Recent Publications on Asian Elephants

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Recent Publications on Asian Elephants Gajah 30 (2009) 58-67 Recent Publications on Asian Elephants Compiled by Jennifer Pastorini Anthropologisches Institut, Universität Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland and Centre for Conservation and Research, Rajagiriya, Sri Lanka L.A. Bates, J.H. Poole & R.W. Byrne the tested rhinoceros species and both elephant Elephant cognition species. The lower sorting indices in rhinos Current Biology 18 (2008) 544-546 indicate that sex sorting of spermatozoa from Review article, no abstract available. the rhinoceros will be more challenging than in elephants. © 2008 Blackwell Verlag. B. Behr, D. Rath, T.B. Hildebrandt, F. Goeritz, S. Blottner, T.J. Portas, B.R. Bryant, B. Sieg, A. M.F. Bertelsen, M. Kjelgaard-Hansen, C. Knieriem, S.P. de Graaf, W.M.C. Maxwell & R. Grondahl, P.M.H. Heegaard & S. Jacobsen Hermes Identifi cation of acute phase proteins and Germany/Australia index of sperm sex assays applicable in nondomesticated sortability in elephants and rhinoceros mammals Reproduction in Domestic Animals 44 (2009) Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine 40 (2009) 273-277 199-203 Abstract. Flow cytometric sexing of spermatozoa Abstract. The serum concentration of acute followed by application in artifi cial insemination phase proteins (APPs) increases dramatically in or in vitro fertilization provides a unique response to infl ammation and tissue injury. APPs opportunity to predetermine the sex of offspring are clinically useful in a range of domesticated and might enhance the conservation management mammals; however, knowledge is limited in of endangered species in captivity such as the nondomesticated mammals. The detective ability elephant and rhinoceros. To obtain an indication of two assays for each of three potential APPs- of the sortability of spermatozoa from these -serum amyloid A (SAA), C-reactive protein species, the relative DNA differences between X (CRP), and haptoglobin (Hp)--was evaluated and Y chromosome bearing spermatozoa (fresh, in eight species. For SAA, a turbidimetric frozen thawed, epididymal) from three rhinoceros immunoassay (TIA) demonstrated signifi cant species [white (Ceratotherium simum), black detective abilities in the Asian elephant (Elaphas (Diceros bicornis), Indian (Rhinoceros unicornis)] maximus), impala (Aepyceros melampus), musk and both elephant species, the Asian and the ox (Ovibos moschatus), and chimpanzee (Pan African elephant (Elephas maximus, Loxodonta troglodytes), as did an SAA enzyme-linked Africana), were determined through separation of immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in the impala. spermatozoa into X and Y chromosome bearing For CRP, both TIA and ELISA had signifi cant populations, using a modifi ed high speed fl ow detective abilities in the chimpanzee. For Hp, cytometer. The head profi le areas of spermatozoa a colorimetric assay demonstrated signifi cant from all fi ve species were measured using light detective abilities in impala, musk ox, sitatunga microscopy. By multiplying the relative DNA (Tragelaphus spekeii), and chimpanzee, as differences and the head profi le areas, the sperm did the Hp ELISA in the impala, musk ox, and sorting indices were calculated to be 47, 48 sitatunga. In conclusion, these results suggest that and 51 for white, black and Indian rhinoceros assays for detection of relevant APPs in several respectively. The calculated sorting index for the nondomesticated animals are available. © 2008 Asian elephant was 66. In the African elephant, by American Association of Zoo Veterinarians. we determined the highest sorting index of 76. These results indicate the practicability of fl ow A. Campos-Arceiz, T.Z. Lin, W. Htun, S. cytometric sex sorting of spermatozoa from Takatsuki & P. Leimgruber 58 Working with mahouts to explore the diet of of elephant geophagic soils in Udawalawe work elephants in Myanmar (Burma) National Park, Sri Lanka Ecological Research 23 (2008) 1057–1064 Environmental Geochemistry Health 31 (2009) Abstract. At an elephant camp in central 391–400 Myanmar (Burma), we interviewed mahouts and Abstract. Geophagy or deliberate ingestion veterinarians to describe the diet of Asian elephants of soils was observed among Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in a mixed-deciduous forest. (Elephas maximus) in the Udawalwe National Elephants showed a broad dietary breadth (103 Park, Sri Lanka, for several years. The plant species from 42 families); consumed geochemical and mineralogical composition of mostly browse (94% of plant species); and were the clayey soil layers which are purposefully very selective about plant parts [e.g., many trees selected and eaten by elephants in the park were were eaten exclusively for their bark (22%) or studied, in order to identify the possible reasons fruits (14%)]. The fruits from 29 plant species for elephant geophagy. The concentrations were recorded to be eaten by elephants. Several of major and trace elements were determined of