Javan Rhino babies
- Thread starter MARK
- Start date
its also the only likely option. there is ZERO chance that a proud communist nation like vietnam is going to let any western country take its rarest of wildlife - even if they don't value it enough to conserve it.
and sadly, there is no way that the population there is going to bounce back. not with so few and such unsafe habitat. look what happened with the yangtze river dolphin. had people accepted that the dolphins were doomed earlier, at the very least we would have a genetic bank of a dozen or more individuals rather than one.
i think when a population drops to around 20 its time to start considering that even with losses during capture, capture is nonetheless a worthwhile gamble.
and sadly, there is no way that the population there is going to bounce back. not with so few and such unsafe habitat. look what happened with the yangtze river dolphin. had people accepted that the dolphins were doomed earlier, at the very least we would have a genetic bank of a dozen or more individuals rather than one.
i think when a population drops to around 20 its time to start considering that even with losses during capture, capture is nonetheless a worthwhile gamble.
Not just communist, third world countries that let things go till it's too late.
Christmas Island bat 'months from extinction' - Nature, Environment - The Independent
Extinction Countdown: Conservation setback may doom Christmas Island pipistrelle bat to extinction
jay i'm not suggesting that communists are any less responsible environmentally that non communist western countries.
but we are talking about one of the only nations on earth that doesn't have a McDonalds. this is not because McDonalds doesn't want to set up shop there but because vietnam doesn't want them to.
the war wasn't that long ago....
my mention of communism was in regards to the likelihood of them giving their rhinos to a western zoo.
but we are talking about one of the only nations on earth that doesn't have a McDonalds. this is not because McDonalds doesn't want to set up shop there but because vietnam doesn't want them to.
the war wasn't that long ago....
my mention of communism was in regards to the likelihood of them giving their rhinos to a western zoo.
Suffice: Vietnam Javan rhino in dire straits. Options are limited, but we have to make a distinction here between local govt. bureaucracy and state/federal environment agencies. The latter are the in-country partners in the new in situ project with WWF et al.
@phoenix
With all due respect the political system is irrelevant here. In an inane way: it might even be construed that - thank goodness - some countries have sense in keeping McDonald's non health food at the door. Secondly in another inane way: it has never been easy to officially get wildlife out of any Third World country - Vietnam is not unique in that either.
As for protection/conservation levels vis a vis standard of living: mostly resources both funding and trained personnel wise are not in great supply in Third World nations. The comparison is thus rather limp. It is not to say I defend Vietnam's environmental record (but hell I am not defending my home nation's nor Australia's either where both funding and trained personnel should not be detrimental to ameliorative/recovery action planning).
It does seem that WWF sees valid options for continueing Javan rhino protection in Nam Cat Tien, Vietnam over no action at all.
@phoenix
With all due respect the political system is irrelevant here. In an inane way: it might even be construed that - thank goodness - some countries have sense in keeping McDonald's non health food at the door. Secondly in another inane way: it has never been easy to officially get wildlife out of any Third World country - Vietnam is not unique in that either.
As for protection/conservation levels vis a vis standard of living: mostly resources both funding and trained personnel wise are not in great supply in Third World nations. The comparison is thus rather limp. It is not to say I defend Vietnam's environmental record (but hell I am not defending my home nation's nor Australia's either where both funding and trained personnel should not be detrimental to ameliorative/recovery action planning).
It does seem that WWF sees valid options for continueing Javan rhino protection in Nam Cat Tien, Vietnam over no action at all.
Animal Rights
Well-Known Member
Hello,
I believe accounts of Javan Rhinos in captivity are rare so I copied this note recently from an old book of mine. It is quite interesting. Wikipedia states the following about this creature in captivity :
"A Javan Rhinoceros has not been exhibited in zoos in a century. In the 1800s, at least four rhinos were exhibited in Adelaide, Calcutta and London. A total of at least 22 Javan Rhinos have been documented as having been kept in captivity, and it is possible that the number is greater as the species was sometimes confused with the Indian Rhinoceros. The Javan Rhinoceros never fared well in captivity: the oldest lived to be 20, about half the age the rhinos will reach in the wild. The last captive Javan Rhino died at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia in 1907 where the species was so little known that it had been exhibited as an Indian Rhinoceros. Because a lengthy and expensive program in the 1980s and 1990s to breed the Sumatran Rhinoceros in zoos failed badly, attempts to preserve the Javan species in zoos are unlikely."
