Guest guest Posted October 12, 2007 Report Share Posted October 12, 2007 2007/10/07 - The Sunday Times Shakes and jiggles, they chomp on all things green BANTING: Meal times are a real symphony of rattling, clattering and trembling at Tukiran Dalimin's oil palm smallholding. The noisy eaters are a group of 30 porcupines who shake the spikes on their coats, jiggle the hollow quills on their tails, grunt and huff when it's feeding time. Even a month-old porcupette, goes into strike mode, raising its fine baby quills and holding on tight to its food. The sounds are a little strange but Tukiran, who's been breeding them for the past year says that this is the only unappealing behaviour the animals display. They are, otherwise, quite easy to care for, said the smallholder from Kampung Labu-han Dagang, a quiet village a few kilometres from the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Porcupines aren't fussy eaters, greedily chomping anything from papaya leaves to oil palm fruit. For a vitamin boost, their meals are supplemented with small amounts of pellets like those fed to horses. Tukiran, who started the breeding programme with five caught-in-the-wild porcupines, said he got involved for the extra income. He isn't allowed to sell his porcupines just yet but has been swamped by requests for meat. " Several who came asking were pregnant women with a craving for porcupine meat which they'd eaten before. " It makes a good rendang. It's tender, so people like it. " Wild porcupine meat sells for about RM40 per kilo and he's been offered anything from RM200 to RM800 for breeding stock. Tukiran says the venture is a worthwhile investment for a smallholder like him because the costs are low. And even though the porcupines have a keen appetite, they aren't expensive to feed — thirty sen per animal per day — if a farmer can grow enough greens. --\ ---------- 2007/10/07 Spiky, cute... and on the menu soon By : Elizabeth John KUALA LUMPUR: It's no easy meal in the wild as any predator with a face full of razor-sharp quills will testify. Dr Zainal says porcupines are bred in five model farms But Malaysians could soon be making a spikeless, danger-free dinner of the porcupine if a government-backed breeding programme is successful. The Wildlife and National Parks department has helped set up five model farms to breed the Malayan porcupine (Hystrix brachyura). They estimate that the farmers will be able to sell the porcupines as breeding stock and for meat in about three years time. The project is one of many under the Ninth Malaysia Plan to create new wealth from the country's biodiversity, said the department's Dr Zainal Zahari Zainuddin. The porcupine is just one of several wildlife species that have been earmarked for commercial breeding, including the pangolin, mouse deer and barking deer. Also on the list are the seladang, serow and pheasants. The department has RM1.5 million in funding until next year, to carry out research and get breeding projects off the ground, said Zainal who is the principal assistant director of the ex-situ conservation division. The projects are also partly funded by a grant from the Agro-Biotechnology Institute Malaysia. Zainal said the three-year development period would allow farmers to build up a sustainable number of animals as breeding stock. It would also give researchers at the department, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Mardi, time to research farm management and improve yield and nutrition. Research has so far shown that this spiky rodent produces red meat with a protein level comparable to beef and mutton but with a lower fat content. The levels of amino acids that are important in the wound healing process are high in the porcupine, as are the levels of essential fatty acids. Only a few restaurants in the country have a licence to serve porcupine taken from the wild. But the animal, protected under Malaysian law, has been overharvested from the wild to satisfy the demand for rare and exotic meat, said Zainal. Captive breeding and game farming are being seen as a way to sustain wildlife with high economic potential outside their habitat for future release into the wild and to fulfil market demand. However, wildlife groups are likely to bristle at the idea of commercially breeding the animal for fear that it will only give poachers an avenue to smuggle illegally caught wildlife into the legal system. " There will always be people who will take advantage of a situation but we will step up monitoring. " " Breeders will be licensed as will those who sell the meat at the market. " Every animal we breed will also be implanted with a microchip, " said Zainal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 12, 2007 Report Share Posted October 12, 2007 Hello Yitze, This is just another case similar to how the Chinese folks are trying to justify Tiger breeding in China. Another country that tries to follow this breeding-hunting concept is Africa and I know there are many who support the cause not seeing the long term consequences. I wont go into the *supply-demand-supply* cycle that I have explained many times over in many cases cos it very clear that small timers who cannot afford setting up a porcupine farm will also eventually start hunting in the forests because the demand is high and eventually their numbers will drop. This apart the so called breeding programmes can NEVER replicate a wild 'wild' animal. This is very very clear if one take a look at the tiger breeding centres in China. THey