these were found as fruit remains, seeds, or by means of X-ray fl uorescence spectrometry seedlings in elephant dung, suggesting a role of in 21 soil samples from eight geophagic sites Asian elephants in seed dispersal. Work elephants and six soil samples collected from four non- and their mahouts prove to be a rich source of geophagic sites. The mineralogical composition information to understand wild elephant ecology. of selected soil samples was investigated using © 2008 The Ecological Society of Japan. X-ray diffractometry (XRD). These geochemical analyses revealed that geophagic soils in the M. Chaiklin study areas are deeply weathered and that Ivory in early modern Ceylon: A case study in most of the elements are leached from the soil what documents don’t reveal layers under extreme weathering conditions. International Journal of Asian Studies 6 (2009) The XRD data showed that the soils of the area 37-63 consisted mainly quartz, feldspar, and the clay Abstract. In Sri Lanka elephants are endangered minerals kaolinite, Ferich illite, and smectite. and ivory carving, as an art, is dead. Sri Lanka Although no signifi cant geochemical differences was once famous for the number and quality were identifi ed between geophagic and non- of its elephants, whose tusks were carved and geophagic soils, a clear difference was observed exported since ancient times. Although Sri Lanka in their clay mineralogical content. Soils eaten became, successively, a pivotal outpost for the by elephants are richer in kaolinite and illite Portuguese, Dutch and English, details about the than non-geophagic soils, which contain a higher Ceylonese ivory trade appear in trade documents amount of smectite. It is suggested that elephants only rarely. And yet, if information is not to be in Udawalawe National Park ingest soils mainly found there, does that mean ivory trade did not not to supplement the mineral contents of their occur? Trade documents, after all, do not tell the forage but to detoxify unpalatable compounds whole story. Smugglers, illegal traders, big game in their diet. © 2008 with kind permission from hunters and plantation owners all played a part in Springer Science+Business Media. the disappearance of elephants and its corollary, the ivory trade. When archival evidence is viewed A. Coleing in combination with physical evidence and the The application of social network theory to anecdotes of visitors and residents, it becomes animal behavior evident that ivory remained an integral part Bioscience Horizons 2 (2009) 32-43 of trade and crafts in Ceylon well into the last Abstract. Social network analysis (SNA) is a century. © 2009 Cambridge University Press. mathematical technique for analysing social relationships and the patterns and implications R. Chandrajith, E. Kudavidanage, H.J. Tobschall of these relationships (Wasserman S, Faust K & C.B. Dissanayake (1994) Social Network Analysis: Methods and Geochemical and mineralogical characteristics Applications. Cambridge: Cambridge University 59 Press). It has only recently been discovered by viral genome. In addition to ascites, widespread behavioural biologists as a useful tool in the visceral edema, petechiae, and capillary study of animal behaviour (Wey T, Blumstein damage previously reported, important fi ndings DT, Shen W et al. (2008) Social network analysis with EEHV3 infection were the presence of of animal behaviour: a promising tool for the grossly visible renal medullary hemorrhage, a study of sociality. Anim Behav 75: 333–344). tropism for larger veins and arteries in various Video recording over a 2 month period was used tissues, relatively high density of renal herpetic to record the behaviour of the elephant group at inclusions, and involvement of the retinal vessels. Chester Zoo. SNA was applied in an investigation These fi ndings indicate a less selective organ of the group structure and interactions of the tropism, and this may confer a higher degree of group. Observations of individual and group virulence for EEHV3. © 2009 American College behaviour were based upon 40 h of playback of of Veterinary Pathologists. the social interactions were recorded and analysed using AGNA (2003) and Pajek (2005) packages. R. Greenwald, O. Lyashchenko, J. Esfandiari, The analysis showed that the many facets of M. Miller, S. Mikota, J.H. Olsen, R. Ball, G. individual behaviour could be understood in Dumonceaux, D. Schmitt, T. Moller, J.B. Payeur, terms of social structure of the group. This B. Harris, D. Sofranko, W.R. Waters & K.P. study has demonstrated that SNA is a powerful Lyashchenko approach to understanding group dynamics and Highly accurate antibody assays for early and
Recommended publications
  • Range-Wide Mtdna Phylogeography Yields Insights Into the Origins of Asian Elephants T