( Javan Rhinoceros - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
The animal was also found in Sundarbans in Bengal till 1935.
Regards.
Javan Rhino in captivity
Rhinoceros Javanus(Cuvier) has one horn: folds of the neck obsolete; scutules of the skin angled at the margin , concave in the middle, and furnished with a few short bristles : margin of the ears and underside of the tail hairy.
Dr Horsfield , who had an opportunity during his residence at Surakarta, the capital of the Javanese empire, of examining an individual taken during infancy and kept in confinement , or rather in a state of domestication , gives a good figure of it, observing that the drawing from which the plate is taken, though deficient in some points that the skilful pencil of Mr Daniell would have supplied from the living animal, exhibits, with scrupulous accuracy, its form and proportions. In 1817 this individual measured nine feet in length, and was four feet three inches high at the rump ; and Dr Horsfield remarks that the Rhinoceros figured by F Cuvier(of which a reduced copy is given above), which was brought to Europe from the British possessions in India was higher in proportion to its length, and its form was more unwieldy the entire length being seven feet, and the height four feet ten inches. The head of the animal seen by Dr Horsfield was strongly attenuated to the muzzle, and had a triangular form ; the flexible lip was considerably lengthened and the sides of the head were marked with protuberances or scutula, resembling those on the body, but no great roughnesses or folds were apparent. The marks of distinction afforded by the folds of the external covering were less evident than those afforded by the form of the body and the attenuated head : but the folds on the whole appeared less rough or prominent than in Rhinoceros Indicus.
This animal is gregarious in many parts. Dr Horsfield states that it is not limited to a particular region or climate, but that its range extends from the level of the ocean to the summit of mountains of considerable elevation. Dr Horsfield noticed it at Tangung, near the confines of the Southern Ocean, in the districts of the native princes, and on the summit of the high peaks of the Priangan regencies. It prefers high situations.
The domesticated individual above alluded to by Dr Horsfield was taken while very young in the forests of the province of Kaddu, and was conveyed to the residency at Magellan, in the year 1815 or 1816. By kind treatment it soon became domesticated to such a degree, that it permitted itself to be carried, in a large vehicle resembling a cart, to the capital of Surakarta. “I saw it,” says the Doctor, “during its conveyance, and found it perfectly mild and tractable. At Surakarta it was confined in the large area or square which bounds the entrance to the royal residence. A deep ditch, about three feet wide, limited its range, and for several years it never attempted to pass it. It was perfectly reconciled to its confinement, and never exhibited any symptoms of uneasiness or rage, although on its first arrival harassed in various ways by a large proportion of the inhabitants of a populous capital, whose curiosity induced them to inspect the stranger of the forest. Branches of trees, shrubs and various twining plants were abundantly provided for its food : of these the species of Cissus and the small twigs of a native fig tree were preferred. But plantains were the most favourite food, and the abundant manner in which it was supplied with these by the numerous visitors tended greatly to make the animal mild and sociable. It allowed itself to be examined and handled freely, and the more daring of the visitors sometimes mounted on its back. It required copious supplies of water, and, when not taking food, or intentionally roused by the natives, it generally placed itself in the large excavations which its movements soon caused in the soft earth that covered the allotted space. Having considerably increased in size, the ditch of three feet in breadth was insufficient for confining it, but, leaving the inclosure, it frequently passed to the dwelling of the natives, destroying the plantations of fruit trees and culinary vegetables which always surrounded them. It likewise terrified those natives that accidentally met with it, and who were unacquainted with its appearance and habits. But it showed no ill-natured disposition , and readily allowed itself to be driven back to the inclosure , like a Buffalo. The excessive excavations which it made by continually wallowing in the mire, and the accumulation of putrefying vegetable matter, in process of time became offensive at the entrance of the Palace, and its removal was ordered by the emperor to a small village near the confines of the capital, where, in the year 1821, it was accidentally drowned in a rivulet.”
