Bornean Sun Bear Conservation

Category: poaching | Date: Apr 29 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

Press Release: Forestry Department. Sandakan

Armed Men Lay Siege Of The District Forestry Office BaseCamp At Ulu Segama Forest Reserve, Lahad Datu 

On the evening of 2nd April 2009, at about 09:00p.m., a group of some 20 men, armed withmachetes, brass knuckles, hockey sticks, samurai swords, rambo knives, sticks and othercontraptions, laid siege of the Ulu Segama-Malua District Forestry Office Base Camp, atSungai Kawag, Ulu Segama Forest Reserve, Lahad Datu, some 45km from the junction of theLahad Datu-Kunak Highway. 

In the one hour incident, the District Forestry Officer, Indra Sunjoto, was dragged, slashed,beaten up repeatedly and left unconscious. He ended up badly bruised, bloodied with a gushwound on his head which required several stitches and subsequent specialist treatment. Atthe same time, other staff who tried to come to the aide of the District Forestry Officer werethreatened with bodily harm by the intruders, brandishing their weapons and contraptions.

It is believed that the group of men are those who have habitually entered Ulu Segama ForestReserve, including the INFRAPRO Forest Restoration area, to carry out illegal poaching forwild animals. The records show that, not only deer are hunted, but other wildlife, includingprotected species (elephants, clouded leopards etc.) that are shot at random. The siege mayhave been triggered by action taken earlier in the day by the District Forestry Officer toapprehend a suspected illegal hunter, who managed to escape but had his bounty of fresh deermeat and motorcycle confiscated. 

The group of men also damaged Forestry Department vehicles parked in the base camp, theransacking of the labourers quarters, and the carting away of food, the confiscated meat andseveral confiscated motorcycles, including that seized on the same day.During the incident, it was unfortunate that the police could not be contacted in time as the telecommunication system had broken down in Ulu Segama. Furthermore, the intruders broke and forced their way through the guard posts manned by both Forestry Department and Yayasan Sabah staff along the road to the base camp. 

This incident is a culmination of earlier skirmishes with illegal hunters in Ulu Segama thatincluded: intimidation and threatening of Yayasan Sabah, WWF and Forestry Departmentstaff in the field, with weapons to cause bodily harm and physical assault in one case.It would appear that the perpetrators, believed to be substance abusers, were in a highlyintoxicated state during the siege.

The Forestry Department would like to thank the police, in particular, the Commissioner andthe OCPD Lahad Datu, for taking swift action to make arrests of several suspects and it isbelieved, investigations are still ongoing for eventual charging in court. 

As an interim measure to boost security in Ulu Segama, the Forestry Department, despite thehigh costs, has now engaged the services of a security firm with armed personnel, to guardthe base camp and Forestry Department personnel carrying out patrols. The police has alsokindly allocated personnel from the General Operations Force (PGA) on rotation basis, tobeef up security in Ulu Segama Forest Reserve.

As a long-term measure, the Forestry Department is in the process of reviving and applyingfor a gun licence, so that field personnel in critical areas, can at least defend themselves, inthe event of attacks from intruders. 

Contrary to conventional wisdom, the group of men who attacked the base camp, are believedto be local Malaysians, who reside in a settlement, some 2 hours drive from the base camp.Such an incident, whereby, public officers have been assaulted and public propertiesdamaged, has not happened in the department for decades. The last known assault of thisnature, was in 1954, whereby the District Forestry Officer, Lahad Datu, was sadly killed byforeign pirates in Semporna, while carrying out his duties. 

Evidently, based on the words uttered by the perpetrators, the siege was meant to intimidatethe Forestry Department, particularly its field staff, so as to let the illegal hunting to go onwithout hindrance, on the excuse of “cultural harvesting.” 

Evidently also, it was a warning to the District Forestry Officer, not to meddle and to takeaction on illegal activities in the reserve. There is also reason to believe, the assault wasmeant to hurt the District Forestry Officer badly if not to maim and perhaps, to finish him off, altogether. 

