MIRI: The Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) rescued 48 crocodile eggs in Kuala Baram over the weekend.
The corporation said that they received an emergency call from a farm worker pertaining to the discovery last Saturday.
“The caller informed us about a huge crocodile at the farm. Acting on the information received, our swift wildlife action team (Swat) went to the farm. They did not find the crocodile, but they spotted 48 crocodile eggs.
“However, on Sunday they managed to capture the nine foot-long crocodile using the hook and line method. The eggs were later handed over to the crocodile farm in Kuala Baram for further action,” SFC said in a statement.
Apart from that, the corporation also received a python which was surrendered by a man who found the reptile at his house.
Meanwhile, another man from Long Selaan handed over a Bornean gibbon to SFC Miri Regional Office (MRO).
Both will be kept at the MRO before being released into the wild.
Crocodiles and pythons are protected species, whereas the Bornean gibbon or also known as ‘wak-wak’ is totally protected under the Wild Life Protection Ordinance 1998.
SFC chief executive officer Zolkipli Mohamad Aton, who is also the Controller of Wildlife, expressed his gratitude to the public for their act of consciousness in protecting wildlife.
He again emphasised that it is better to leave wild animals undisturbed.
“What if they become endangered or extinct? Our future generations will blame us for not protecting and conserving them.
“Therefore, we all must play our roles in conserving the existence of our wildlife.”
SFC urged anyone with information on illegal wildlife activities to contact the following hotlines — Kuching (019-8859996, 013-8110150), Sibu (019-8883561), Bintulu (019-8223449, 019-8332737), or Miri (019-8224566, 019-8290994).