- The English Cyclopaedia
A New Dictionary of Universal Knowledge conducted by Charles Knight
Natural History – Volume III
London : Bradbury and Evans, 11 Bouverie Street, 1855 Pages 597 and 598
I believe accounts of Javan Rhinos in captivity are rare so I copied this note recently from an old book of mine. It is quite interesting. Wikipedia states the following about this creature in captivity :
"A Javan Rhinoceros has not been exhibited in zoos in a century. In the 1800s, at least four rhinos were exhibited in Adelaide, Calcutta and London. A total of at least 22 Javan Rhinos have been documented as having been kept in captivity, and it is possible that the number is greater as the species was sometimes confused with the Indian Rhinoceros. The Javan Rhinoceros never fared well in captivity: the oldest lived to be 20, about half the age the rhinos will reach in the wild. The last captive Javan Rhino died at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia in 1907 where the species was so little known that it had been exhibited as an Indian Rhinoceros. Because a lengthy and expensive program in the 1980s and 1990s to breed the Sumatran Rhinoceros in zoos failed badly, attempts to preserve the Javan species in zoos are unlikely."
( Javan Rhinoceros - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
The animal was also found in Sundarbans in Bengal till 1935.
Regards.
Javan Rhino in captivity
Rhinoceros Javanus(Cuvier) has one horn: folds of the neck obsolete; scutules of the skin angled at the margin , concave in the middle, and furnished with a few short bristles : margin of the ears and underside of the tail hairy.
Dr Horsfield , who had an opportunity during his residence at Surakarta, the capital of the Javanese empire, of examining an individual taken during infancy and kept in confinement , or rather in a state of domestication , gives a good figure of it, observing that the drawing from which the plate is taken, though deficient in some points that the skilful pencil of Mr Daniell would have supplied from the living animal, exhibits, with scrupulous accuracy, its form and proportions. In 1817 this individual measured nine feet in length, and was four feet three inches high at the rump ; and Dr Horsfield remarks that the Rhinoceros figured by F Cuvier(of which a reduced copy is given above), which was brought to Europe from the British possessions in India was higher in proportion to its length, and its form was more unwieldy the entire length being seven feet, and the height four feet ten inches. The head of the animal seen by Dr Horsfield was strongly attenuated to the muzzle, and had a triangular form ; the flexible lip was considerably lengthened and the sides of the head were marked with protuberances or scutula, resembling those on the body, but no great roughnesses or folds were apparent. The marks of distinction afforded by the folds of the external covering were less evident than those afforded by the form of the body and the attenuated head : but the folds on the whole appeared less rough or prominent than in Rhinoceros Indicus.
This animal is gregarious in many parts. Dr Horsfield states that it is not limited to a particular region or climate, but that its range extends from the level of the ocean to the summit of mountains of considerable elevation. Dr Horsfield noticed it at Tangung, near the confines of the Southern Ocean, in the districts of the native princes, and on the summit of the high peaks of the Priangan regencies. It prefers high situations.