This incident cannot be taken as an isolated case as it appears to have been planned formaximum damage. Furthermore, the state’s collaborative programmes with internationalNGOs and other entities in the area, will be badly affected if incidences of illegal hunting andassaults continue. These projects include: the Yayasan Sabah Research Programme with theRoyal Society of the United Kingdom at Danum Valley, the FACE Foundation ForestRestoration Project at Ulu Segama, with the FACE Foundation of The Netherlands, the WWFForest Restoration Programmes at the Northern Ulu Sgama area funded by the AddesiumFoundation of The Netherlands, and Marks & Spencers of the United Kingdom and therecently launched, Malua Bio-Bank Project at Malua Forest Reserve. The eco-tourismfacilities owned by Yayasan Sabah, Borneo Rainforest Lodge, will also eventually be badlyaffected by illegal hunting thus jeopardising tourism. 

The actions of a few irresponsible elements may potentially jeopardise the long-termreputation of Sabah in particular, and the country in general, as a safe haven for eco-tourism,ecological and scientific research projects, coupled with forest restoration, on an internationaleffort. 

The Forestry Department therefore, considers this incident as very serious and have fullconfidence in the Royal Malaysia Police, Sabah Contingent, in apprehending the suspects andhaving them charged in court for appropriate offences, and to prevent further occurrences.This press release appears as a matter of public record and for public information.

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PHOTOS

Photo OneDistrict Forestry Officer attempting to use the phone after being attacked. Notice his bloodiedhead. Photo TwoSmashed up Forestry Department vehicle in the base camp. Photo ThreeWash basin broken in an attempt to smash the District Forestry Officer’s head against it. Photo FourDead female Bornean pygmy elephant. Believed shot at random by illegal hunters in Ulu Segama. District Forestry Officer standing by it. Photo FiveDecapitated and skinned deer meat confiscated in Ulu Segama. Photo SixDead clouded leopard, in the FACE Foundation area, shot by illegal hunters. Photo SevenA male tembadau in Malua. Carcases have been found in the Ulu Segama-Malua SFM Project Area.

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Category: BSBCC, Research, education | Date: Apr 29 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

The first academic visit to BSBCC Sepilok happened on 1^st April 2009 with a group of 6 graduate students from University Putra Malaysia (UPM). These students are interested on conducting various studies on both wild and captive sun bears. The visit marked an important step to link to achieve our goal to conduct more research with universities and other research agencies. Conducting more research on Sun Bears is one of our mission and goal in BSBCC. Cheryl Cheah, Wong Wee Nee, Katharine, Tan Hwee Mien, Grace and Helman are the researchers under the UPM’s Sun Bear Research Group which is lead by Professor Abdul Rani Bahaman and Dr. Reuben Sunil Kumar Sharma. The group was founded since 2007 and it aimed to get more comprehensive researches on the only bear species in Malaysia. 

During the 7 days visit, these students were being introduced to various techniques and skills that are useful to study the wild sun bear. Skills were included sun bears signs identification, camera trapping and live trapping. Besides that, they were also showed on the daily operations in our centre.

BSBCC is happy to see there are more researchers interested on our forgotten bear. I am sure with the visit we had built up a stronger relation between UPM and BSBCC. We are looking forward to learn, share information, and help the sun bear together in the coming days.

5 responses so far

Category: Siew Te Wong, beartrek | Date: Apr 29 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

It was truly a fun evening with a lot of laughter with Chris Morgan, Joe Pontecorvo, John Taylor, and many others from the BEARTREK family and guests that make it to the party on April 23^rd to cerebrate the achievement that Wildlife Media accomplished and keep the spirit of Beartrek high.

The evening was joined by over a hundred guests and fans of bear and BEARTREK. It was a fun evening that brought up a lot of the sweet memories and stories during the filming in Bornean rainforest, Cerah the little sun bears, and the blood sucking leeches.

 I would like to take this opportunity to specially thank Chris and John over and over again to feature sun bear and pick me to work with in the movie. I really hope BEARTREK will change the faith of sun bear- the least known bear and a forgotten bear species, so that people around the world will know and help a little bear call sun bears!

  Below is a thank you letter from Chris Morgan:

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April 24, 2009

What an evening!