    Proc. R. Soc. B doi:10.1098/rspb.2008.1494 Published online Range-wide mtDNA phylogeography yields insights into the origins of Asian elephants T. N. C. Vidya1,2,*, Raman Sukumar1 and Don J. Melnick3 1Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560 012, India 2Evolutionary and Organismal Biology Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore 560 064, India 3Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, 1200 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027, USA Recent phylogeographic studies of the endangered Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) reveal two highly divergent mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) lineages, an elucidation of which is central to understanding the species’s evolution. Previous explanations for the divergent clades include introgression of mtDNA haplotypes between ancestral species, allopatric divergence of the clades between Sri Lanka or the Sunda region and the mainland, historical trade of elephants, and retention of divergent lineages due to large population sizes. However, these studies lacked data from India and Myanmar, which host approximately 70 per cent of all extant Asian elephants. In this paper, we analyse mtDNA sequence data from 534 Asian elephants across the species’s range to explain the current distribution of the two divergent clades. Based on phylogenetic reconstructions, estimates of times of origin of clades, probable ancestral areas of origin inferred from dispersal–vicariance analyses and the available fossil record, we believe both clades originated from Elephas hysudricus. This probably occurred allopatrically in different glacial refugia, the a clade in the Myanmar region and the b clade possibly in southern India–Sri Lanka, 1.6–2.1 Myr ago.
    [Show full text]
  • Inner Page Final 2071.12.14.Indd
    J. Nat. Hist. Mus. Vol. 28, 2014, 137-141 T HE PRE–HISTORIC PROBOSCIDEANS OF NEPAL RAMESH SHRESTHA Natural History Museum, Tribhuvan University Swayambhu, Kathmandu, Nepal [email protected] ABSTRACT AlthoughNepal is one of the native habitats of the present day species of the Asian elephant, Elephas maximus; it is also an important seat of early Proboscidean evolutionary grounds. Up to now four familiesand within them seven species of Proboscideans are recorded from Nepal in the forms of different fossils. Out of the total known Proboscideans throughout the world and Indian sub–continent, Nepal had approximately 3.86% and 14% respectively. This fact undoubtedly indicates that Nepal has remained an important place with perfect ecological conditions for the advance of elephants since pre–historic times. Keywords: Proboscidea, elephants, Rato Khola, Surai Khola, Babai Khola INTRODUCTION Nepal, as part of the Indian sub–continent, remained an important place for the evolution of elephants since Miocene some 24 million years before present (MYBP). Many palaeontologists have discovered various body parts of these Proboscideans since a long time from different parts of the country. The Proboscidea order (from the Latin proboscis) encompasses the mammals with long muscular trunks. The features of trunks and tusks were absent or less developed in early Proboscideans. The elephant trunk is a very special feature, which is very strong, mobile, sensitive, and they can use it to grasp things with it. The trunks have certainly helped out elephants and their ancestors a lot by adapting to strange environments and use it for special things. Fossils of Proboscideans have been found on all continents except Australia and Antarctica.
    [Show full text]
  • Humanity from African Naissance to Coming Millennia” Arises out of the World’S First G
    copertina2 12-12-2000 12:55 Seite 1 “Humanity from African Naissance to Coming Millennia” arises out of the world’s first J. A. Moggi-Cecchi Doyle G. A. Raath M. Tobias V. P. Dual Congress that was held at Sun City, South Africa, from 28th June to 4th July 1998. “Dual Congress” refers to a conjoint, integrated meeting of two international scientific Humanity associations, the International Association for the Study of Human Palaeontology - IV Congress - and the International Association of Human Biologists. As part of the Dual Congress, 18 Colloquia were arranged, comprising invited speakers on human evolu- from African Naissance tionary aspects and on the living populations. This volume includes 39 refereed papers from these 18 colloquia. The contributions have been classified in eight parts covering to Coming Millennia a wide range of topics, from Human Biology, Human Evolution (Emerging Homo, Evolving Homo, Early Modern Humans), Dating, Taxonomy and Systematics, Diet, Brain Evolution. The book offers the most recent analyses and interpretations in diff rent areas of evolutionary anthropology, and will serve well both students and specia- lists in human evolution and human biology. Editors Humanity from African Humanity Naissance from to Coming Millennia Phillip V. Tobias Phillip V. Tobias is Professor Emeritus at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, where he Michael A. Raath obtained his medical doctorate, PhD and DSc and where he served as Chair of the Department of Anatomy for 32 years. He has carried out researches on mammalian chromosomes, human biology of the peoples of Jacopo Moggi-Cecchi Southern Africa, secular trends, somatotypes, hominin evolution, the history of anatomy and anthropology.
