Mystery over the Beast of Borneo

The animal, a mammal slightly larger than a domestic cat with dark red fur and a long bushy tail, was photographed twice by a camera trap at night, according to a researcher with the conservation charity WWF.

It could be the first new carnivorous mammal to be found on the island of Borneo for more than 100 years.

But researchers fear that the newly discovered animal might already be doomed to extinction by the threat of human development.

Borneo has one of the highest levels of biodiversity on Earth, and WWF said it was hoping to confirm more about the amazing discovery by setting cage traps and catching a live specimen.

It is incredibly rare to find a new mammal species of this size, particularly a carnivore.

It is thought that the beast may be a new species of marten or civet cat, but there is also the possibility that it will be in an entirely new group.

Stephan Wulffraat, a biologist who is co-ordinating WWF's research on the animal, said everyone he had spoken to had never heard of the creature.

"We showed the photo of the animal to locals who know the wildlife of the area, but nobody had ever seen this creature before," he said.

"We also consulted several Bornean wildlife experts. Some thought it looked like a lemur, but most were convinced it was a carnivore."

There is a very real risk that the creature might remain a mystery for ever, because its habitat is under serious threat from the expansion of human activity.

The area where the animal was photographed - the Kayan Mentarang national park in Kalimantan, on the Indonesian side of the island - is located in the "Heart of Borneo", which is a mountainous region covered with vast tracts of rainforest.

WWF's Heart of Borneo initiative aims to assist the three nations with territory on the island - Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia - to conserve more than 22 million hectares of rainforest there. But the Indonesian government is planning to create the world's largest palm-oil plantation in this area.

Activists with WWF warn that would devastate forests, wildlife and indigenous communities and pose a threat to the newly discovered animal.

The scheme, which is funded by the China Development Bank, is expected to cover an area of 1.8 million hectares - half the size of the Netherlands.

Callum Rankine, the head of species for WWF-UK, warned that the new species could already be on the brink of extinction and development of the area could push it over the edge.

"This is an incredible find and highlights the urgent need to conserve the unique forests in the Heart of Borneo," Mr Rankine said. "This creature, whatever it is, hasn't been seen since the pictures were taken and is therefore likely to occur in very low numbers.

"It would be a tragedy if it became extinct before it was even described to science - and that is a very real risk."

The last carnivore to be discovered on the island was the Borneo ferret badger, which was found in 1895.

The new animal is described in a WWF book, Lalut Birai: The ecology of a rainforest in the Heart of Borneo, written by Stephan Wulffraat, which highlights the results of long-term research into the flora and fauna on that part of the island.