On behalf of Wildlife Media staff and board, thank you for joining us in celebration last night. It was an evening to remember. Truly, Wildlife Media (WM) couldn’t have come this far without your help and support. So it was a real treat to share the presentation and BEARTREK demo reel with you in a place as fun as the Big Picture.

Speaking of treats, we hope you also enjoyed biologists Robyn Appleton and Siew Te Wong who shared their “bear worlds” with us. Their stories from the field remind us of the importance and benefits of working with local communities on conservation. And their stories are only two of many to be told through BEARTREK.

I’d like to recognize just a few of the people behind last night’s event. WM co-founder, CEO, and board chair John Taylor was instrumental in making this celebration happen. Plus, photographer Tim Chandonnet donated his time to capture the night in pictures. To see and purchase photos from the evening, visit Tim’swebsite. Fifty percent of photo sales go directly to Wildlife Media.

One last note: We want to keep you up-to-speed on our work to help fund critical wildlife projects around the globe. So beginning with this message, you’ll be hearing more from us on how Wildlife Media and BEARTREK are making a real difference. If you’d like to help spread the word to others, sharing the links below is an excellent place to start:

 20-min. BEARTREK demo reel

Wildlife Media website

Thank you again, everyone, for a memorable evening!

Best regards,

Chris Morgan

Executive Director, Producer

Wildlife Media, including BEARTREK the movie and campaign

Scientist and Conservationist

A group photo of the Wildlife Media board and staff, myself and Andean bear biologist Robyn Appleton that wrapped up the happy evening.

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Category: BSBCC | Date: Apr 22 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

BSBCC would like to wish all beings on Earth a Happy EARTH Day!

May we all bring a better future for all beings and Mother EARTH!

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Category: beartrek | Date: Apr 21 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

I will be traveling to Seattle to join Wildlife Media and John Taylor’s social gathering at the elegant boutique movie venue ‘The Big Picture’ in Seattle on April 23, 2009 at 6:00 pm. The evening is a celebration of what we have accomplished so far for BEARTREK, the movie.

Join Seattle film maker Joe Pontecorvo* and renowned bear biologist Chris Morgan* for a party to present BEARTREK, a global motorcycle adventure and epic homegrown film in support of worldwide bear conservation.

So, Seattle, here I come!

* Joe Pontecorvo’s film “Kingdom of the Elephants” won “Best Natural History or Wildlife Program,” “Best Cinematography,” and “Best Direction” at the Asian Television Awards in December 2008.  Joe and Chris are also currently working on a PBS Nature/National Geographic TV Special on the bears of Alaska.

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Category: beartrek | Date: Apr 19 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

Original posting: http://www.bellinghamherald.com/255/story/875411.html 

Bellingham ecologist makes bear documentary to save wild places

KIE RELYEA - THE BELLINGHAM HERALD 

Bellingham ecologist Chris Morgan is taking his BMW motorcycle on a journey to four continents in search of the world’s endangered bears - an epic adventure being made into a feature-length documentary called “Beartrek.” 

The goal isn’t just to show the bears in their habitat, stunning as the wild coast of Katmai, Alaska, and the rainforest canopy of Borneo, Malaysia, may be when shot in high definition.

The idea is to raise money for conservation efforts by selling audiences on why wild bears in wild places should matter to people, to spin an entertaining tale that will do for conservation what Al Gore did for climate change in “An Inconvenient Truth.”  

“They represent these wild places that we all need. Where you’ve got bears, you’ve got fresh water, you’ve got clean air, you’ve got intact forest and ecosystems,” Morgan said one day over coffee. “They need those things, and so do we.” 

“Beartrek,” which is still being shot, follows Morgan and his motorcycle to seven locations in Canada, Alaska, Peru, India, Borneo and Mongolia. In addition to Morgan, who also narrates the film, the featured stars will be giant brown bears in Alaska, polar bear cubs in Canada and Alaska, sloth bears in India, sun bears in Borneo, elusive Andean bears in Peru, and brown bears in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. 

INSPIRED BY SCIENCE

Morgan grew up in England and had plans, early on, to become a graphic designer.When he was 18, the outdoors lover came to New Hampshire to teach kids at a summer camp how to fish. And that was where a bear biologist’s presentation sent his life in a new direction.“I was transfixed. I had no idea you could do that kind of thing in life,” he said. 

