Tapir captured after two hours

Malacca Zoo workers and Perhilitan personnel pulling the captured tapir out of the pond at Bukit Katil, Malacca, yesterday. Pic by Mohd Jamah Nasri

MALACCA: A 200kg male tapir caused a ruckus as it led local authorities and residents of Kampung Tun Razak, near here, through a merry chase yesterday.The state Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) received a complaint on Tuesday night from a resident who had spotted the tapir wandering around the village.

Worried for the safety of the public, Perhilitan sent a team to capture the animal. At 2pm yesterday, the team came across the  tapir in a pond at a wooded area across from the  Bukit Katil's Fire and Rescue Department.

The team  surrounded the tapir,  but it evaded several attempts to capture it. Escaping from the pond, the tapir ran about 300m through a housing estate. Despite being hit by a  tranquilliser dart, it continued running before falling into another pond nearby where the team finally managed to capture the animal.

Malacca Zoo director Ahmad Azhar Mohammed said it took about 25 people -- 15 from the zoo and 10 from Perhilitan -- nearly two hours to catch the tapir.

Source: nst.com.my