The World Wide Fund (WWF) Pakistan safely released a Pangolin (Scaly Anteater) back into the wild in the Lahore Park Raiwind. A Wapda official, Salman Iqbal, had brought the Pangolin to his residence after he found it being harassed by children just outside the Lahore Zoo where someone had brought it for sale to the Zoo authorities. Salman Iqbal then contacted WWF-Pakistan and asked for their assistance in its protection and management. After receiving the information WWF-Pakistan arranged for the animal to be released in its natural habitat.
WWF-Pakistan wildlife biologist Uzma Khan said, "The Pangolin had dug a burrow in the garden, the burrow was exposed to take the pangolin out, who had a tight grip of the ground with its sharp claws. It curled up its body when it was taken out from the burrow and this is known as its defence position. Pangolin weighed 12 kg and its length from head to toe was 66 cm with a tail measuring up to 56 cm."
Pangolins are adapted to feed exclusively on ants and termites and their eggs, this makes them very difficult to maintain in captivity. They offer huge economic benefits to humans because they control termites' population that can be very harmful to our crops and buildings.
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