    [Show full text]
  • Large Mammals from the Plio-Pleistocene of Kashmir Intermontane Basin, India, with Reference to Their Status in Magnetic Polarity Time Scale
    38--52 Eiszeitalter u. Gegenwart 40 Hannover 1990 14 fig. , 3 tab. Large Mammals from the Plio-Pleistocene of Kashmir Intermontane Basin, India, with Reference to their Status in Magnetic Polarity Time Scale BAHADUR SINGH KOTLIA *) Pliocene, Pleistocene, intramontane basin, Karewa-Formation, magnetostratigraphy, fossil localities, Hippomorpha, Equus sivalensis, Elephantidae, Elephas hysudricus, Canidae, Canis vitastensis, teeths, Ruminantia, Cervus punjabensis, antlers, biometry, paleoenvironment, range, stratigraphic boundary India, Kashmir, Himalayas Abstract: The larger mammalian fossils (Equus, Elephas, Himalayan Range whose southern arm is known as the Cervus and Canis) being described from the Plio-Pleistocene Pir Panjal Range and the northern arm as the Main Karewa deposits of Kashmir Valley, India, were recovered Himalayan Range. In between the complexly folded from the sections already dated by paleomagnetism. Based and faulted mountain ramparts lies the Karewa inter- on these data, the occurrence of Equus and Cervus is dated montane basin which has accumulated above 1000 m to about 2.0 Ma. Elephas and Canis are documented only of the Plio-Pleistocene synorogenic sediments compri­ from the Brunhes epoch. The stratigraphic occurrence of sing mudstone-sandstone-gravel succession (BURBANK these genera is correlated with other known biochronological & JOHNSON 1982; KOTLIA 1985a; KUSUMGAR et al. sequences of subcontinent, and discussed in connection with the Plio-Pleistocene boundary in North India. 1986). The rise of the Pit Panjal Range was responsible for impounding the primaeval drainage and giving rise to a vast Karewa lake (SINGH 1982, BHATT 1983). [Die Großsäuger aus dem Plio-Pleistozän des intermontanen As Pir Panjal continued to rise, the Karewa lake Kashmir-Beckens, Indien, unter Berücksichtigung shrank and shifted towards the Himalayan Range.
    [Show full text]
  • Humanity from African Naissance to Coming Millennia : Colloquia In
    atti esecutivo 18-12-2000 18:04 Pagina 3 HUMANITY FROM AFRICAN NAISSANCE TO COMING MILLENNIA 3 Foreword There was an air of excitement at Sun City, South Africa, in late June of 1998, as delegates started to arrive for the Dual Congress of the International Association of Human Biologists and the International Association for the Study of Human Palaeontology. For the conference organisers, under chairmanship of Professor Phillip V. Tobias, this was the culmination of four years of hard work and planning and, as Phillip remarked at the opening ceremony, it was also a symbolic homecoming to the continent of humanity’s birth for people from all parts of the world. The delegates did indeed come from far and wide: they travelled from 70 countries and the registration list ran to 745 people, making this the most representative gathering of its kind ever held in Africa. As a venue for the exchange of new information on the biology and ancestry of humankind, the Dual Congress provided ample scope. The programme was built around 18 Colloquia, in which 95 invited papers were delivered, and 11 Open Scientific Sections, covering a wide range of topics, discussed in 103 papers, as well as in 79 poster presentations. Nor were the contributions of South African pioneers in the field forgotten: the Raymond Dart Memorial Lecture was given by Sir Walter Bodmer while Professor Tobias delivered the Robert Broom Memorial Lecture, the text of which is reproduced in this volume, together with those of 38 invited papers presented in the Colloquia of the Dual Congress.
