Rare red serow rescued in Sunamganj

A rare red serow was rescued from near the Dhulara BGB Camp area under Sunamganj range of Sylhet Forest Division.

The young red serow was handed over to Moulvibazar Lawachhara Rescue Center.

This forest goat, which was rescued by forest staffs, is listed as an endangered species in the world by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN).

According to nature experts, this species of serow is rare in Bangladesh.

Moulvibazar Wildlife and Biodiversity Conservation Officer Mirza Mehedi Sarwar said that at first everyone thought it to be a baby barking deer.

"I was skeptical. After contacting different places, I became sure that it was a red serow," he added.

It is a rare species of wildlife in the country. Due to habitat loss and poaching, the existence of this species of wild goat is threatened worldwide.

"The wild goat or serow comes out to eat in the evening and early morning. During the day, it spends the whole time inside holes in deep forest. And if they come close to people, it hides in bushes or on rocky slopes. They mark the territory by secreting a type of scent from their gland. Wild goat is a very endangered and rare animal in Bangladesh," Mirza Mehedi said.

Dr. Jahangir Alam of Maulvibazar wildlife management and nature conservation division of the forst department, said the rescued red serow was transferred to Lawachhara Rescue Center at 11:30 Monday night. The baby is under our supervision.

Earlier camera-trap images in Rajkandi Reserve Forest also captured evidence of the red serows. The wild goats prefer deeply forested areas and rocky riparian terrains to live in.

If all goes well, it can be released in the Rajkandi forest Wednesday afternoon, Jahangir Alam said.

Muntasir Akash, assistant professor of zoology department of Dhaka University, said Moulvibazar can be a wonderful habitat for this wild goats.

But he urged caution while handling the captured red serow.

"These animals are prone to die easily from capture stress myopathy. It is better if we can avoid tying up the animal or do it as lightly as possible. The animal should be released as soon as possible," he added.

The animal can be 170 centimeters from the tip of the nose to the tail. Height up to shoulder is 95 cm.

Male serow can weigh up to about 120 kg. According to the assessment of IUCN Bangladesh in 2015, Serow is endangered in Bangladesh, critically endangered globally. Bangladesh can have two types of serow, red serow and Indo-Chinese serow. However, more research is needed on this.