It is the rarest rabbit in the world: a striped Sumatran rabbit that has been saved by Indonesian wildlife officials after it was accidentally discovered on the social network Facebook. The rabbit, known because there are only 12 specimens in a Dutch museum , was seen on the social network by an informant who saw a publication for sale of it.
This person contacted the authorities of the Indonesian Kerinci Seblat National Park, who located the seller and rescued the rabbit.
"While Kerinci Seblat is world famous for its biodiversity, it is the largest charismatic animals such as tigers, elephants and helmeted hornbills that often make the headlines," said Tamen Sitorus, director of the national park. “People often forget that this park also protects rare species like the Sumatran striped rabbit and their habitat; we have the tallest peat swamp forests in Asia, for example, and amazing moss forests. ”
After its release, the rabbit began to eat leaves and appeared "very relaxed," authorities explained.
The closest known species to this newly rescued creature is the Annamite striped rabbit, which lives in the mountains near the Laos-Vietnam border and is considered endangered. In contrast, the Sumatran striped rabbit is believed to live in the Barisan Mountains in western Sumatra . Very little is known about this animal. It was discovered for the first time in 1972, but it was not until 2000, when it was photographed for the first time, also near the border between Laos and Vietnam.
