Sabah Wildlife Department unveils upgraded sun bear exhibit
KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Wildlife Department has upgraded its sun bear exhibit at the Lok Kawi Wildlife Park here.
Its director, Mohd Soffian Abu Bakar, said the RM230,000 improvement coincided with the Visit Malaysia Year 2026 event, during which the sun bear was chosen as the mascot.
He added that the new exhibit incorporates principles of freedom as advised by experts for the totally protected species.
"In ensuring that we look after the animals, we also want them to exhibit their natural behaviour.
"Hopefully, we will soon see the bears displaying unique behaviours in their homes with new 'furniture'.
"I'm also happy to share that here in Lok Kawi, we have seven bears, including a nine-year-old cub named Mei Mei that was born here.
"Things like this are important to capture the attention of the younger generation — to show the experiences the cubs or individual bears have gone through, and the story behind their journey," he said during the launch of the exhibit.
Present were Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre founder Dr Wong Siew Te and Orangutan Wild Welfare director Simon Marsh.
Mohd Soffian added that after the Covid-19 pandemic in 2022, the number of visitors has been around 140,000 to 150,000 per year.
"We aim to further increase this number in the near future, especially with new and upgraded exhibits.
"We hope these improvements will attract even more visitors to Lok Kawi."
He said that apart from facility upgrades, the park is also training more staff to ensure they have the knowledge to handle animals in captivity.
On sun bear conservation efforts, he said 13 sun bears had been released into the wild after spending years at rehabilitation centres.
The first sun bear was released in 2015, almost a decade after entering the centre.
Last month, the department launched a 10-year Bornean Sun Bear Action Plan to ensure the survival of the totally protected species.
Threats to sun bears include poaching, the pet trade, indirect snaring, and development projects.
In Sabah, those found guilty of killing or possessing sun bear products could be fined between RM50,000 and RM250,000 and jailed for no less than one year and up to five years.
The sun bear is classified as vulnerable to extinction on the IUCN Red List and is protected under CITES Appendix I.
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