Conservationists recently captured a live Sumatran rhino in Indonesian Borneo, marking the first time in 40 years researchers have made contact with the critically endangered species, the World Wildlife Foundation said on Tuesday.
The Sumatran rhino was believed to be extinct until 2013, when World Wildlife Fund researchers found rhino tracks and later captured an picture of one on a trap camera, the World Wildlife Fund said in a statement.
There are fewer than 100 Sumatran rhinos living in the wild, according to the organization.
On March 12, a female Sumatran rhino was captured in a pit trap. She is being held in a temporary enclosure and will be transported to a protect forest area, where she will be used to begin a breeding program, Pak Efransjah, CEO WWF-Indonesia said in a statement.
“This is a race against time for rhino conservation," Efransjah said. "Providing a safe home is the only hope for the the survival of the Sumatran rhino for many generations to come."
Although they are still large, Sumatran rhinos are the smallest of the living rhinos, according to WWF. They also have two horns, which sets them apart from other Asian rhinos.
