Two baby Java rhinos, a very rare endangered species, have been spotted in a natural park, giving some hope for the future of one of the world's most endangered mammals, numbering 74 in Indonesia .
Two baby Java rhinos, a very rare endangered species, have been spotted in a natural park in Indonesia, giving some hope for the future of one of the world's most endangered mammals.
74 individuals in total
The baby rhinos - a female called Helen and a male called Luther - were spotted in videos filmed by hundreds of hidden cameras across Ujung Kulon National Park between March and August, authorities said in a statement on Sunday.
Located at the western end of the island of Java, in Banten province, Ujung Kulon is the last preserved natural habitat of Java rhinos.
After years of population decline, the birth of these two young brings the total population of the species to 74 individuals.
Their sanctuary spans some 5,100 hectares of lush rainforest and freshwater rivers.
"These births give a lot of hope"
The Indonesian government had combed through other parts of the islands of Java and Sumatra to transport rhinos threatened by the eruption of Krakatoa, a nearby volcano to this sanctuary.
"These births give a lot of hope for the perpetuation of the highly endangered species, the Java rhino," said Wiratno, a senior official at the Ministry of the Environment.
The Java rhino has large folds of skin resembling armor.
Once numbered in the thousands across South Asia, as far as India and China, they have been wiped out by poaching and human invasion of their settlements.