The domesticated individual above alluded to by Dr Horsfield was taken while very young in the forests of the province of Kaddu, and was conveyed to the residency at Magellan, in the year 1815 or 1816. By kind treatment it soon became domesticated to such a degree, that it permitted itself to be carried, in a large vehicle resembling a cart, to the capital of Surakarta. “I saw it,” says the Doctor, “during its conveyance, and found it perfectly mild and tractable. At Surakarta it was confined in the large area or square which bounds the entrance to the royal residence. A deep ditch, about three feet wide, limited its range, and for several years it never attempted to pass it. It was perfectly reconciled to its confinement, and never exhibited any symptoms of uneasiness or rage, although on its first arrival harassed in various ways by a large proportion of the inhabitants of a populous capital, whose curiosity induced them to inspect the stranger of the forest. Branches of trees, shrubs and various twining plants were abundantly provided for its food : of these the species of Cissus and the small twigs of a native fig tree were preferred. But plantains were the most favourite food, and the abundant manner in which it was supplied with these by the numerous visitors tended greatly to make the animal mild and sociable. It allowed itself to be examined and handled freely, and the more daring of the visitors sometimes mounted on its back. It required copious supplies of water, and, when not taking food, or intentionally roused by the natives, it generally placed itself in the large excavations which its movements soon caused in the soft earth that covered the allotted space. Having considerably increased in size, the ditch of three feet in breadth was insufficient for confining it, but, leaving the inclosure, it frequently passed to the dwelling of the natives, destroying the plantations of fruit trees and culinary vegetables which always surrounded them. It likewise terrified those natives that accidentally met with it, and who were unacquainted with its appearance and habits. But it showed no ill-natured disposition , and readily allowed itself to be driven back to the inclosure , like a Buffalo. The excessive excavations which it made by continually wallowing in the mire, and the accumulation of putrefying vegetable matter, in process of time became offensive at the entrance of the Palace, and its removal was ordered by the emperor to a small village near the confines of the capital, where, in the year 1821, it was accidentally drowned in a rivulet.”
- The English Cyclopaedia
A New Dictionary of Universal Knowledge conducted by Charles Knight
Natural History – Volume III
London : Bradbury and Evans, 11 Bouverie Street, 1855 Pages 597 and 598
Animal Rights
Well-Known Member
Hi Pertinax,
Thanks for writing. What you say makes sense.
Ideally when speaking of Rhinos in captivity(or any other large mammal for that matter), we ought to think in terms of acres when it comes to enclosure size. Some Indian Rhinos have bred very well in patna Zoo in Bihar in India. Also San Diego Zoo in California in USA. Whipsnade Zoo in UK has also apparently bred Indian Rhinos successfully. And as you say, since the two species are very closely related, there is no reason why these animals would not breed in captivity.
However, the issue is, is the risk worth taking and where would the breeding programme be? In the mid nineties, BBC World did a special on this very specific item. The view from the Indonesia side was that Western zoos would only be interested in the display value of the animal rather than the conservation aspect, a concern I shared and still do. "We are the only zoo in the world that houses the world's rarest rhino", that kind of thing.
One concept that could be tried is to have a fenced off area within the known range where the animals could be studied closely but non invasively. Has this not been already tried for Sumatran Rhinos in Way Kambas Reserve where John Aspinall's Sumatran Rhino named Torgamba was sent to?
Coming to your point about lack of expertise to maintain rhinos in the homeland, you have a point. However I can make a similar point about Western zoos also. The only Rhino I have ever seen in a Western zoo was a Black Rhino named Jos in London Zoo and I thought the enclosure was thoroughly inadequate. The animal also seemed to be behaving very abnormally, rushing to and fro all the time, maybe as a result of stress. he was later removed and sent to another zoo.
So considering all these aspects, I would submit it is best to leave Javan Rhinos in the wild and enhance better protection measures in the wild to combat poaching and counter other threats. The fencing off plan may be worth thinking off. Indeed, I am of this view for most animal species being considered for captive breeding programmes.
Thank you.
Thanks for writing. What you say makes sense.
Ideally when speaking of Rhinos in captivity(or any other large mammal for that matter), we ought to think in terms of acres when it comes to enclosure size. Some Indian Rhinos have bred very well in patna Zoo in Bihar in India. Also San Diego Zoo in California in USA. Whipsnade Zoo in UK has also apparently bred Indian Rhinos successfully. And as you say, since the two species are very closely related, there is no reason why these animals would not breed in captivity.
