After decades of silence, the Bangka slow loris has been found alive on Indonesia’s Bangka island. Its unexpected comeback highlights why thorough field surveys are vital for hidden wildlife.

The species was listed as critically endangered and possibly extinct by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with the last reliable scientific record dating to the early 1930s. This classification reflected a century‑long lack of confirmed sightings.

Between 2015 and 2025, the Indonesian conservation organization Alobi Wildlife Rescue Center documented more than 90 Bangka slow lorises across the island, according to graduate student Timon Glaw, a co‑author of the new study. After treatment, 86 of the rescued animals were released back into suitable forest habitats.

Despite the loss of large areas of forest to tin mining and the expansion of oil‑palm plantations, the lorises persisted in several locations, Glaw explained. The rescue records show that the species can survive even in heavily altered landscapes.

Glaw and other scientists stress that systematic field surveys are urgently needed to locate remaining populations and to estimate their numbers. They also argue that protecting the remaining natural forests on Bangka is the most pressing priority to guarantee the species’ future.

The rediscovery of the Bangka slow loris proves that species thought extinct may still exist, but their survival now depends on rigorous surveys and immediate forest protection. Conservation actions must focus on these steps to keep the primate from disappearing again.