Search

Sarawak is the largest state in the megadiverse country of Malaysia. Its rich biodiversity is threatened by land-use change and hunting, with mammalian carnivores particularly affected. Data on the ecology, occurrence and distribution of small carnivores are crucial to inform their effective conservation, but no large-scale assessments have previously been conducted in Sarawak. Here we examine the status of the five species of felids in Sarawak based on data from camera-trap studies over 17 years (May 2003–February 2021) across 31 study areas, including protected areas of various sizes, production forests and forest matrix within oil palm plantations. Felids were detected at 39% of 845 camera stations. The marbled cat Pardofelis marmorata and Sunda clouded leopard Neofelis diardi had higher probabilities of occurrence in protected than unprotected areas, and vice versa for the leopard cat Prionailurus bengalensis and bay cat Catopuma badia. The marbled and bay cats were mostly diurnal, and the leopard cat was predominantly nocturnal; activity patterns did not substantively differ between protected and unprotected sites. The probabilities of occurrence of marbled and bay cats increased with greater distance from roads. The leopard cat and flat-headed cat Prionailurus planiceps were more likely, and the clouded leopard less likely, to occur near rivers. Flat-headed cats preferred peat swamp forest, bay cats lowland forest, and marbled cats and clouded leopards occurred in both lowland and montane forest. Felids may tolerate higher elevations to avoid anthropogenic disturbance; therefore, it is critical to preserve lowland and mid-elevation habitats that provide refugia from climate change and the destruction of lowland habitat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tropical regions are undergoing rapid land use change, with major implications for global biodiversity. Selective logging and agroforestry are particularly widespread across tropical forests, often occurring in close proximity. But while a number of studies have addressed their impacts separately, few have directly compared how they influence forest vertebrates. Here, we assessed the occurrence of medium‐ to large‐bodied mammals in logged forest, unlogged forest, and agroforestry areas in three study areas in interior Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. We detected 34 species across 99 camera trap locations and used multi‐species occupancy models to estimate species‐specific occurrence while accounting for imperfect detectability, spatial autocorrelation, natural habitat heterogeneity, and metrics of site accessibility (distance to human infrastructure) as proxies for potential hunting pressure. We found that species occurrences were unaffected by the distance to the nearest road or village and only responded to elevation and the distance to the nearest river in a single species each. Detection rates tended to vary with micro‐habitat characteristics such as the size of tree stumps and the prevalence of trees and rattan palms, which are often not considered in camera‐based occupancy studies. Occurrence rates of five species varied across habitat types but were not detectably lower in agroforestry sites than in unlogged forest for any species. Our results indicate that without unsustainable hunting, agroforestry and logged forest provide usable habitat for some, though not all, rainforest mammals. We also suggest that camera trap studies may benefit from the incorporation of fine‐scale habitat information into detectability estimation. Abstract in Malaysian is available with online material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Selective logging is very widespread across the tropics and can alter the habitat for myriad wildlife species. But while many studies have assessed the impacts of past logging on forest animals, far fewer have investigated how species respond to logging while the timber operations are actually going on. This is an important knowledge gap because, considering the prevalence of logging across the world, numerous areas will be undergoing active extraction at any given time. We compared the occurrence and diel activity patterns of individual species of medium- to large-bodied terrestrial mammals, as well as the richness of the entire assemblage, among sites that were either unlogged, had been logged historically, or had ongoing 'reduced impact' timber extraction in the Kapit Region of Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo. We found no significant differences in estimated occupancy or activity patterns of particular species, or in overall species richness, among logging treatments. Across sites, species richness in this area appeared to be as high as or higher than in many other parts of the state, including some protected areas. Though monitoring is needed to assess potential long-term impacts, our results suggest that reduced-impact logging could allow economic development that is sustainable for many wildlife populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information on distribution is useful for determining global conservation status of species and for prescribing sound management practices for taxa of conservation importance. Therefore, an attempt to understand the distribution of terrestrial animals using infra-red camera traps in Tanjung Datu National Park, Borneo, was carried out from July 2013 to October 2015 (28 months). A total of 23 camera locations set in various microhabitats and elevations accumulated 2,490 camera days, which resulted in 1,189 independent animal images comprised of 21 mammals, two birds, and one reptile species. The cameras revealed a total of 20 medium to large mammals (excluding treeshrews & small rodents), with the most common species photographed being the pig-tailed macaque (independent images n = 278) and bearded pig (271), while the masked palm civet (1) and Sunda pangolin (1) were only represented by singletons. Most of the common species are listed as Protected (33.64%) in the Sarawak Wild Life Protection Ordinance 1998, while 2.02% species have Totally Protected status. Less than 1% of the species are considered Critically Endangered and Endangered, 3.57% are considered Near Threatened, and 74.3% are considered Vulnerable under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. In addition, this survey has provided detailed information on activity patterns of some cryptic species. The absence of larger carnivores suggests that species such as the Sunda clouded leopard and Bornean sun bear may have been extirpated from this small, isolated, and fragmented protected area. We emphasise that regular monitoring of wildlife in National Parks should not be neglected, especially when the surrounding area is experiencing accelerated and unprecedented rates of habitat conversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]