However, the issue is, is the risk worth taking and where would the breeding programme be? In the mid nineties, BBC World did a special on this very specific item. The view from the Indonesia side was that Western zoos would only be interested in the display value of the animal rather than the conservation aspect, a concern I shared and still do. "We are the only zoo in the world that houses the world's rarest rhino", that kind of thing.
One concept that could be tried is to have a fenced off area within the known range where the animals could be studied closely but non invasively. Has this not been already tried for Sumatran Rhinos in Way Kambas Reserve where John Aspinall's Sumatran Rhino named Torgamba was sent to?
Coming to your point about lack of expertise to maintain rhinos in the homeland, you have a point. However I can make a similar point about Western zoos also. The only Rhino I have ever seen in a Western zoo was a Black Rhino named Jos in London Zoo and I thought the enclosure was thoroughly inadequate. The animal also seemed to be behaving very abnormally, rushing to and fro all the time, maybe as a result of stress. he was later removed and sent to another zoo.
So considering all these aspects, I would submit it is best to leave Javan Rhinos in the wild and enhance better protection measures in the wild to combat poaching and counter other threats. The fencing off plan may be worth thinking off. Indeed, I am of this view for most animal species being considered for captive breeding programmes.
Thank you.
taun
Well-Known Member
Exactly times have changed since you have last visited a western zoo. London no longer keeps rhinos they are now all at their sister collection (Whipsnade) and their white rhinos and now it appears indian rhinos are breeding well.
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Animal Rights- you have provided a well thought out response. A couple of other posts above have explained the situation with London Zoo's last black rhino Jos. London don't keep them anymore due to lack of space.
If Javan Rhinos were ever to be relocated to a Western Zoo(s) it would obviously have to be somewhere with both the necessary space and very good experience with keeping and breeding (preferably Indian) rhinos previously. But overall I think I would rather see an in situ programme developed as you mentioned has happened with Way Kambas- keeping the rhinos in their own habitat in perhaps a semi-captive situation with their own climate/diet etc. I think it would be a good safeguard for the Javan species if there was at least a small captive or semi-captive backup population somewhere, so long as it was managed properly- perhaps along the lines of Way Kambas.
Animal Rights
Well-Known Member
I am in agreement with Mark. There are certainly much better zoos in the West than London(I have been to some of them) and I am aware that London no longer has elephants and Black Rhinos(I saw Bactrian Camels in the enclosure that housed elephants the last time I was there). I also agree there are many Western zoos successfully breeding and housing rhinos. However I am not sure what these breeding programmes achieve for animals in the wild. I was in Assam for two years and have seen the situation in Kaziranga which is virtually a war zone. I am not sure how much the zoo community has contributed towards mitigating the situation in Kaziranga to help the rhinos. Therefore my contention is that just having a population in a Western zoo successfully housing or breeding rhinos may not yield great conservation benefits. There can be exceptional cases though.
I am in total concurrence with what Pertinax has stated.
I am in total concurrence with what Pertinax has stated.
I think in the case of Indian Rhino, having a large/stable/breeding population in Zoos means that if ever the wild population became too unstable or crashed totally, animals from captivity could be used for reintroduction. Otherwise they continue as a major zoo exhibit. Having this backup zoo population is a good situation to be in.
In the case of the Sumatran rhino, though the captive population is tiny and disastrous losses ocurred prior to successful captive breeding, we now have the situation where the prime male at Way Kambas was born in the USA and then returned to Sumatra.
Possibly any Javan rhino captive project could be run along those lines. I am confident their captive management would be no more difficult than for their 'greater' close relative.
Animal Rights
Well-Known Member
In terms of cost of maintenance, it might be a better idea to use the same amount of money for better protection in the wild. Unless the habitat is protected, reintroduced animals will face the same problems that caused the population to crash or become unstable. In my opinion, cost comparisons are valid for captive breeding programmes versus wild conservation programmes. Also, if the habitat is gone, where will the reintroduced animals live?
