Endangered Animals
Malaysia, a rainforest country where all types of animals are able to live together peacefully - or that was what used to happen many years ago. Now, some of these animals are under serious threat and are facing the possibility of becoming extinct.
In the last few decades, Malaysia's virgin rainforests have been diminished and replaced by rubber and oil palm plantations as well as settlement schemes. The forests have also been extensively logged. Destruction of the forests and of geological formations, coupled with environmental pollution, are slowly decimating Malaysia's rich natural heritage. In particular, the survival of many of Malaysia's wildlife species is threatened. Legal hunting and illicit poaching of wildlife for sport and commerce, the demands on wildlife for scientific and medical research, the widespread use of pesticides and herbicides, and the needs of zoos as well as the pet trade are all taking further toll on the wildlife of Malaysia. The commercial demands for animal products—skin and fur for clothes, and meat for its purported therapeutic and aphrodisiac values—also threaten the survival and existence of many species.
Top Five Endangered species found in Malaysia:
Species Name
Image
Scientific Name
Group
Range
4. Mouse Deer
Tragulus kanchil
Mammals
Indochina, Burma (isthmus of Kra), Brunei, Cambodia, China (S Yunnan), Indonesia (Kalimantan, Sumatra, and many small islands), Laos, Malaysia (peninsular Malaya, Sarawak, and many small islands), Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam
5. Orang Utan
Gigantopithecus and Sivapithecus
Mammals
rainforests on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, though fossils have been found in Java, the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Vietnam and China
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