Sumatran Rabbit/ Sumatran Striped Rabbit/ Nesolagus netscheri is a wild rabbit that lives in the tropical forests of Sumatra at high altitudes 600-1.400 m.dpl. This rabbit is approx 40 cm and short ear size. Its distinctive feature is the pattern in the form of black stripes on the body. The black stripes are on the back, cow, hind legs, and thighs. other than that, the hair on the tail is reddish while the underbelly is white. These animals are active at night (nocturnal) to find food in the form of young leaf shoots, grass, plant roots, and fallen fruit.
Natural habitats are disappearing, Sumatran rabbit population is decreasing
The Sumatran rabbit is a rare animal that is hard to find. In addition to its limited distribution, This rabbit is experiencing extraordinary threats due to loss of natural habitat which causes its population to continue to decline. Forest encroachment and conversion of forest functions into settlements, agriculture, and plantations are the main factors affecting the population of this animal. The island of Sumatra has lost more than half of its forest land, which has been logged intensely since 2010 1975 until now. Apart from forest destruction, hunting and trade are also threats to its extinction.
Research related to the Sumatran rabbit is still very minimal so that many people do not know the existence of this animal. To date, the new Sumatran rabbit is known to exist in the Gunung Leuser National Park, Kerinci Seblat National Park, Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, and the Gumai Pasemah Wildlife Sanctuary in South Sumatra.
Reunion with the striped
The Sumatran rabbit was first discovered in 1880. However, at that time there was no further information about the existence of this animal. Until the year 1972, the sighting of the rabbit was first documented by M. Borner in Gunung Leuser National Park. After that, many reports about the existence of these animals. Year 1998, the Fauna and Flora International team recorded the individual in a camera trap photo in the Kerinci Seblat National Park. In the year 2007, Wildlife Conservation Society–Indonesia The program documented these species in two photos from camera traps in the Beringin Island area, Ogan Komering Hulu Selatan. Year 2008, one individual photographed by a scientist from World Wide Fund for Nature and in year 2009 one individual was seen along the road that divides the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park. After that, researcher Jennifer McCarthy and team also managed to obtain 10 Photo of a Sumatran rabbit using seven infrared digital cameras in a study conducted at the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park.
welcome new year 2023, there is good news about the existence of Sumatra's unique endemic animals. The Sumatran rabbit was again caught in a camera trap used to monitor animals in the Kerinci Seblat National Park area (TNKS). Based on the criteria of evolutionary uniqueness and the small population, experts from Zoological Society of London think of this bunny as one of 100 mammal species are at great risk of extinction. The Indonesian government also protects the Sumatran rabbit as a protected animal based on the Minister of Environment and Forestry Regulation no. P.106/MENLHK/SETJEN/KUM.1/12/2018 concerning Protected Plant and Animal Species, listed on the number 72.
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