INDONESIA: Strange new carnivore species sighted in Borneo

Environmental researchers are preparing to capture what they call a new, mysterious species of carnivore on Borneo, the first such discovery on the wildlife-rich Indonesian island in over a century. Swiss-based environmental group WWF announced on Monday (December 5) its researchers photographed the strange animal, which looks like a cross between a cat and a fox, in the dense, central mountainous rainforests of Borneo. The WWF said the finding could be the first time in more than a century that a new carnivore has been discovered on the island. "It's quite interesting to see that even in the 21st century there are still many new species to be discovered in Borneo. During the last 10 years many new species of animals and plants have been discovered already. So most of these are insects, plant species, some frogs, some fish species but it's really quite spectacular to find a new mammal species. Of course, mammals are bigger than insects and people have been doing research on mammals for quiet a while, but it would be very sensational if our discovery would turn out to be a real new carnivore species," WWF's field researcher Stephen Wulffraat said on Tuesday (December 6). The mammal, slightly larger than a cat with red fur and a long tail, was photographed twice by a camera trap at night. Locals and wildlife experts who viewed photographs of the animal, which has very small ears and large hind legs, said they had never seen such a creature before and were convinced that it was a new species, WWF said. "Several mammal specialists all over the world have seen the pictures of this strange new mammal and they have commented on these, compared them to other known species, people even mentioned that it could be a kind of 'lemur' which is a kind of primate from Madagascar. We are of the opinion that most likely animal related to a civet or to another small carnivore species. However, the only way for us is to make sure whether it's a new species or not is by getting a specimen. So until we have found a live specimen, we can never say for sure whether it's a new species or not," said Wulffraat, a Dutch biologist overseeing the research on the new species. Researchers hope to confirm the discovery by setting cage traps to catch a live specimen, but warn that Indonesian government plans to clear the rainforest to create the world's largest palm oil plantation may interfere with plans. The proposed plantation scheme, funded by the China Development Bank, is expected to cover an area of 1.8 million hectares, equivalent to about half the size of The Netherlands, said the WWF, formerly known as the World Wide Fund for Nature. "To make sure that we can protect this potential new species and all the other new species that have been found in the interior of Kalimantan, in Borneo, we have to make sure that the areas, the habitat where these animals and plants live are well protected. Fortunately one large part of the interior of Borneo has already been protected as a national park, which is Kayan Mentarang National Park and there's also Betung Kerihun National Park. So there are good steps that have been taken for the conservation of the interior of Borneo. Of course, we hope that for the future, the protected areas can be well managed and safeguard for the future," said Wulffraat, adding that rampant and unchecked illegal logging also continues to dwindle the country's forests. The potential new species of carnivore in Borneo would be the first since the discovery of the Borneo ferret-badger in 1895, the WWF said. Pictures of the animal were first taken by WWF researchers in 2003, the photos kept unpublished by the WWF as research continued. The WWF decided to make public the photos with the release of a book about Borneo, published on Tuesday (December 6).

ITN Source | December 9, 2005

Tags:. .however. .funded. .wide. .fish. .potential