Morgan would go on to become an ecologist specializing in bears and, over the years, he would work on each of the four continents where bears existed. 

“Everywhere I went, I could see biologists who were struggling to do this important work with limited funds and limited exposure,” Morgan said. Locally, he’s known for the Grizzly Bear Outreach Project, which he started some six years ago to educate the public about the dwindling number of grizzly bears in the North Cascades. 

Morgan said there are probably about 10 grizzlies remaining within 10,000 square miles in the Cascades. Those square miles were designated as a grizzly bear recovery zone in 1991. 

“So they’re practically the walking dead,” he said. “They are highly endangered, one of the rarest populations of mammals in North America.” 

As Morgan continued his own work, he mulled over the idea of supporting the other scientists he’d met as well as using his particular talent for making people “hyped and inspired by our wild places.” Morgan landed on the idea of doing that through bears, iconic creatures who are in peril. Five out of the world’s eight species are at risk. 

“Bears capture people’s imagination like no other creatures,” he said. “People love them or loathe them, but they’re seldom indifferent about them.” 

SAVING BEARS BY ENTERTAINING PEOPLE

Morgan hatched the idea for “Beartrek” over a beer with Joe Pontecorvo, a Seattle-based wildlife filmmaker and producer. They met in Alaska while Morgan was guiding a group of people to see brown bears, also known as grizzlies, and Pontecorvo was filming bears for PBS. 

Pontecorvo said he needed to do more for conservation, and while nature films were good for “spectacle,” not enough was being done to protect the planet. 

He and Morgan also wanted to tell the good news about existing efforts. 

“I always say we all know the sky is falling when it comes to the environment, but there are also some really good ways to prop up the sky,” Morgan explained. “We can change the course of events.” 

And do it in a way that draws gearheads and environmentalists into theaters, “not just the already converted,” Pontecorvo said. 

That’s where Morgan’s motorcycle comes in. He and Pontecorvo figured that a story about a guy riding his BMW through the back roads into the wild would appeal to adventurers out there, even if they’re not green. 

“Beartrek” also is a wildlife documentary meant to entertain along the lines of “March of the Penguins” and “Winged Migration.” And like those films, Morgan and other conservationists who started the venture hope to release “Beartrek” in theaters as well as DVD, TV, the Internet, and any medium that will spread the message. 

Pontecorvo also sees “Beartrek” as a new model for conservation in that its profits will be sunk into bear conservation. Existing conservation efforts and the scientists behind them already are getting help, even though the documentary isn’t finished. “They couldn’t wait,” Pontecorvo said. 

Some $25,000 to $30,000 worth of materials and aid, including cash, already have gone to biologists working to save bears. “It doesn’t have to be an awful lot of money. It goes so far in the places where they need it most,” Morgan said. 

The overall project is being handled by Wildlife Media, a nonprofit started in September 2007 to manage “Beartrek” and the goal of raising $2 million, with half of that going directly to bear projects around the world, including those featured in the film. 

BEARS’ VIEW

Bear and motorcycle enthusiasts don’t have to wait until the film is finished to see Morgan and Pontecorvo’s beautiful handiwork. A 20-minute demo reel of their venture to Alaska and Borneo already is being used to raise private dollars for the documentary and conservation projects. 

“Beartrek” opens with sweeping views of the rugged Katmai coast in Alaska, where giant brown bears, or grizzlies, gather in big numbers each year. 

“These bears start life the weight of a squirrel and end life the weight of a car,” Morgan narrates, as bears run around a stream and snatch salmon from the water. 

These are the largest, most impressive bears in the world, living in one of the most intact ecosystems, Morgan said in a separate interview. They can weigh as much as 1,500 pounds and are capable of consuming 30,000 calories a day. 

Contrast that with the second part of the demo, where Morgan travels to Borneo in search of the sun bear - the smallest bear species in the most diverse place in Asia. A big sun bear weighs 100 pounds. 

There, Morgan rides his motorcycle into a rainforest being logged - 50 percent has been lost in the past 20 years - make way for palm-oil plantations that stretch for mile after mile. Palm oil is found in many everyday products, from ice cream to cosmetics. It’s also a bio fuel, and the world’s hunger for it is destroying the habitat for sun bears and other wildlife. 

