Malaysia on alert as ‘killer’ Malayan tigers blamed for deaths of 4 in Kelantan

Tiger traps have been set across remote jungles in Malaysia’s Kelantan state after the critically endangered big cats were blamed for the deaths of four people – the latest last weekend – as mating season and loss of habitat to mining and logging brings wildlife into increasingly frequent conflict with humans.

On Saturday, authorities discovered body parts believed to belong to Indonesian migrant worker Lalu Sukarya Yahya, 42, in a rubber plantation in Gua Musang, Kelantan, who they suspect fell victim to a tiger attack.

“Since it is mating season, the tigers are roaming around looking for a mate and food. Some tiger packs are also teaching their cubs to hunt, these are the reasons that these animals are attacking humans,” Kelantan Deputy Chief Minister Mohamed Fadzli said.

The death came days after another fatal tiger attack, involving Myanmar national Ahka Soe Ya, 22, in the same village of Kampung Meranto in Gua Musang. The victim was also working in a rubber plantation.

In October, Pisie Amud, 25, was killed by a tiger, adding to the May death of fellow indigenous community member Halim Asin, 27, in what authorities say is an unprecedented spate of fatalities.

Between 2017 to 2022, only four attacks on humans were recorded, two of them fatal.

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Located in the Central Spine Forest that covers much of the so-called backbone of Peninsular Malaysia, all the way into Thailand, the wooded and remote town of Gua Musang straddles two major forest reserves, including Malaysia’s Taman Negara national park.

The Malayan tiger subspecies is the national animal of Malaysia, appearing on the country’s coat of arms as well as being the name of the national football team – Harimau Malaya. It is, however, believed that fewer than 200 are left in the jungles of Peninsular Malaysia.

A study published in August by Frontiers in Conservation Science found that the overall tiger population – albeit small – has remained steady thanks to the survival and breeding of female tigers and the stabilisation of the number of preys such as wild boar and barking deer.

But its jungle habitat is diminishing, partly from logging and a mining boom as the state government plans to dig up some 2.56 million tonnes of rare earth minerals in Gua Musang and neighbouring areas.

On Monday, the Department of Wildlife and Nature Parks (Perhilitan) in Kelantan reported that it had successfully snared a tiger in the area, alongside another in September, assumed to be responsible for the attacks. Both big cats have been sent to a wildlife sanctuary.

However, a motorcyclist in Gua Musang reported that he collided with yet another tiger while riding around the area on Tuesday, hinting that more of the animals are out in the open.

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While Deputy Chief Minister Mohamed Fadzli downplayed the role of the state’s rampant logging activities as the cause of these rare human-tiger interactions, WWF-Malaysia said “unrelenting pressures” from habitat loss, alongside poaching and retaliatory killings have forced the tigers to be defensive.

“A tiger when threatened or already injured may exhibit more aggression and its natural behaviour is to defend and save itself,” WWF-Malaysia chief Sophia Lim warned in a statement.

She stressed that the animal is solitary by nature unless courting or a mother with young cubs.

“Preferring to shy away from humans, the tiger hunts alone, by ambush, waiting for lone, unsuspecting prey.”

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Aside from threatening humans, forays by the iconic animal outside the dense jungle also pose a threat to the beasts themselves, with a 10-year-old tiger found dead on the side of an interstate highway earlier this month.

In January 2022, the Kelantan Perhilitan received flak after officers shot dead a 120kg tiger that was believed to have killed a 59-year-old indigenous man. The animal was earlier attacked by villagers who threw spears at it.

Reacting to that incident, the Kelantan Forestry Department director Abdul Khalim Abu Samah was pilloried for claiming that logging was actually “beneficial for the tiger population” as it made hunting easier for the predators in light tree cover.