Deer population at Bogor Palace concerns officials<\/p>\n
BOGOR (JP): The 804 deer grazing on the 28-hectares Bogor
\nPalace grounds is worrying the palace staff because of the
\nlimited amount of grass for their feeding.<\/p>\n
According to the palace head of protocol Endang Sumitra, the
\ngrass on the 20 hectares allowed for feeding the deer is only
\nsufficient for feeding 500 deer.<\/p>\n
\"This is one of the primary problems the Bogor Palace is
\nfacing,\" Endang told The Jakarta Post on Monday.<\/p>\n
He admitted that the problem was not the first time it has
\noccurred. The deer population at the palace, which celebrated its
\n518th anniversary early this month, also was overcrowded in 1979
\nwith some 900 deer.<\/p>\n
\"We (at the time) settled the problem by distributing the deer
\nto zoos and animal shelters in Indonesia, including the Taman
\nSafari park in Cisarua, West Java,\" Endang said.<\/p>\n
What the palace staff most worries about is a drought, similar
\nto the long dry season of two or three years ago.<\/p>\n
\"The 20 kinds of grass at the palace grounds usually become
\ndry,\" he said.<\/p>\n
According to him, the deer have never been considered a bother
\nby palace officials or guards even though the animals are free to
\nroam.<\/p>\n
\"They are sensitive and private creatures, who find strategic
\nand isolated places when they want to deliver their young, or
\ndie. When their horns fall off, the palace cleaners usually
\ncollect them and hand them over to the palace,\" she said.<\/p>\n
\"In the past, some of the horns were sent to Tampak Siring
\nPalace (in Bali) where they are used as a tool to hit the
\ntraditional gamelan musical instruments,\" Endang said.<\/p>\n
Rumors have it that some of the deer have been slaughtered by
\nthe palace staff and guards for eating.<\/p>\n
According to Endang, the deer at the palace were brought in by
\nthe Dutch colonial governor general Herman Willem Daendels in
\n1808.<\/p>\n
He bought three pairs taken from the border of India and
\nNepal, he said.<\/p>\n
But a report said that the six deer were brought to the park
\nby British governor general Thomas Stanford Raffles in 1811.<\/p>\n
In 1992, police arrested a group of men for stealing 37 deer
\nfrom the palace. One of the suspects admitted to having sold some
\nof the stolen animals for between Rp 2 million and Rp 3 million
\neach. (21\/ylt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/deer-population-at-bogor-palace-concerns-officials-1447893297",
"image": ""
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