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TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The massive opening of forests has weakened monitoring, exacerbating illegal wildlife trade, with estimated annual state losses reaching Rp9-12 trillion. Yet, beyond mere material losses, the disruption of natural corridors due to habitat fragmentation caused by deforestation also triggers inbreeding depression, threatening the long-term genetic stability of Indonesian fauna.
Budi Setiadi Daryono, the Dean of the Faculty of Biology at Gadjah Mada University, emphasizes the significant responsibility to safeguard mega-biodiversity from environmental degradation and habitat fragmentation. If left unaddressed, this could lead to wildlife scarcity and even inbreeding. "We often pride ourselves on being a mega-biodiversity country. However, an anthropocentric approach seriously threatens the balance of nature," stated Budi in a written release on Monday, May 4, 2026.
Budi also emphasizes the importance of correcting misconceptions about forest law, which are often held by the public. According to him, before human intervention, the true wilderness abided by natural laws full of harmony and balance. "It is precisely due to human activities that our forests are vanishing and that balance is being disrupted, the effects of which we are now beginning to feel ourselves," he said.
Indira Nurul, a conservationist from the Centre for Orangutan Protection (COP), asserts that building wildlife habitat conservation within physical corridors cannot be done haphazardly without a strong scientific basis. She explains that territorial aspects and wildlife roaming space must be the main references before such infrastructure is built.
If their habitat is separated by roads, Indira exemplifies, a canopy bridge can indeed help wildlife cross safely. "However, in-depth ecological studies are required. We need to ensure the exact points when the wildlife cross so that the corridor truly functions," she stated.
In addition to forest habitats, Luthfi Nurhidayat, a lecturer at the Laboratory of Animal Structure and Development, Faculty of Biology at Gadjah Mada University, also highlights the decline in local fish populations, such as the spotted gudgeon. One of the triggers is the construction of dams that obstruct the migration of aquatic wildlife. Population separation in the waters, he said, also triggers the risk of genetic malformations or abnormalities and the loss of local fish.
"Fragmentation causes a separation of populations that potentially experience malformations, for example, fish without tails or with strange heads," he said. "This can certainly potentially reduce the population, not to mention the influence of water pollution leading to the disappearance of local fish, leaving only invasive outsider fish."
Luthfi then outlines an in situ conservation program through the restocking mechanism for spotted gudgeon in the Baros River and Gandok River in Yogyakarta. Unlike typical fish releases, he mentioned that this program prioritizes several scientific stages, including habitat assessments, genetic quality testing, and regular population monitoring.
"We conduct restocking to enhance the recovery capacity. We also introduce new genetics so that the resulting individual will be better than those that were previously fragmented," he said.
Read: Indonesia's Songbird Ecosystem Generates Rp2 Trillion Annually
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