On 2 Nov, a driver in Singapore reposted footage of a previous encounter with a pangolin found by the roadside, recounting how he guided it to safety.
He said he felt both excited and relieved, especially as several cars drove past shortly afterwards.
Image courtesy of Jason Tang
Golf power coach Jason Tang told MS News that the sighting took place on 29 Aug.
He was driving along a dark road during the pre-dawn hours when he spotted a four-legged animal walking along the edge of the road.
Image courtesy of Jason Tang
Mr Tang said he initially thought it was a monitor lizard, before realising that it was a critically endangered Sunda pangolin.
“It was just moving along nonchalantly,” he said, adding that it did not seem to react even when caught in his car’s headlights.
Image courtesy of Jason Tang
Mr Tang said he felt a responsibility to protect such a rare animal.
He switched on his hazard lights, got out of the car, and tried to guide the pangolin away from the road and towards the vegetation.
The animal came within about two metres of him before turning away from the road and disappearing into the trees.
Image courtesy of Jason Tang
Mr Tang said several cars drove past shortly afterwards, which could have posed a danger to the pangolin had it remained by the road.
As “everything happened so fast”, Mr Tang only managed to capture a few seconds of footage.
“Kind of overwhelmed with excitement when I knew it was a pangolin. Then elation mixed with profound relief,” he told MS News.
Image courtesy of Jason Tang
Sunda pangolins are among the world’s most trafficked mammals, with illegal poaching leaving the species critically endangered across Southeast Asia.
In Singapore, however, pangolins face one of their greatest threats from vehicles.
As they are slow-moving, they are particularly vulnerable to being run over when they wander onto roads.
Also read: Young pangolin spotted riding on mother’s tail in S’pore, passes just 3m from surprised photographer
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Featured image courtesy of Jason Tang.