Story highlights
Sumatran rhino seen for the first time in a part of Borneo in 40 years
"This is an exciting discovery and a major conservation success"
The optimistic story of a Sumatran rhino took a dark turn when the mammal died weeks after a rare sighting.
The Sumatran rhino, a female, was caught in a pit trap on March 12. The World Wildlife Fund made the announcement of this discovery on Tuesday.
Now conservationists say the female rhino has died after raising hopes the species still roams the forests. Sumatran rhinos are one of two rhino species in Indonesia.
“This is an exciting discovery and a major conservation success,” said Efransjah Efransjah, the CEO of WWF-Indonesia. “We now have proof that a species once thought extinct in Kalimantan still roams the forests, and we will now strengthen our efforts to protect this extraordinary species.”
Conservationists cheered the rhino’s rediscovery, only to mourn the animal weeks later. It was unclear what killed the animal.