You are right that captive management of Javan Rhino would not be very different from Indian Rhinos. The Sumatran Rhino case you have cited is also a good example of a positive contribution by a zoo. But the suffering of individual animals in the overwhelming majority of captive breeding programmes is way too high. An item below. it has been started by an animal welfare group recently. I have seen the animal and he is in a terrible state, a victim of politics. Unfortunately, for zoo animals, his situation is not an exceptional one.
To,
The Superintendent,
Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan,
Mumbai
Subject: Shiva, the Rhino
Sir,
Shiva, the lone rhinoceros housed in Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan formerly known as Byculla Zoo, has been in solitary confinement for over two decades.
We would like to point out that over all these years, he has undergone immense and unnecessary suffering with regard to his living conditions and quality of life in the zoo, in the following ways:
* An animal from the cool and misty areas in the foothills of the Himalayas, Shiva has been forced to suffer the pollution, crowds, heat and dust of this city from the time he was brought here.
* His horn had been mysteriously removed at the time when he came to the zoo.
* He has never enjoyed the company of other Rhinos
* He has never had a mate as the Central Zoo Authority had declared his enclosure too small for two Rhinos.
* A few years ago he was granted his freedom by the Bombay High Court and preparations were made to send him to Ranchi Zoo in Jharkand, where a mate was waiting for him. However, a political party halted him in his tracks, declaring that as the 'Pride of Maharashtra', he would not go anywhere.
* Now all efforts to find Shiva a mate have been suspended as he has been declared too old to require any female company
* His enclosure, concrete pool and living quarters leave much to be desired.
* Shiva has lived a sad, totally dull life, devoid of any type of enrichment.
We sincerely request you to consider the following suggestions so that the quality of his life can be considerably improved. After so many years, this is the least that this long suffering animal deserves.
1. Provide novel objects for him to investigate and explore, such as a log of wood (12 feet long and about 20" in diameter), which he can nibble on, push around and play with.
2. Provide him with 'browse' (tree branches with leaves from non toxic trees), for him to strip and eat.
3. Install sprinklers, which can be activated a few times a day to keep him and the surrounding area cool.
4. As Rhinos in the wild pull creepers from trees to eat, portions of vines can be grown/hung on the outside wall of his living quarters for him to do likewise.
5. Rhinos like to eat grasses, leaves, branches of shrubs and trees, fruits and aquatic plants. They eat crops such as rice, maize, wheat and potato. They like herbs such as coriander during the monsoons, while apples are their all time favorites. Shiva's diet can be varied with the above options.
6. The food can be presented in varied novel ways such as hanging from a tree or a wall from where he can pull the food relieving boredom.
7. Prepare a mud wallow for Shiva to lie in. This helps thermo-regulation, skin conditions and helps to get rid of ectoparasites and biting insects.
8. His pool should be filled to the top with water and should be partially covered by some sort of roofing to provide shelter from the direct rays of the sun. This will also help to keep the temperature of the water down.
9. His entire enclosure should be made more pleasant for him by providing more natural elements such as trees, grass, large rocks and so on.
We hope you will consider the above suggestions favourably so that Shiva can be happy and contented for the last few years of his life.
Thank you for your consideration.
You are right that captive management of Javan Rhino would not be very different from Indian Rhinos. The Sumatran Rhino case you have cited is also a good example of a positive contribution by a zoo. But the suffering of individual animals in the overwhelming majority of captive breeding programmes is way too high. An item below. it has been started by an animal welfare group recently. I have seen the animal and he is in a terrible state, a victim of politics. Unfortunately, for zoo animals, his situation is not an exceptional one.
To,
The Superintendent,
Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan,
Mumbai
Subject: Shiva, the Rhino
Sir,
Shiva, the lone rhinoceros housed in Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan formerly known as Byculla Zoo, has been in solitary confinement for over two decades.
We would like to point out that over all these years, he has undergone immense and unnecessary suffering with regard to his living conditions and quality of life in the zoo, in the following ways:
* An animal from the cool and misty areas in the foothills of the Himalayas, Shiva has been forced to suffer the pollution, crowds, heat and dust of this city from the time he was brought here.
* His horn had been mysteriously removed at the time when he came to the zoo.
* He has never enjoyed the company of other Rhinos
* He has never had a mate as the Central Zoo Authority had declared his enclosure too small for two Rhinos.
* A few years ago he was granted his freedom by the Bombay High Court and preparations were made to send him to Ranchi Zoo in Jharkand, where a mate was waiting for him. However, a political party halted him in his tracks, declaring that as the 'Pride of Maharashtra', he would not go anywhere.
* Now all efforts to find Shiva a mate have been suspended as he has been declared too old to require any female company
* His enclosure, concrete pool and living quarters leave much to be desired.
* Shiva has lived a sad, totally dull life, devoid of any type of enrichment.
We sincerely request you to consider the following suggestions so that the quality of his life can be considerably improved. After so many years, this is the least that this long suffering animal deserves.
1. Provide novel objects for him to investigate and explore, such as a log of wood (12 feet long and about 20" in diameter), which he can nibble on, push around and play with.
2. Provide him with 'browse' (tree branches with leaves from non toxic trees), for him to strip and eat.
3. Install sprinklers, which can be activated a few times a day to keep him and the surrounding area cool.
4. As Rhinos in the wild pull creepers from trees to eat, portions of vines can be grown/hung on the outside wall of his living quarters for him to do likewise.
5. Rhinos like to eat grasses, leaves, branches of shrubs and trees, fruits and aquatic plants. They eat crops such as rice, maize, wheat and potato. They like herbs such as coriander during the monsoons, while apples are their all time favorites. Shiva's diet can be varied with the above options.
6. The food can be presented in varied novel ways such as hanging from a tree or a wall from where he can pull the food relieving boredom.
7. Prepare a mud wallow for Shiva to lie in. This helps thermo-regulation, skin conditions and helps to get rid of ectoparasites and biting insects.
8. His pool should be filled to the top with water and should be partially covered by some sort of roofing to provide shelter from the direct rays of the sun. This will also help to keep the temperature of the water down.
9. His entire enclosure should be made more pleasant for him by providing more natural elements such as trees, grass, large rocks and so on.
We hope you will consider the above suggestions favourably so that Shiva can be happy and contented for the last few years of his life.
Thank you for your consideration.
I think one problem for the Javan Rhino is the fact that there is no captive(backup) population whatsoever. So should the wild population(s) suffer further inroads through poaching or any other reason, there are no animals held in reserve should the need arise.
Unless some move is made soon to actively help the Vietnamese rhinos, I doubt that small group has any real longterm chance of survival.
Unless some move is made soon to actively help the Vietnamese rhinos, I doubt that small group has any real longterm chance of survival.
Having a backup captive population is personally a good idea as you can never preict what might happen. Nepals Indian rhino protection is a good example. That country had an excellent conservation program that involved locals and produce an axcellent income for them from tourism. The population in some of the National parks grew so much that some animals were transferred to other parks. Then political instability brought it all crashing down. I am unaware of what the situation is like now but it could have ended disatrously for the species in that country.
The problem for the Javan rhino being that the population is so small that removing even a few individuals, of the correct sexes, into captivity could be very difficult to achieve, while at the same time it could affect the wild population adversely- apart from the risks involved in capture/translocation.
But I think it might be the only successful answer for the Vietnamese rhinos at least.
But I think it might be the only successful answer for the Vietnamese rhinos at least.
I am extremely uneasy about further removal of Javan rhinos from the wild. Captive breeding of course plays a role in conservation however for this rainforest species to be put on display in a busy Western zoo is not going to lead to the sudden mass production of progeny.
Remember that most zoo visitors, unlike us I imagine, are noisey and disruptive, be that unintentional or otherwise.
All conservation effots for the Javan rhino should be applied in the field. Least we look to the captive situation of the Northern White to further emphasise my grim view?
And to remove a sizeable population from the wild, of at least 30 or so animals (if that number even exists), for any future young to be significantly genetically diverse, is ecologically unwarrented and sadly a waste of finance.