{March Thematic Report} Current Challenges on Wildlife Conservation in Indonesiaby Syahidah Charisa Nabila | 31-03-2023 20:28 |
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 Wildlife conservation is the act of protecting endangered species by preserving their natural habitat. Wildlife conservation refers to the practice of protecting, preserving and sustainably using according to the principles of the World Conservation Strategy for wild species and their habitats. The goal of conservation organizations is controlled breeding of plants and animals while maintaining the purity of their species. With the increasing risk of species extinction globally and in the context of wildlife conservation, it is necessary to take steps to restore habitat to restore lost species and species' threatened status. By conserving wildlife, we ensure that future generations can enjoy nature and the extraordinary species that live in it. Indonesia is a country with megabiodiversity. It is estimated that there are around 300,000 species of wild animals or 17% of the world's animals are found in Indonesia. Indonesia is also a habitat for endemic animals or animals that are only found specifically in Indonesia. Examples of endemic animals are the Komodo Dragon which only lives on Komodo Island and Anoa which is only found on Sulawesi and Buton Island. Other famous animals are Tarsiers, Babi rusa, Maleo Birds, and Sulawesi Hornbills. On the other hand, Indonesia is also known as a country that has a long list of endangered wildlife. Conflicts between humans and wildlife have continued to occur in various parts of Indonesia for the last five years. The rampant illegal wildlife trade, along with practices that significantly overlap with legal trade, is seen by environmentalists as a major threat to the conservation of many species in Indonesia. Illegal wildlife trade is suspected as the main cause of species extinction, which provides route of transmission and spread of disease. There are also many endangered species that are being traded without official licenses or permits. Illegal wildlife trade is a criminal act that is very influential for the balance of the ecosystem of living things in nature. As on 2021, more than 95% of the animals sold in the domestic market are caught directly from the wild, not as captive-bred products. According to the law conservation regulations in Indonesia, everyone is prohibited from catching, injuring, killing, storing, owning, maintaining, transporting, and trading wild animals. Ironically, until now, the wildlife trade business is now increasingly happening. Various types of protected and endangered animals are still traded freely in Indonesia. The rarer the animal, the more expensive it is. As a result of hunting activities, several types of animals were reported to have experienced a significant decrease in population numbers. Some of the threatened species are Javanese eagle (Spizaetus bartelsi), small yellow-crested cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea), Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) and the leopard (Panthera pardus melas). Beside that, the trend of exhibiting wild animals on social media by some celebrities and influencers actually triggers illegal trade and poaching of these animals. Generally, society already know that wild animals are not recommended to be kept as pets at home. However, there are still many people who keep these animals privately. For example, several famous influencers in various places who act as wildlife collector often show off their wild animals, both directly and on social media. This will be dangerous because it can instill the wrong perception in the general public that the act of keeping endangered and wild animals is normal and legal. Many species of wildlife such as birds, mammals, fish and reptiles are forced to leave their habitat to satisfy human desires. Nurturing them is tantamount to us torturing them. Keepers will never be able to meet the needs of these animals as they live in the wild. Not only that, keeping wild animals is also a risk for animals and humans themselves. Diseases can be transmitted easily from animals to humans and vice versa. The spread of the disease can be through bites, touch or contaminated food and drink. As fellow living beings, human needs to be aware of and sensitive to issues of illegal hunting and wildlife trade. Wild animals actually live in the forest and are not supposed to be illegally traded or even being kept as pets. What we can do to deal with these issues is to break the chain of the negative trend. If there is an opinion that the forest has been damaged, then what should be done is to protect and care for the forest so that it can become a suitable place for wild animals, instead of trading and keeping wild animals at home. Instead of spending tens of millions of rupiah to take care of pet wild animals, it is better to divert these funds to take part in donation programs that work in the field of wildlife conservation. We can also become foster parents for wild animals that have lost their parents to be released back into their actual environment. Society can also support the efforts made by the government and other institutions regarding environmental preservation. One way is to support the campaign to prevent the illegal trade and private captive breeding of wild animals. |
