The Sungai Dusun Wildlife Conservation Centre located in Hulu Selangor is an ex-situ breeding centre for wildlife species such as Tapir and porcupines.
The Sungai Dusun Wildlife Conservation Centre located in Hulu Selangor is an ex-situ breeding centre for wildlife species such as Tapir and porcupines. It also known as Malay Tapir Conservation Centre (MTCC).The Conservation Centre was first established in 1964 with a 4500-hectare area for the protection and conservation of Sumatran rhinos, a few of which roamed wild in Peninsular Malaysia until displaced by encroaching plantation activity or killed by poachers.
There were at one time 7 Sumatran Rhinoceroses here, 5 female and 2 male, but sadly the captive breeding project was not a success and in 2003 all six remaining rhinos died within weeks of each other. The Sumatran rhino of Peninsular Malaysia is now extinct in the wild and may also be extinct in Sabah too.
Now the Centre is home to the Malay Tapir Conservation Centre and let?s hope they have more luck in saving these lovely creatures which are also an endangered species due to habitat loss, road-kills and hunting. There are a dozen or so tapirs living here. Apart from tapirs there are also some gharial crocodiles here. A healthy baby tapir was born last year on 15th November 2019.
The centre is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities where researchers and students can study the animals, and visitors can get up close to observe these gentle (unless threatened) creatures. Currently, the MTCC is home to 12 tapirs (five males and seven females), which is half of the captive population in Malaysia. Here, you?ll get the rare chance to see tapirs in person! You may even get to spot baby tapirs, which have striped-and-spotted coats for camouflage that eventually fades away to the iconic black and white coat seen on adult tapirs.