Factors affecting seasonal habitat use, and predicted range of two tropical deer in Indonesian rainforest

Disentangling vertebrate spatio-temporal responses to anthropogenic disturbances: evidence from a protected area in central Myanmar

Urbanization of natural landscapes and increasing human populations have brought people and our companion animals into closer contact with wildlife, even within protected areas. To provide guidance for human–wildlife coexistence, it is therefore critical to understand the effects of anthropogenic disturbances and how well native wildlife species survive in human-dominated landscapes. We investigated the spatio-temporal responses of 10 vertebrate taxa, with an emphasis on the Endangered Eld's deer Rucervus eldii thamin, to anthropogenic disturbances in Shwesettaw Wildlife Sanctuary, Myanmar. We quantified anthropogenic disturbances as distance from human settlements, distance from a highway, and the presence of people and free-ranging dogs Canis familiaris. Anthropogenic disturbances had stronger negative impacts on the detection of native wildlife species than on occupancy. Eld's deer avoided areas close to human settlements and showed low diel activity overlap with both people and dogs, although we found a positive association with human presence at the camera-trap sites. Five species exhibited lower diel activity overlap with people in the rainy season when human activity is the highest in our study area. All studied wildlife species shifted to nocturnal activity or did not show any clear activity pattern during the cool-dry season when the presence of dogs increased. The ecological and conservation impacts of dogs are underestimated in South-east Asia, particularly in Myanmar, and this case study highlights the impacts of dogs on the temporal use of habitat by wildlife and the need for better practices in the management of dogs within protected areas.

Drivers of Three Most Charismatic Mammalian Species Distribution across a Multiple-Use Tropical Forest Landscape of Sumatra, Indonesia

Tropical Rainforest Heritage sites of Sumatra are some of the most irreplaceable landscapes in the world for biodiversity conservation. These landscapes harbor many endangered Asiatic mammals all suffering multifaceted threats due to anthropogenic activities. Three charismatic mammals in Sumatra: Elephas maximus sumatranus, Pongo abelii, and Panthera tigris sumatrae are protected and listed as Critically Endangered (CR) within the IUCN Red List. Nevertheless, their current geographic distribution remains unclear, and the impact of environmental factors on these species are mostly unknown. This study predicts the potential range of those species on the island of Sumatra using anthropogenic, biophysical, topographic, and climatic parameters based on the ensemble machine learning algorithms. We also investigated the effects of habitat loss from current land use, ecosystem availability, and importance of Indonesian protected areas. Our predictive model had relatively excellent performance (Sørensen: 0.81-0.94) and can enhance knowledge on the current species distributions. The most critical environmental predictors for the distribution of the three species are conservation status and temperature seasonality. This study revealed that more than half of the species distributions occurred in non-protected areas, with proportional coverage being 83%, 72%, and 54% for E.m. sumatranus, P. abelii, and P.t. sumatrae, respectively. Our study further provides reliable information on places where conservation efforts must be prioritized, both inside and outside of the protected area networks, to safeguard the ongoing survival of these Indonesian large charismatic mammals.

Ecology and conservation of the endemic Bawean warty pig Sus verrucosus blouchi and Bawean deer Axis kuhlii

The island of Bawean, Indonesia, is home to the endemic Bawean warty pig Sus verrucosus blouchi and Bawean deer Axis kuhlii. Despite their threatened status, no long-term monitoring programme is in place for either species. Using random encounter and occupancy modelling based on 4,516 camera-trap days in 2014 and 2015 we aimed to provide population estimates and ecological data, including habitat preferences, for these species. For the Bawean warty pig we estimate an overall population size of 234–467 mature individuals and demonstrate a negative correlation between probability of occupancy and distance from villages. This preference for human-modified habitat has implications for human–wildlife conflict and hunting pressure for this species. The population of the Bawean deer could not be estimated because of the low number of encounters, but we suggest that this indicates the population is considerably smaller than previously reported. As island endemics, the Bawean warty pig and Bawean deer are particularly vulnerable to threats, and appropriate measures for safeguarding the species need to be taken.

Effects of wet season mineral nutrition on chital deer distribution in northern Queensland

Abstract ContextTo predict the success of an invasive species, it is important to understand the habitat factors that influence its distribution and abundance. In northern Queensland, chital deer (Axis axis) is an introduced ungulate that occupies specific areas over periods of several decades. AimsThe aim was to compare mineral concentrations in the soil and food plants of areas that chital occupy in high and low densities, and to assess mineral levels in blood sera. MethodsFaecal counts were used to identify areas of high and low chital density. Samples of soil and food plants were analysed from high- and low-density areas to determine the concentrations of 10 minerals from 32 collection sites. Laboratory examination was conducted on serum collected from 46 culled chital to evaluate mineral concentrations. Key resultsChital density varied markedly, with higher mineral concentrations found in soil and food plants in areas of high chital density compared with low-density locations. Average-ranked analyses indicated soil phosphorus levels were significantly (1.5×) higher in areas of high chital density, together with levels of Na (3.4×), Mg (2.3×), Mn (2.1×) and Fe (1.3×) in grasses that comprise more than 90% of the wet season (November to March) diet. Based on minimum requirements for ruminants, the concentrations of Na and Zn in grasses were suboptimal for chital. Serum Zn concentrations suggest a marginal deficiency in most of the animals sampled. ConclusionsMineral requirements of ungulates are such that deficiencies in availability of key nutrients may be sufficient to influence density and distribution. If there are deficiencies, the principal determinants of habitat selection are likely to be P in soil, and Na and Zn in food plants. Deficiencies of both Na and Zn in the diet may limit growth and reproductive output. Implications Mineral adequacy in the diet of chital may be a determinant of their current distribution and a predictor of the habitats they may successfully colonise in the future. Recognition of mineral nutrition as a habitat predictor may aid in the management of chital as a keystone species where it is native on the Indian subcontinent, and as an invasive species where it has become naturalised.