthy. The organization says there are some 30,000 to 40,000 orang-utans left in the wild. Orang-utans are naturally found in the increasingly scarce forests of Sumatra and Borneo. While it is illegal to capture and own wild orang-utans, laws are poorly enforced. A study released by WWF earlier this year found that at least 361 new species have been identified and described on the island of Borneo alone between 1994 and 2004: 260 insects, 50 plants, 30 freshwater fish, 7 frogs, 6 lizards, 5 crabs, 2 snakes and a toad. "Borneo is undoubtedly one of the most important centers of biodiversity in the world," says Dr. Mubariq Ahmad, Executive Director of WWF-Indonesia. "By acting now, we can ensure that the heart of Borneo remains a haven for both well-known and newly discovered species." You can learn more about Borneo and WWF at:
This news item used information from WWF press materials. News index | RSS | Add to MyYahoo! Advertisements: Organic Apparel from Patagonia | Insect-repelling clothing |
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