    [Show full text]
  • Chinaxiv:201708.00189V1
    第55卷 第1期 古 脊 椎 动 物 学 报 pp. 59-70 2017年1月 VERTEBRATA PALASIATICA figs. 1-3 Elephas cf. E. planifrons (Elephantidae, Mammalia) from Upper Siwalik Subgroup of Samba district, Jammu and Kashmir, India Som Nath KUNDAL Gyan BHADUR Sandeep KUMAR (Department of Geology, University of Jammu Jammu and Kashmir 180006, India [email protected]) Abstract One specimen of Elephas cf. E. planifrons is reported and described here in the present paper. The specimen was recovered from the mudstone horizon underlying the volcanic ash bed exposed near the Nangal village, which is the extension of geochronological dated (2.48 Ma) volcanic ash beds exposed at Barakhetar in the Nagrota Formation of Upper Siwalik Subgroup of Samba district, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Based on the crown morphological parameters (plate numbers, molars length and width, crown length, width and height, enamel thickness, dentine thickness, length and width of plates, lamellar frequency, hypsodonty index and cement thickness), the specimen has been identified and is tentatively referred to Elephas cf. E. planifrons (LM3). The recovery of this specimen is of great significance as it extends its upper limit of range zone from 3.6–2.6 to 3.6–2.48 Ma. Key words Jammu, India; Nagrota Formation, Upper Siwalik Subgroup; Elephas Citation Kundal S N, Bhadur G, Kumar S, 2017. Elephas cf. E. planifrons (Elephantidae, Mammalia) from Upper Siwalik Subgroup of Samba district, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Vertebrata PalAsiatica, 55(1): 59–70 1 History of research From time to time various authors carried out work on elephants origin, evolution and palaeoeccology, taxonomy, distribution, classification, anatomy, ecology, behaviour, chinaXiv:201708.00189v1 phylogenetic analysis and fossil elephantids lineages (Aguirre, 1969; Maglio, 1973; Sarwar, 1977; Tassy, 1983; Shoshani and Tassy, 1996, 2005; Wei et al., 2006; Gheerbrant and Tassy, 2009; Todd, 2010a,b) from the different parts of the world.
    [Show full text]
  • Extiction of Quaternary Mammalian Habitats of Megafauna in Sabaragamu Basin - Sri Lanka
    EXTICTION OF QUATERNARY MAMMALIAN HABITATS OF MEGAFAUNA IN SABARAGAMU BASIN - SRI LANKA 1Aravinda Ravibhanu Sumanarathna 2Jinadasa Katupotha 3Kamal Abeywardana 1,3 South Asian Astrobiology & Palaeobiology Research Unit of Eco Astronomy Sri Lanka. 2 Department of Geography: University of Jayawardenepura 1Faculty of Enviroment & Natural Science University of Southampton –United Kingdom Email: [email protected] ABSTRACT The Quaternary includes two geologic epochs: the Pleistocene and the Holocene. Both epochs divided to faunal stages and human cultural phases based on climate and sea level cycles for the past three million years. Quaternary ice age begins roughly 2.58 Ma with cool and dry climate conditions. Australopithecines and many of the extinct genera of mammalian mega fauna appeared in this time. Thus, the Quaternary period show the extinctions of numerous predominantly larger, especially mammalian mega faunal species, many of them lived during the transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene epoch. The debate on the demise of the mammalian megafauna is often characterized by two highly polarized points of view: (1) climate-induced extinction; and (2) human-induced extinction. In Pleistocene period most parts of the Northern Hemisphere were covered with glaciers creating a cold climate. Due to this glacial formation the main sea level was much lower than today. The low sea level facilitated the connection of Sri Lanka with the Indian mainland with a land bridge. Therefore a number of mega and micro fauna was able to cross to Sri Lanka from India. The last land bridge was emerged around 7500 yr BP. In Pleistocene era Sri Lanka experienced heavy rainfall and covered with rain forest.
