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Malaysian military faces hungry sun bears - report
15 Apr 2007 06:34:24 GMT
Source: Reuters
KUALA LUMPUR, April 15 (Reuters) - Malaysia's military has a new enemy: sun bears, who are attacking the camps in search of food, a newspaper reported on Sunday.

At night soldiers at a camp in northern Malaysia keep a vigil for the "intruders", who driven from their habitats, come in groups and feast on rice, sugar, biscuits and bread, the New Sunday Times said.

"I have been stationed here for more than a year and I have seen bears gobbling up our food," the report quoted an unnamed soldier as saying. "But they pose no harm and run away when we come near them."

Sun bears, who live in the rain forests of Southeast Asia, are getting displaced from their habitat because of logging.

A wildlife official said the animals were also tempted by the easy availability of food at the camps. "They may have been accustomed to this kind of practice at the camp as it is easy for them to find food there," said S. K. Sharma, chief executive office of Wild Life Fund Malaysia.

Sun bears, who have orange-yellow markings on their chests, are hunted for their gall bladders and paws which are used in traditional Chinese medicine.
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James Kingham of Perniagaan Tunas Harapan speaks to journalists at his nursery near Malaysia's town of Tanjong Malim, 100 km (62 miles) north of Kuala Lumpur, May 19, 2007. The world's largest plantation company, Synergy Drive, has engaged the 28-hectare Perniagaan Tunas Harapan nursery that specialises in rare rainforest species, to plant millions of trees in a 400-hectare heritage park in northern Perak state with some rare rainforest varieties. Picture taken May 19, 2007.



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