Pekanbaru, Riau, (ANTARA News) - The authority in Riau Province could not yet evacuate a Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris) stuck in a market in Pulau Burung subdistrict of Indragiri Hilir since Wednesday (Nov 14).

Head of the provincial Natural Resource Conservation Agency, Suharyono, said here on Thursday that a joint team of the military, police, and the conservation agency personnel has been deployed to evacuate the endangered species.

The team shot the tiger with tranquilizer drugs to paralyze it, but the tiger managed to run away, deeper inside the market, before the drug worked.

"At around 13.00 p.m., the tiger was shot with a dose that could paralyze it for two hours," Suharyono noted, adding that the team had to wait for half an hour for the tranquilizer to work.

The team has continued the evacuation process and prepared for the second shot to paralyze the wild animal.

Suharyono remarked that the tiger allegedly emerged from bushes near the market. A four-hectare area covered with bushes located near the market has been the hiding place for tigers.

According to Suharyono, the area is not big enough for the species and they do not have enough food there. The tiger had killed three livestock in the subdistrict.

During the year, some tigers had reportedly entered villages in the region.

In January, a female tiger named Bonita was stuck in a village. It took three months for the authority to find and evacuate the tiger, but during that time, she had killed three villagers.

In September, a tiger killed villagers` livestock before he was trapped and evacuated by the conservation personnel.

In the neighboring district of Kuantan, a pregnant tiger was found dead after she was trapped in a pig trap.

Reporting by Anggi Romadhoni
Editing by S Haryati

Reporter: Antara
Editor: Suharto
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