KARACHI: A pangolin rescued a day earlier in Jamshed Town was released in the Kirthar National Park on Tuesday.

The scaly anteater, the only mammalian species with rigid keratinised protective scales around its body, is protected across Pakistan.

The species was jointly released by the Sindh wildlife department and the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-P) staff in the Khar Centre area of Kirthar National Park, the second biggest national park in the country located about 45 kilometres from Karachi.

“Some residents of Jamshed Quarters found the pangolin abandoned near the Islamia College on Dec 17 and reported the matter to the police, which handed it over to the zoo the other day,” said Asif Sandeelo representing the WWF-P.

The species was identified as the Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata), the only pangolin species found in Pakistan (out of a total eight species reported from all the tropical regions of Asia and Africa), he added.

Later, considering the fact that the wild animal couldn’t survive a caged life in the zoo, the wildlife department intervened and took its custody.

Speaking to Dawn, provincial wildlife conservator Saeed Baloch said: “It’s an insectivore that feeds on ants and termites, digging them out of mounds and logs. Hence, we thought it appropriate to release it in its habitat. Pangolin is one of the major species of Kirthar National Park.”

Replying to question about the exact location from where pangolin was found and how it managed to get there, he said: “It appears that someone caught it from the wild and was keeping it in captivity from where the species escaped. It’s a solitary nocturnal animal that rests in deep burrows in daytime.”

Highlighting its ecological significance, Mr Baloch said that the species was a natural pest controller while their burrowing behaviour improved soil’s nutrient quality.

According to experts, pangolin is hunted for its scales, which are sold for illegal trade and exported from Pakistan at high rates.

The scales are reportedly crushed into powder to make traditional medicines.

The increasing illegal hunting of pangolin was recently indicated in a study conducted by the Zoological Survey of Pakistan (ZSP) in the Potohar region that showed that the continued ruthless hunting of pangolin had brought its population to a point that if conservation efforts were not strictly made, the scaly mammalian could become extinct within a few years in the region.

One major obstacle in conservation efforts, the report stated, was the low amount of fine imposed on poachers.

“Poaching, illegal hunting and trafficking of pangolin to meet market demand to some countries, including China and Vietnam, have drastically reduced its population in Pakistan,” senior director biodiversity of WWF-P Rab Nawaz said.

There should be strict penalty for culprits involved in the illegal trade of pangolin and other endangered species in Pakistan, he emphasised.

The WWF-P, he said, was working in close coordination with the provincial wildlife departments to tackle illegal wildlife trade in Pakistan and had recently initiated a USAID funded project for this purpose.

Pangolin has been reported from various parts of the country, including hilly and sandy areas of Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.

The home range of Indian pangolin includes India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, possibly Myanmar and extreme western China.

Turtles released

Meanwhile, 53 black pond turtles, an endangered freshwater species, were released in the Hub Dam, a wildlife sanctuary, according to the WWF-P and wildlife department staff, which jointly carried out the operation.

The turtles were rescued last month from the Seaview and Khayban-i-Rahat, DHA.

The turtles were quarantined for some weeks before their release. They weighed between one and three kilograms and most of them were females.

“Blood samples of 33 turtles have been taken for DNA barcoding and blood morphology for the first time in Pakistan. The processes would be carried out at the University of Veterinary Sciences, Lahore,” said in-charge of the marine turtle conservation unit of the wildlife department Adnan Hamid.

Published in Dawn, December 23rd, 2015