Princess the Pangolin’s remarkable story
An injured pangolin has undergone a remarkable journey of recovery, thanks to our long-term colleagues at Lilongwe Wildlife Trust, in Malawi, southeast Africa.
Princess the Pangolin (c) Lilongwe Wildlife Trust
Born Free is devoted to pangolins, and we support the wonderful work of our friends at Lilongwe Wildlife Trust, as they rescue and care for these fascinating, shy animals. Pangolins are famously the only mammal with scales, but are under terrible threat from the illegal wildlife trade.
Lilongwe Wildlife Trust is one of Malawi’s leading wildlife charities and devoted to the rescue of injured, orphaned and confiscated pangolins. Each one is rehabilitated, prepared for release, then monitored once back in the wild – where they belong. Sadly, in recent years there has been a big increase in pangolins needing rescue from wildlife traffickers, and the Trust also does everything they can to help end the illegal trade.
Princess during a post-release monitoring check (c) Lilongwe Wildlife Trust
It’s just over a year since Princess the pangolin first came into the Trust’s care. They received a call from the Malawi Department of National Parks and Wildlife, telling them of an injured pangolin found in one of the villages near a national park. Fortunately, the Trust has an expert team of pangolin caretakers located near the area, who were able to conduct an immediate assessment.
The team realised the pangolin, who they named Princess, had a serious leg injury, as well as other wounds, including a number of broken scales. This seemed to indicate she had been attacked in some way – most likely by people. Princess clearly needed emergency care and without delay was transferred to the Trust’s veterinary clinic at Lilongwe Wildlife Centre, where thankfully they were able to stabilise her and treat her wounds.
Princess will always walk with a slight limp, but otherwise has recovered well from her ordeal. The Trust transferred her to their secondary rehabilitation site, located in a protected area. Here she stayed for six months under the care of their team of dedicated pangolin caretakers, gaining weight and strength before being released back to the wild, in May.
Princess being taken for a foraging walk (c) Lilongwe Wildlife Trust
The team first fitted Princess with satellite tags, which enabled them to track her movements and make sure she was settling in well to her new environment. In August 2024, they were able to locate her for a post-release check-up, and were delighted to find that she had gained almost 1kg in weight and has settled into a good home range with plenty of burrow options.
You can support Lilongwe Wildlife Trust’s life-saving pangolin work by adopting our new Pangolin Family: