KUCHING: A two-week old male sun bear and a green iguana, both identified as protected species, were surrendered to the Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) in Miri by two concerned citizens on Tuesday.
The sun bear was surrendered by a man from Long Liwok, Sg Layun Ulu Baram. Before that, he approached Telang Usan assemblyman Dennis Ngau for some advice.
The green iguana was surrendered by a woman who told SFC that her husband stumbled upon the animal on a road side near Piasau.
SFC chief executive officer Zolkipli Mohamad Aton, who is also the corporation’s wildlife controller, thanked Dennis for his assistance in the matter and also the two concerned citizens for surrendering the protected animals.
The green iguana is listed under Appendix II of Cities (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) of Wild Flora and Fauna.
According to Zolkipli, both the sun bear and the green iguana had been temporarily sheltered at Piasau Nature Reserve pending release into the wild.
“I’m grateful to the people of Miri for being conscious of their responsibilities in conserving our wildlife. Wild animals are best left undisturbed in the wild.”
He cautioned that any person found hunting, killing, capturing, selling or possessing any protected animal without a permit from the Controller of Wild Life, upon conviction, could face a jail term of up to one year and a fine of RM10,000.
He appealed to the public with information on wildlife sighting to use SFC’s hotlines in Kuching (019-8859996, 013-8110150), Sibu (019-8883561), Bintulu (019-8223449, 019-8332737), or Miri (019-8224566, 019-8290994).
