Given a new lease on life, this adorable pangolin chose to celebrate in a most unexpected way. Watch as the world’s most trafficked mammal does its best impersonation of the Loch Ness monster.
Manyoni Private Game Reserve sent this endearing footage to Latest Sightings. Staff filmed it at the reserve’s pangolin enclosure, where the Zululand Conservation Trust is funding and supervising the rehabilitation.
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Meet Ditsi
When we think about pangolins, probably the last thing we imagine is that they swim. However, this young ambassador for the species is here to prove us wrong.
This is Dithlong (nicknamed Ditsi). Ditsi is a Temminck’s pangolin whom the team at Manyoni Private Game Reserve is rehabilitating prior to her release.
No medicinal value
Experts consider pangolins the world’s most trafficked mammal species, as poachers hunt them primarily for their armour-like scales. Criminal networks sell them on the black market, where traditional medicine practitioners use them to “treat” a range of illnesses.
Adding to the tragedy, researchers have proven their scales have absolutely no medicinal value. After all, keratin makes up their scales, just like our fingernails.
Sting operation
Law enforcement rescued Ditsi during a sting operation in South Africa’s Northwest Province. Subsequently, veterinarians at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital stabilised her.
Since then, she has been undergoing an extensive rehabilitation program at Manyoni Private Game Reserve.
Stressful experience
According to the information supplied with this footage, “While in the hands of poachers, [these] pangolins deteriorate due to stress, dehydration, and lack of food.”
Thankfully, however, Ditsi is recovering well and, judging by the footage, enjoying her refreshing afternoon swims.
Soft release
After vets had stabilised her and given her a clean bill of health, conservationists moved Ditsi to Manyoni to prepare her for a so-called “soft release”. This means they will give her time to adjust to her new environment under their supervision.
They will release her into the reserve once this process is complete. However, her contribution to pangolin conservation will continue well into the future.
For starters, a team will monitor her progress, helping to gain a better understanding of her behaviour and assist with future conservation efforts. The African Pangolin Working Group guides the work that goes into her management.
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Why are pangolins on the endangered list?
Manyoni GR told Latest Sightings that poachers take a disheartening 2.7 million pangolins from the wild every year. These amazing creatures possess no vocal cords, and their only defense is to roll into a ball and lie still. This makes it easy for poachers to capture and conceal them.
All eight pangolin species found across the gloabe are illegally targeted by wildlife traffickers. Aside from the claimed medicinal properties of their scales, they are also targeted for their meat, leather, and cultural/spiritual uses.
Pangolins in nature
In their natural environment, pangolins are nocturnal creatures that subsist entirely on a diet of ants and termites. Using powerful forelimbs equipped with long claws, they open nests before using their long, sticky tongues to gather up the insects.
Thanks to the dedicated efforts of all involved in Ditsi’s rehabilitation, we can now look forward to hearing more about her life back in the wild.