are more of an enlarged pussy cat....and thats why i coined the term for them *TIGOY* (Tiger toy). Hope the Malay government saves this species from a similar fate. I will go to Kampung Labu-han Dagang next week and discuss this with you thereafter. Regards, Pablo. On 10/12/07, yitzeling <yitzeling wrote: > > 2007/10/07 - The Sunday Times > > Shakes and jiggles, they chomp on all things green > > BANTING: Meal times are a real symphony of rattling, clattering and > trembling at Tukiran Dalimin's oil palm smallholding. > > The noisy eaters are a group of 30 porcupines who shake the spikes on > their coats, jiggle the hollow quills on their tails, grunt and huff > when it's feeding time. > > Even a month-old porcupette, goes into strike mode, raising its fine > baby quills and holding on tight to its food. > > The sounds are a little strange but Tukiran, who's been breeding them > for the past year says that this is the only unappealing behaviour the > animals display. > > They are, otherwise, quite easy to care for, said the smallholder from > Kampung Labu-han Dagang, a quiet village a few kilometres from the > Kuala Lumpur International Airport. > > Porcupines aren't fussy eaters, greedily chomping anything from papaya > leaves to oil palm fruit. > > For a vitamin boost, their meals are supplemented with small amounts > of pellets like those fed to horses. > > Tukiran, who started the breeding programme with five > caught-in-the-wild porcupines, said he got involved for the extra > income. > > He isn't allowed to sell his porcupines just yet but has been swamped > by requests for meat. > > " Several who came asking were pregnant women with a craving for > porcupine meat which they'd eaten before. > > " It makes a good rendang. It's tender, so people like it. " > > Wild porcupine meat sells for about RM40 per kilo and he's been > offered anything from RM200 to RM800 for breeding stock. > > Tukiran says the venture is a worthwhile investment for a smallholder > like him because the costs are low. > > And even though the porcupines have a keen appetite, they aren't > expensive to feed — thirty sen per animal per day — if a farmer can > grow enough greens. > > > --\ ---------- > 2007/10/07 > > Spiky, cute... and on the menu soon > By : Elizabeth John > > > KUALA LUMPUR: It's no easy meal in the wild as any predator with a > face full of razor-sharp quills will testify. > > > Dr Zainal says porcupines are bred in five model farms > > But Malaysians could soon be making a spikeless, danger-free dinner > of the porcupine if a government-backed breeding programme is > successful. > > The Wildlife and National Parks department has helped set up five > model farms to breed the Malayan porcupine (Hystrix brachyura). > > They estimate that the farmers will be able to sell the porcupines as > breeding stock and for meat in about three years time. > > The project is one of many under the Ninth Malaysia Plan to create new > wealth from the country's biodiversity, said the department's Dr > Zainal Zahari Zainuddin. > > The porcupine is just one of several wildlife species that have been > earmarked for commercial breeding, including the pangolin, mouse deer > and barking deer. > > Also on the list are the seladang, serow and pheasants. > > The department has RM1.5 million in funding until next year, to carry > out research and get breeding projects off the ground, said Zainal who > is the principal assistant director of the ex-situ conservation > division. > > The projects are also partly funded by a grant from the > Agro-Biotechnology Institute Malaysia. > > Zainal said the three-year development period would allow farmers to > build up a sustainable number of animals as breeding stock. > > It would also give researchers at the department, Universiti Putra > Malaysia, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Mardi, time to research > farm management and improve yield and nutrition. > > Research has so far shown that this spiky rodent produces red meat > with a protein level comparable to beef and mutton but with a lower > fat content. > > The levels of amino acids that are important in the wound healing > process are high in the porcupine, as are the levels of essential > fatty acids. > > Only a few restaurants in the country have a licence to serve > porcupine taken from the wild. > > But the animal, protected under Malaysian law, has been overharvested > from the wild to satisfy the demand for rare and exotic meat, said > Zainal. > > Captive breeding and game farming are being seen as a way to sustain > wildlife with high economic potential outside their habitat for future > release into the wild and to fulfil market demand. > > However, wildlife groups are likely to bristle at the idea of > commercially breeding the animal for fear that it will only give > poachers an avenue to smuggle illegally caught wildlife into the legal > system. > > " There will always be people who will take advantage of a situation > but we will step up monitoring. " > > " Breeders will be licensed as will those who sell the meat at the market. > > " Every animal we breed will also be implanted with a microchip, " said > Zainal > > > For more information on Asian animal issues, please use the search feature > on the AAPN website: http://www.aapn.org/ or search the list archives at: > aapn > Please feel free to send any relevant news or comments to the list at > aapn > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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