A viral star on social media, this animal is endangered for being cute, writes Andora Fredericks
IF you’ve seen the viral video of a slow loris lifting its arms up as it gets tickled by its human, you probably thought, “Oh my, so cute! He’s loving it.” That video has since received 6.7 million views.
Sure it’s cute but the slow loris is definitely not loving it. Slow lorises raise their arms when they’re alarmed. If you’re one of those that liked it and shared it, you may have just unwittingly watched and applauded the torture of an innocent animal.
Sadly and more disturbingly, that video may have contributed to the renewed interest in keeping the slow loris as a pet. There are more videos now of slow loris pets eating rice balls and grabbing umbrellas.
The slow loris, known locally as kongkang, isn’t a pet — it’s a wild animal. slow lorises are from the genus Nycticebus which in ancient Greek means “night monkey”. In Indonesia, Slow lorises are called malu malu or “shy one” because they freeze and cover their face when spotted.
It’s the only nocturnal primate in the wild and spends most of its day sleeping curled up in a tight ball in hidden parts of trees or leaves. Although a primate, the slow loris is more closely related to the lemurs than the apes. The slow loris is a Strepsirrhine primate, which basically means wet-nosed primates.
The wide round eyes, which give it its charm and distinctive looks, help it see in the dark when it goes out looking for sap, floral nectar, fruits and arthropods to feed on. It’s mostly solitary except for families made up of a monogamous pair and offspring.
It lives in the forests of Southeast Asia and bordering areas, and there are eight known living species – Sunda slow loris (N. coucang), Pygmy slow loris (N.pygmaeus), Javan slow loris (N.javanicus), Bengal slow loris (N. bengalensis), Bornean slow loris (N.borneanus), Philippine slow loris (N. menangensis), Bangka slow loris (N. bancanus) and the Kayan River slow loris (N. kayan).
Our country has five species of slow lorises: Sunda slow loris which occurs in the Peninsula, Borneon slow loris, Bangka slow loris, Kayan River slow loris, which occurs in East Malaysia (Borneo), and a few years ago, a new species of soris was discovered in Sabah, the Philippine slow loris. Two subspecies of the Bornean slow loris were elevated to species status in 2011 (Bangka slow loris and Kayan River slow loris).
Scientists and researchers started raising concerns that with the new identification, the population of the individual species may not be as healthy as previously thought when combined as one species.
UNDER THREAT
Following that, Malaysia made headlines again with news of tagging and radio-tracking of the Philippine slow loris (N.menagensis) in Sabah as part of a research by Danau Girang Field Centre led by Director, Dr Benoit Goossens.
The Danau Girang Field Centre is a research and training facility co-managed by Sabah Wildlife Department and Cardiff University. Dr Goossens, a Senior Research Associate at Cardiff University with more 15 years of experience in the field of conservation genetics, was interested to find out the population status, habitat use, diet, social organisation and behaviour of this newly identified species of the slow loris.
“It’s very difficult to give an estimate of how many slow lorises are left in the wild. To give an idea of a population estimate for the Philippine slow loris, if we take into account the density estimate around Danau Girang Field Centre and extrapolate to the whole sanctuary (about 450 sq-km), there would be between 2,295 and 4,005 individuals in the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary. But this estimate is to be taken with a pinch of salt,” said Goossens.
The species is listed as “Vulnerable” in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List and is threatened with extinction due to growing demand in the pet trade. Goossens expressed grave concern that it seems far too easy to get hold of a slow loris to be kept as a pet locally; he has seen many being sold openly in markets.
Slow sorises are captured sometimes as families for the pet trade. It’s unsettling that the teeth are removed using nail clippers or pliers, often without anaesthetics. This causes infections or excessive bleeding which leads to the death of some of the animals. For those that survive this painful ordeal, without their teeth they can no longer fend for themselves in the wild, and must remain in captivity for life.
The teeth are removed mostly to increase sales as slow lorises deliver sharp toxic bites when handled.
Known to be the only toxic primate, the animal secretes a liquid in its brachial gland somewhere near its elbow.
When licked, the secretion mixed with the saliva of the slow loris produces a toxic combination. The slow loris uses this as a deterrent against predators such as snakes, orang utan, and most likely cats. It also grooms and covers its infant with this toxin as protection.
LEAVE IT ALONE
Andrew Sebastian, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of ECOMY, an NGO focused on ecotourism-led conservation, recalls his first encounter with a wild Slow Loris at Forest Research Institute Malaysia where he used to stay as a child.
Sebastian, then around 11, noticed that a slow loris with only three limbs had fallen off a branch. He took pity and carried it to put it back on the branch. In the process, he got bitten and bled profusely where he was bitten. A fever ensued that night. He later found out about the toxic bite, but that encounter has made him more fond and aware of this fascinating creature, the only known nocturnal primate.
“I’ve seen slow lorises in cages in homes near Robinsons Falls, Cameron Highlands and Kuala Tahan, the gateway of Taman Negara. People are captivated by the slow loris because of its cuteness, the Mogwai look and cuddly disposition, but they’ll be wrong to get one as a pet. This animal does not make a good pet and will cause harm if not properly handled. Best to leave it alone,” advises Sebastian.
Slow lorises are stress-sensitive and don’t do well in captivity. Common health problems seen in pet slow lorises include undernourishment, tooth decay, diabetes, obesity, and kidney failure. They are also facing habitat loss and poaching — for use in traditional beliefs and medicines.
According to International Animal Rescue, three slow lorises are poached every day. Out of this, on average one of these will die. Thousands of Lorises are illegally poached from the wild to be illegally sold in the streets or markets or via social media.
Traffic Southeast Asia Senior Programme Manager Kanitha Krishnasamy confirms that the Sunda slow loris is one of the top animals traded online for the pet trade locally.
She shares: “From the Facebook trade assessment we did in 2016, we found that the Sunda slow loris was the most common listed species traded under Appendix 1 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, based on all the species we recorded.”
But what do we do and how do we stop the mindless poaching and trafficking of this passive animal?
Both Goossens and Sebastian are unanimous in their shout-out in getting the public to call and make reports of any encounters with the slow loris.
The public can call the Wildlife Crime Hotline at 019-3564194 to report any crimes against wildlife especially the capture, trapping and display of the slow loris. Or they can report to Sabah Wildlife Department or Wildlife Rescue Unit (for Sabah), or Perhilitan and Traffic for Peninsular Malaysia.