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Rhino Resource Center: Rhino Forums > Rhino Species > Javan Rhino > Re-Settling of Javan Rhinos

Posted by: ThomasW Feb 1 2012, 11:01 AM

Hi, I just wanted to know what came out of the plans to put some of the Javan Rhinos in Ujung Kulon somewhere else, preferably not next to an active vulcano? Is there any progress going on? It is sad that the world most rarest rhino seems to receive the least funding, the least political will to conserve it, and the smallest amount of scientific studies...

Posted by: ahariyadi Feb 3 2012, 02:06 AM

Hi, thank you for your post. Indonesian team (NGO, government, academics) are assessing several possibilities for 2nd habitat for javan rhino. At least two locations are identified, and government approval / endorsement is being sought at this point. Hopefully we can get the endorsement this year and start the work to prepare this habitat. In the mean time, selection for founders as well as preparation of transit site is underway. I hope this provides you with the information needed

Posted by: Rhinoman Sep 21 2012, 04:00 AM

Let us hope if a second site does get the go ahead that it is very well protected with world rhino numbers falling a record rates every Javan rhino is so important for them to recover form what I understand the latest numbers are less than 40?

Posted by: ahariyadi Sep 27 2012, 10:13 AM

There is a good sign from the government that the plan for setting up the 2nd population is going to go ahead. However, more push and technical assistants from the conservation practitioners are needed to help the government with this plan. The latest population estimate is between 35-47 animals in Ujung Kulon NP.

Posted by: Rhinoman Sep 29 2012, 07:33 AM

Would you think the new park would be fenced?. Also since there appears to be more males than females maybe moving one or two males first to the new park would be a wise move?.

Posted by: arjun Oct 4 2012, 02:50 AM

It would be great to try to establish a captive breeding program for the Javans in the US in a private preserve where there would be no poachers or dangers of a natural disaster like the volcanos on Java erupting. Maybe the Javanese government would allow a few animals to come to the US. That would certainly help the species as indicated by trap cameras on the island that the rhinos are reproducing and rearing young.

Posted by: rsondaicus Oct 15 2012, 01:44 AM

QUOTE (arjun @ Oct 4 2012, 02:50 AM) It would be great to try to establish a captive breeding program for the Javans in the US in a private preserve where there would be no poachers or dangers of a natural disaster like the volcanos on Java erupting. Maybe the Javanese government would allow a few animals to come to the US. That would certainly help the species as indicated by trap cameras on the island that the rhinos are reproducing and rearing young. I would like to see that working with the Indian Rhino first, even though the habitat that works for that species could still be different from proper habitat for the Javan Rhino. Btw: There is no Javanese government, that would be the Indonesian government. Seeing how difficult it is to breed even the Indian Rhino in captivity it seems that establishing a second wild population in Sumatra would be a better option for the Javan Rhino and also there is no alternative to a second wild population anyway. Maybe it could be combined at some point with a semi-captive breeding center in natural habitat that might be much more successful for the Javan Rhino than for the Sumatran Rhino? I also think that with regard to headstarting such an effort the idea to "practice" with a few male rhinos first is a sound one that will assure that certain aspects of moving and reintroducing the Javan Rhinos are already tried and proven before the first female is caught. 3 decades have been lost for the Javan rhino with a stagnating or even decreasing population in Udjung Kulon. Where other rhino species thrived in the absence of poaching, the Udjung Kulon rhinos didn't. If we estimate a population of between 40 and 60 rhinos in UKNP 30 years back with a population growth of 2 to 5% per year we should today have a population of between 72 to 259 animals and obviously we are not even close to the lower, let alone the higher number, time to do something about that. By all accounts day to day management and poaching prevention in Udjung Kulon has been successful and it is a shame that despite this definite conservation success the Vietnamese population was annihilated right before our eyes and the establishment of a second population in Indonesia has been postponed for decades.

Posted by: rolandoamc Feb 11 2013, 06:38 AM

It would be great to try to establish a captive breeding program for the Javans in the US in a private preserve where there would be no poachers or dangers of a natural disaster like the volcanos on Java erupting. Maybe the Javanese government would allow a few animals to come to the US. That would certainly help the species as indicated by trap cameras on the island that the rhinos are reproducing and rearing young. Nice

Posted by: rsondaicus Feb 11 2013, 06:03 PM

QUOTE (rolandoamc @ Feb 11 2013, 06:38 AM) It would be great to try to establish a captive breeding program for the Javans in the US in a private preserve where there would be no poachers or dangers of a natural disaster like the volcanos on Java erupting. Maybe the Javanese government would allow a few animals to come to the US. That would certainly help the species as indicated by trap cameras on the island that the rhinos are reproducing and rearing young. Nice Why would you make an almost identical post to the one before mine - are you the same person posting under two names?