Terengganu seems to be a hotspot of wildlife encounters recently.

A pair of orcas were sighted in the waters near an oil drilling platform, an occurrence considered to be "historic".

Just two days later, a nonchalant-looking tiger was spotted strolling through a village which unfortunately passed on due to a viral disease.

And now, a sun bear is reportedly captured as well.

Sun bear trapped due to villagers' complaints

The sun bear was caught on July 23, 2019, by Malaysia's Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan), reported Harian Metro.

The director of Perhilitan, Abdul Malek Mohd Yusof, said that the villagers saw the bear fast asleep inside the cage at 7:30am.

Villagers apparently heard noises the previous night. However, they were too afraid to check the trap out of fear that the bear might become aggressive, The Star reported.

The cage had been set up after the sun bear was sighted several times in recent weeks.

The bear's presence had attracted complaints from villagers who were worried about their own safety.

Abdul Malek said,

“The sun bear is dangerous and it can hurt people if it feels threatened, especially with its sharp claws. That made the villagers worry for their safety.”

The sun bear reportedly only fell for the trap after it was moved to a second location, at the back of villager Mustaffa Tahir's house.

The bear's visit had destroyed 10 stingless beehives and six coconut trees, all belonged to Mustaffa.

The total loss incurred worth RM12, 000 (about S$4,000).

According to other residents, two more sun bears are still at large.

All three of them were spotted enjoying some jackfruits at one of the residents' backyard about two weeks ago.

Bear will be released if healthy

Perhilitan has revealed that they will be conducting a medical examination on the sun bear.

If the bear is deemed to be healthy, it will be released in the Taman Negara area.

Abdul Malek speculated that habitat disturbance might have been the reason behind the bear's appearance in the village, forcing it to move out of the forests to look for food and shelter.

He also said that Perhilitan will continue to find the other two bears.

Sun bears are native to Malaysia and are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Top photo from Berita Harian / Youtube and Tambako the Jaguar / Flickr