In Borneo, Morgan meets up with Siew Te Wong, a biologist trying to save the bears, including an orphaned sun bear club named “Chera,” which means “bright” in Malay. 

Pontecorvo recorded Chera, then 10 months old, being released from a cage and playing, first hesitantly then with abandon. 

“It was the most amazing thing to watch,” the filmmaker said. 

Morgan is raising money to go on the next shoot in Peru, home to the most ancient bear species on the planet - the threatened Andean bear, so rarely seen that biologists don’t know how many still exist. The Peru shoot will cost about $95,000, and a little over half has been raised. The hoped-for theatrical release date for “Beartrek” is 2010. 

“What we want to do is make conservation a social norm,” he said. “I know that sounds like a huge goal, and it is.”  

Reach KIE RELYEA at kie.relyea@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2234. 

TO LEARN MORE

• Additional information about “Beartrek” and Wildlife Media, including how to make a tax-deductible donation to the making of the feature-length film and bear conservation efforts, is available online at wildlifemedia.org.

• Find Grizzly Bear Outreach Project at bearinfo.org.

• More on Joe Pontecorvo, the wildlife filmmaker who’s shooting “Beartrek,” at joepontecorvo.com.

Watch a 20-minute short of “Beartrek”

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Category: BSBCC, sanctuary | Date: Apr 18 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

Started from the 1^st of April 2009, we had hired another staff in our bear centre at Sepilok, Sabah. Now, with one more helping hand, the 12 sun bears housed in the centre will definitely receive more love, care and attention.  

Our new staff, David bins Daiz, 31 years old, a local Kadazan people. He worked in the army for 5 years, and has a lot of experiences in the forest. Now, he is hired as a trainee bear keeper. David will be train to look after our sun bears from preparing bear food, cleaning cages to enriching the bear exercise enclosures.

David is energetic and fit to do his job. He shows great responsible to all the tasks that assigned to him. Although David is still new to this field, his passion to the bears and hard works were recognized by every body in the centre. For sure he can picked up and get used to it very soon.  We all glad that David has joined us together!   David is preparing food for the bears.

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Category: SBCT UK, captivity, conservation, sanctuary | Date: Apr 17 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

Over Easter I was lucky enough to see the two beautiful Cambodian Sun Bears at the Rare Species Conservation Centre (RSCC), home to a unique collection of some of the world’s lesser known rare and endangered species of animal. As my husband Maurice and I arrived, ironically, the sun came out and Todd Dalton, ( Rare Species Conservation Trust) introduced us to his beloved Srey-Ya and Jo-Jo, playing happily in the sunshine (Read more about Srey-Ya and Jo-Jo at http://sunbears.wildlifedirect.org/2008/11/11/brit-saves-rare-bears-from-being-eaten/). Jo-Jo was busy working on his ‘bear ice-lolly’ trying to claw out the tasty treats of fruits and coconut hidden inside and Srey-Ya was roaming about around the spacious outdoor enclosure, climbing logs and splashing in the pool! The centre is set over 2 acres and landscaped with lush sub-tropical plants and houses a wonderful array of unusual animals in very natural, spacious enclosures with indigenous plants and noticeably planned enrichment. Apart from the beautiful sun bears we marvelled at Malayan tapirs, Binturong, Asian Bearcats, White Cheeked Gibbons and a pair of Snow Leopard to name a few. The majority of the animals kept at RSCC are part of EEP and ESP breeding programs (European endangered species programmes) and they support many In-situ conservation projects (see below for contact/w.. The sun stayed out and we spent the afternoon watching the bears and observing other rare species like the glorious,brightly-coloured Cuban flamingoes and strikingly powerful Madagascan Fossa and very vocal, active Smooth Coated Otters!

The Sun Bear Conservation Trust is honoured to have the support, here in the U.K, of Todd Dalton and the centre and is to hold a ‘Sun Bear Weekend’ over the May Bank Holiday (24th & 25th May), an event celebrating and raising awareness and money for sun bears (funds to go to BSBCC in Sabah). There will be an array of stalls, manned by SBCT members, selling merchandise, arts and crafts, home-made cakes and, for the children, face-painting and ‘ice your own’ gingerbread sun bears! Wai-Ming Wong PhD student, based at Kent University (researching Sumatran sun bears) and SBCT member will kindly be providing an information stand answering visitor’s questions.

