Community-based survey and conservation of greater slow loris in Northeast Leuser Ecosystem

Greater slow loris (Nycticebus coucang) has been recently listed to “Endangered”. It has been steeply declining due to hunting for pet trade and their primary habitat loss. Our organization is protecting slow lorises and their populations in the wild by working with local communities, educating children, and fighting wildlife traffickers.

With support from the Van Tienhoven Foundation, we will collaborate with the local community in Basukum village, North Sumatra on a survey of slow lorises in area dominated by human economic activities (gardens and plantations) and to identify the possible ways of coexistence of slow lorises with humans by promoting wildlife-friendly farming practices and via environmental education of local children. We aim to replicate a successful program that has been implemented in another part of the Leuser Ecosystem, in Kuta Male village, since 2018.

Many Indonesian species are threatened with extinction due to exploitation by humans and habitat loss. Yet some of these threatened species show remarkable capacity to adapt to new habitats such as agroecosystem, provided that the local communities support their conservation. Changes in local people’s attitudes and farming practices may support not only slow lorises, by also other species with similar habitat requirements, such as Sunda pangolin (Manis javanica, Critically Endangered), Sunda leopard cat (Prionailurus javanicus, not evaluated in IUCN Red List) and binturong (Arctictis binturong, Vulnerable).