Luka Infeksi, Tiga Harimau Sumatera Mati di Aceh
Three Endangered Sumatran Tigers Found Dead in Indonesia
Editor : Ismail Gani
Translator : Novita Cahyadi
TIGA harimau Sumatera, termasuk dua anaknya, ditemukan mati di Aceh Selatan, Indonesia, karena infeksi luka akibat terkena perangkap para pemburu, berdasarkan bedah bangkai [nekropsi] oleh Balai Konservasi Sumber Daya Alam [BKSDA] Aceh.
Kepala BKSDA, Agus Arianto mengatakan bahwa induk dan anak harimau ditemukan tewas pada Selasa, di Kawasan Ekosistem Leuser, kawasan hutan konservasi harimau Provinsi Aceh. Mayat anak harimau laki-laki ditemukan sekitar lima meter terpisah dari induknya, pada Kamis [26/8].
Menurutnya, beberapa jebakan mirip dengan yang digunakan untuk menangkap babi hutan di peternakan, yang ditemukan dekat area mayat harimau.
"Menyetel perangkap babi di kawasan konservasi sangat tidak mungkin," kata Arianto, "Ini dimaksudkan untuk memburu hewan langka untuk keuntungan ekonomi."
Dia mengatakan pihaknya akan bekerja sama dengan lembaga penegak hukum dalam penyelidikan.
Harimau Sumatera, subspesies harimau yang paling terancam punah, berada di bawah tekanan yang meningkat akibat perburuan liar karena habitat hutan mereka menyusut, menurut The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Diperkirakan kurang dari 400 harimau sumatera yang tersisa di alam liar seperti dikutip Associated Press yang dilansir MailOnline.
Hal ini merupakan serangkaian pembunuhan hewan langka terbaru di pulau Sumatera. Konservasionis telah memperingatkan bahwa pandemi Covid-19 telah menyebabkan peningkatan perburuan liar, ketika penduduk desa beralih berburu karena alasan ekonomi.
THREE critically endangered Sumatran tigers, including two cubs, were found dead in a conservation area on Indonesia's Sumatra island after being caught in traps apparently set by a poacher, authorities said Friday.
The mother and a female cub were found dead Tuesday in the Leuser Ecosystem Area, a forested region for tiger conservation in Aceh province, said Agus Arianto, head of the conservation agency. The body of a male cub was found on Thursday about 5 meters (15 feet) away, he said.
An examination determined they died from infected wounds caused by traps, Arianto said.
He said several traps similar to ones used to capture wild pigs on farms were found in the area of the bodies.
"Setting traps for pigs in a conservation area is very unlikely," Arianto said, "This was intended to poach endangered animals for economic gain." He said his agency will cooperate with law enforcement agencies in an investigation.
Sumatran tigers, the most critically endangered tiger subspecies, are under increasing pressure due to poaching as their jungle habitat shrinks, according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It estimated fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers remain in the wild.
It was the latest in a series of killings of endangered animals on Sumatra island. Conservationists have warned that the coronavirus pandemic has led to increased poaching as villagers turn to hunting for economic reasons.
Early last month, a female tiger was found dead with injuries caused by a snare trap in South Aceh district.
An elephant was found without a head on July 11 at a palm plantation in East Aceh. Police arrested an alleged poacher along with four people accused of buying ivory taken from the dead animal.
Aceh police also arrested four men in June for allegedly poaching a tiger with a snare trap and selling its remains for 100 million rupiah ($6,900). Days later, another Sumatran tiger died after it ate a goat laced with rat poison in neighboring North Sumatra province.
