The armoured introvert
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The pangolin or scaly anteater looks hard and scaly, but it’s really quite shy.
ST VIDEO: AILEEN TEO
Like other animals in Singapore, they have adapted to the urban environment.
ST FILE PHOTO
Helen Nash, pangolin researcher
But... they get stressed out in captivity.
ST FILE PHOTO
They are solitary creatures, and do not like to be near humans and other animals.
ST VIDEO: AILEEN TEO
When threatened, they curl into an armoured ball and cover their face with their claws.
ST PHOTO: AILEEN TEO
That’s how it got its name - pangolin comes from penggulung, the Malay word for roller.
That’s not really a good habit as it’s too easy for poachers to pick them up and stuff them away.
PHOTO: THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
Pangolin meat is considered a delicacy and the scales are used in traditional medicine...
Making them the most poached mammal in the world.
PHOTO: REUTERS
That is why we’re not showing you where they can be found in Singapore.
Which is a tiny sanctuary for the roughly 50 pangolins here.
One that is getting smaller as the forests here become more fragmented.
They can get hit by cars as they cross roads to get from one forest patch to the other.
PHOTO: ACRES
Helen Nash, pangolin researcher
Helen Nash, pangolin researcher
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Special thanks to Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres); Helen Nash,
pangolin researcher from the National University of Singapore.
Produced by: Aileen
Teo, Chew Hui Min, Winnie Chong, Kao Chih Hui