More news on the upcoming event will be posted here soon!  

RSCC is owned by Rare Species Conservation Trust.

UK Registered charity no. 1119230

info@rarespeciesconservationcentre.org

www.rarespeciesconservationcentre.org  

Julie Trump - Chairman - Sun Bear Conservation Trust

E-mail: julie.trump@btinternet.com

Srey-Ya was roaming in his enclosure.

Jo-Jo like to climb high to have a good view of the conservation centre.

 This is the size of the cage where people kelp bears in bear farm Asia. Imagine anyone being kept in this kind of environment for the rest of their life and to have their bile milk. Help us free the bears from cages!

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Category: BSBCC, captivity, sanctuary | Date: Apr 16 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

31st March was a special day in BSBCC. Everybody was cheered up as we were waiting for this moment for months. That’s because we were going to moved three bears into the new bear cages! Please read http://sunbears.wildlifedirect.org/2009/03/24/new-bear-cages-finally-done/. 

Susie was the first bear who moved into the new cage. Elis, SOURC ranger, sedated Susie and then she has a medical checked by Dr Cecilia. According to Dr., Susie health was much better compare to the first day Susie arrive at BSBCC last August. Anybody can tell the different on its fur and coating, it’s more shining now!  

Due to the shortage of bear cage, she was put into a 122 x 92 x 106cm cage for the last few months. However, now she can have a more spacious cage to stay and hang around! Nevertheless, she can go out to the exercise enclosure that full with dried leaves and branches!

Susie was kept in this small cage for several months while waiting the new bear cage to be finished. Susie also has a new neighbor, Kuamut. She was moved into the cage beside Susie. We hope that Kuamut will get used to her new home and neighbor very soon. Of course, she also can explore the exercise enclosure just like others. If you are our loyal reader, you will remember Kuamut was a pet before with two heavy chains on her neck. Please read story about Kuamut at http://sunbears.wildlifedirect.org/2009/02/18/kuamut-our-latest-rescued-sun-bear/.

The last bear we moved was Suria, the youngest in the centre. She was put into the cage beside Kuamut. For sure, Suria likes her new home very much. Suria was so keen on her cage and started to explore at every corner once she was recovered from the sedation. She even started to climb for the first time! However, we found out that her arm muscle was not strong enough, and need to depend on her teeth to grab on the bars. We are still optimist that Suria can build up her muscle and climbing skills very soon!

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Category: Research, Siew Te Wong, conservation, rainforest, sun bear in the wild | Date: Apr 16 2009 | By: Siew Te Wong

Monday, March 30, 2009

Protecting the world’s least-known bear

Posted by: WPZ Field Conservation staff

at http://woodlandparkzblog.blogspot.com/2009/03/protecting-worlds-least-known-bear.html

Southeast Asia is home to the world’s smallest bear species, the Malayan sun bear. These little bears face big threats throughout their range, especially from forest destruction, illegal hunting, and the capturing of small cubs for pets.
 

Luckily this unique bear has a champion and protector in Siew Te Wong, a Malaysian researcher and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Montana. Woodland Park Zoo has helped support Wong and his field work in Sabah, Borneo for several years. As one of the very few people studying the sun bear, Wong has uncovered many fascinating aspects of sun bear ecology. Sadly, though, his research also brought him first-hand experience of the inhumane treatment of sun bears kept as pets.

Wong’s deep concern for these animals has inspired a new and ambitious project: the creation of the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Center, a partnership between the Sabah Wildlife Department, the Sabah Forestry Department and nonprofit LEAP (Land Empowerment Animals People). The center will rehabilitate and release suitable ex-captive bears back into the wild, provide an improved long-term living environment for captive bears that cannot be released, and educate local people about the species. The project is endorsed by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums Sun Bear Species Survival Plan.

Read Wong’s field blog to learn more about sun bears in the wild. And you can also visit sun bears at Woodland Park Zoo.

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