KUALA LUMPUR, March 9 ― The government is set to renew a moratorium on the hunting of sambar deer beginning November and for six more years in order to protect the Malayan tiger, The Star reported today.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar reportedly said that there were only 700 to 1,000 sambar deer left in Peninsula Malaysia, and they were the Malayan tiger’s favourite prey.
“I am going to extend the moratorium for another six years beginning November,” he said.
He said that the tigers would be forced to hunt other prey if the deers were to die out, and this could even include human beings.
There are also only 250 to 340 Malayan tigers left in the country, making them critically endangered.
The original ban on sambar deer hunting started in 2009.
