A study raised concerns by unveiling that Sumatran rhinos are extinct in Malaysia. There are now less than 100 such rhinos present in the wild in Indonesia and nine rhinos in captivity, and now on them survival of Sumatran rhinos is dependent.

Sumatran rhino was declared extinct in the wild in Malaysia, as no rhino has been seen in the wild there since 2007. Just two females were captured in 2011 and 2014 for breeding purpose. There was a time when Sumatran rhinos were found in plenty across the Southeast Asia. But researchers said that hunting and habitat loss have brought an alarming reduction in their population.

"It is vital for the survival for the survival of the species that all remaining Sumatran rhinos are viewed as a metapopulation, that all are managed in a single program across the national and international borders in order to maximize overall birth rate", said study's lead author Rasmus Gren Havmoller.

Between 1980 and 2005, a sharp decline has come in the population of Sumatran rhino, as at that time their population dropped from around 500 to extinction level. Methods to save them are being tried like captive breeding, but that has also not proving successful.

Since 1984, 45 Sumatran rhinos were taken into the wild, but there has been no captive birth since 2001. Researchers have said that there is a need of serious efforts by the government of Indonesia to bolster rhino protection by using measures like Intensive Protection Zone (IPZ), habitat management, captive breeding and intensive survey of the current known habitats.