SANDAKAN: A young female Bornean sun bear here died when she was struck by lightning on Monday.
The four-year-old sun bear, named as Bongkud, was found dead when Bornean Sun Bear Conservation centre staff checked upon her after a stormy rain.
The centre chief executive officer Wong Siew Te said Bongkud was resting on her favourite tree of about 20-metre high when the incident happened.
He added the weather was fine throughout the day, but it suddenly turned dark at about 4pm.
“She was an energetic sun bear that was always seen climbing up the trees in the forest enclosure.
“We are deeply saddened that Bongkud died due to natural disaster,” he said, adding Bongkud was rescued from getting sold to buyers in 2012 when she was only 10-month-old.
The sun bear was named after Bongkud village at the west coast of Sabah which the Sabah Wildlife Department had saved her.
Wong said Bongkud was also one of the few sun bears at the centre that knew how to build nests on the trees.
Other 34 sun bears at the centre were uninjured as they were at the houses during the incident.
The sun bear is the smallest of the world’s eight bear species and is found throughout mainland Asia, Sumatra and Borneo.
The animal has been classified as “vulnerable” on The International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List.