Has the Javan tiger become another dodo?
By Widyarto
SURABAYA (JP): Some regard the Javan tiger as an extinct species, while others contradict this assumption. Ironically, while the argument over the existence of the Javan tiger has yet to be resolved, its last habitat, in Meru Betiri National Park, East Java, is being threatened.
The 56,000-hectare national park is now subject to a 1,000,025-hectare area planned for a gold mining project. The park management strongly objects to the project, believing that within this reservation -- as the last holdout of its natural habitat -- there still lives, on the edge of extinction, several Javan Tigers.
In 1994, the WWF-Indonesia Program reported the extinction of the Javan tiger (Panthera tigris sondaica).
"It is not entirely true," Meru Betiri National Park's director, Indra Arinal, told a discussion on the Javan tiger, held in Bhayangkara University, Surabaya, last month.
"The people living around the national park have claimed one or two sightings (recently). Someone even offered me a tiger skin, priced at millions of rupiah. Based on these facts, can we declare the Javan tiger extinct?" Indra said.
"We can only confirmed its extinction if, after one year of tracking, the species' paw prints, trails, droppings or remains of prey are not found."
From July to November last year, the East Jakarta conservation office, in cooperation with provincial nature lovers' groups, tried to trace the tiger in the Meru Betiri area.
The team found the remains of a large trail, together with three smaller trails. "This may be the mark of a mother with three offspring," a member of the team, Wahyu Giri Prasetya said.
Later, they also found some fur, which could be evidence of the Javan tiger's existence.
The University of Indonesia could not conduct DNA testing on the fur due to a lack of facilities.
The fur was sent to an animal laboratory in Idaho, the U.S., in January this year.
Indra said he expected to get the results in August.
Half a century ago, Asia was the tiger's kingdom. Its population was spread throughout Indonesia, India, Malaysia and China. In the 18th century, it is estimated that its population was over 100,000.
Hundreds of years ago, this predator roamed from the east coast to the west coast of Indonesia, especially in mountainous area. The presence of Dutch colonies, combined with man's penetration into the interior began a dark era for the tiger. The tiger's beautiful pelt became prized items, sought by many European aristocrats.
The largest slaughter happened at the end of 18th century, reaching its peak in about the 1930s.
Official reports state that the last direct sighting of a Javan tiger was in 1974, when natural signs such as paw prints, feces, trail marks and prey remains were found. There have been no reports of sightings since then. The only physical remains to be seen are that of a stuffed Javan tiger in Bandung's zoological museum.
In the 1970s, the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature), together with the Ministry of Forestry's Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Preservation, attempted a photo-trap method. Previously, this method had successfully counted the population of Javan rhinoceroses (Rhinoceros sondaicus), known for their timidity with humans, in Ujung Kulon National Park, West Java.
WWF teams have predicted that the natural habitat of Javan tigers has shrunk to just the Meru Betiri area. In 1974, the WWF concluded that there are only 30 left in the area.
In 1990, the photo-trap method was attempted again by WWF. The result: the Javan tiger's population had sharply dropped. In their report, they estimated that only three to five tigers still roam Meru Betiri National Park.
Four years later, the WWF and the Directorate General of Forest Protection and Nature Preservation held another photo-trap in Meru Betiri. The outcome was devastating. A year of this method did not record any sightings of the tiger.
The WWF then declared the Javan tiger extinct.
But the Meru Betiri park management would not give up.
"We are determined to prove the existence of Javan tiger. This animal needs to be saved before its too late. Not only do we need to conserve the Javan tiger but Meru Betiri needs assistance." said Indra, who spends most of his time in the middle of the Meru Betiri jungle.
"Clues of the tiger's existence," Indra added, "still crop up. The animal's claw marks on tree trunks along Malangsari and Sember Lengser are still found. Marked as high as 205 centimeters and 250 centimeters, no other animal except the tiger can scratch that high."
Meru Betiri National Park is bordered by the eastern tip of Java and the coastal area facing the Indian Ocean and Javan Straight. It is in the Jember and Banyuwangi administration area.
Unfortunately, the park's existence is being threatened by the potential plan of turning the area into a gold mining sight. Exploration permits of one million hectares wee issued by the Ministry of Mines and Energy to PT Hatman and PT Timah Indonesia. A feasibility study has been conducted and will be presented next month in the House of Representatives.
"Please calculate the profit from gold exploration in the park and weigh it against the environmental damage it will cause," said Indra. "What we should realize is the loss to future generations, who will no longer be able to enjoy the park's flora and fauna. They will only hear the legend of the Javan tiger."