Indonesian police made a horrifying discovery at the end of the month of January in the village of Majalengka, located in western Java.
Source: International Animal Rescue
Eight slow lorises were trapped in tiny boxes. Completely terrified, the animals only had a bit of food and no water. They were destined to be sent to another part of Indonesia, where their buyer was waiting for them, reports the site The Dodo.Slow lorises are small primates, which get their name from the Dutch word leoris, meaning clown. The nocturnal mammals are primarily insectivores. Certain sub-species are extremely rare, like the Horton Plains slender loris, only five of which have been seen since 1937.
Source: International Animal Rescue
The lorises saved by the Indonesian police, calledNycticebus javanicus, are a part of the 25 most endangered primate speciesby theInternational Union for Conservation of Nature. Despite this particularly alarming situation, the Java loris continues to be stolen from their natural habitat to be sold as pets.After the man's arrest, the animals were taken to the International Animal Rescue (IAR), specialized in the rehabilitation of wild animals.
Source: International Animal Rescue
The day before the rescue, the association already received 16 other lorises, taken from a resident of Cirebon, also in West Java. In total, 24 slow lorises were rescued in the space of 24 hours. One of them, a newborn, sadly didn't survive the traumatic conditions of his capture and detainment.
Source: International Animal Rescue
Christine Rattel, program advisor for the IAR, told The Dodo :
Usually, the mortality rate of confiscated lorises is high. Traders load the lorises together in small, cramped crates after poaching them from the wild, and this causes them wounds, stress and sometimes serious medical problems that may even result in death.
Christine Rattel added that 80% of these animals don't even make it to the pet market after capture.
Source: International Animal Rescue
The surviving lorises saved by the IAR at the end of January are in relatively good health. They notably still have their teeth, which are often extracted from the captured animals to stop them from biting and make them easier to manipulate.
The simple fact of keeping their teeth is promising for the animals. This allows them to have a chance of returning to the wild.
Source: International Animal Rescue
The Java loris is still threatened, and Internet trafficking is booming. The Indonesian police and government, are working with the IAR, to do everything possible to identify buyers and vendors, to put a halt to the trafficking.
Karmele Llano Sanchez, director of the IAR's rehabilitation program, applauds the efforts made by authorities.
Source: International Animal Rescue
You can help support the IAR's efforts by making a donation here.
H/t: The Dodo
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