    [Show full text]
  • Assessing the Occurrence of Stegodon and Elephas in China And
    Assessing the occurrence of Stegodon and Elephas in China and Southeast Asia during the Early Pleistocene Valéry Zeitoun, Winayalai Chinnawut, Régis Debruyne, Prasit Auetrakulvit To cite this version: Valéry Zeitoun, Winayalai Chinnawut, Régis Debruyne, Prasit Auetrakulvit. Assessing the occurrence of Stegodon and Elephas in China and Southeast Asia during the Early Pleistocene. Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France, Société géologique de France, 2015, 186 (6), pp.413-427. 10.2113/gss- gfbull.186.6.413. hal-02977026 HAL Id: hal-02977026 https://hal.sorbonne-universite.fr/hal-02977026 Submitted on 23 Oct 2020 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France (2015) 186 (6): 413–427. https://doi.org/10.2113/gssgfbull.186.6.413 Assessing the occurrence of Stegodon and Elephas in China and Southeast Asia during the Early Pleistocene. Présence des genres Stegodon et Elephas en Chine et en Asie du Sud-est au Pléistocène inférieur: un bilan. Zeitoun Valéry UMR 7207 (CR2P), CNRS-Upmc-Mnhn, Sorbonne universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, T. 46- 56, 5ème étage, case 104, 4, place Jussieu, 75 252 Paris Cedex 05, France.
    [Show full text]
  • GAJAH 2009 Journal of the Asian Elephant Specialist Group GAJAH
    NUMBER 30 GAJAH 2009 Journal of the Asian Elephant Specialist Group GAJAH Journal of the Asian Elephant Specialist Group Number 30 (2009) The journal is intended as a medium of communication on issues that concern the management and conservation of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) both in the wild and in captivity. It is a means by which members of the AsESG and others can communicate their experiences, ideas and perceptions freely, so that the conservation of Asian elephants can bene t. All articles published in Gajah re ect the individual views of the authors and not necessarily that of the editorial board or the AsESG. Editor Jayantha Jayewardene Biodiversity and Elephant Conservation Trust 615/32 Rajagiriya Gardens Nawala Road, Rajagiriya Sri Lanka [email protected] Editorial Board Dr. Prithiviraj Fernando A. T. J. Johnsingh Centre for Conservation and Research 101 Magnolia, Esteem Gardenia 35 Gunasekara Gardens Sahakara Nagar Nawala Road, Rajagiriya Bangalore 92 Sri Lanka India e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] Heidi Riddle Dr. Alex Rübel Riddles Elephant & Wildlife Sanctuary Direktor Zoo Zürich P.O.Box 715 Zürichbergstrasse 221 Greenbrier, Arkansas 72058 CH - 8044 Zürich USA Switzerland e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] Arnold Sitompul Dr. A. Christy Williams Conservation Science Initiative WWF Nepal Program Jl. Setia Budi Pasar 2 P.O. Box 7660 Komp. Insan Cita Griya Blok CC No 5 Baluwatar, Kathmnadu Medan, 20131 Nepal Indonesia e-mail: [email protected] e-mail:[email protected] GAJAH Journal of the Asian Elephant Specialist Group Number 30 (2009) This publication of Gajah was fi nanced by the Wildlife Reserves Singapore Editorial Note Articles published in Gajah may be used, distributed and reproduced in any medium, provided the article is properly cited.
    [Show full text]
  • Action Plan for Conservation and Sustainable Use of Palaeobiodiversity in Sri Lanka
    Action Plan for Conservation and Sustainable Use of Palaeobiodiversity in Sri Lanka Biodiversity Secretariat Ministry of Environment and Renewable Energy Action Plan for Conservation and Sustainable Use of Palaeobiodiversity in Sri Lanka Biodiversity Secretariat Ministry of Environment and Renewable Energy 3 Action Plan for Conservation and Sustainable Use of Palaeobiodiversity in Sri Lanka Published by: Biodiversity Secretariat, Ministry of Environment & Renewable Energy Copyright: 2014, Biodiversity Secretariat, Ministry of Environment & Renewable Energy All rights reserved No part of the book, photographs or illustrations can be reproduced without written permission from the author. ISBN: 978-955-0033-57-7 Editor: Pradeep Arjuna Jayatunga Compilers: Kelum Manamendra-Arachchi (Postgraduate Institute of Archaeology) Hasula Wickremasinghe (Biodiversity Secretariat, Ministry of Environment & Renewable Energy) Palaeobiodiversity Advisory Committee (Reviewers) Prof Gamini Adikari - Director General (Central Cultural Fund)/ Professor, Postgraduate Institute of Archaeology Ms Pathma Abeykoon - Director (Biodiversity Secretariat)/ Ministry of Environment & Renewable Energy Prof Jinadasa Katupotha - Professor (Dept. of Geography)/ University of Sri Jayawardenapura Dr R.M.Chandraratne - Senior Lecturer (Dept. Archaeology)/ University of Peradeniya Dr Nimal Perera - Former Deputy Director (Department of Archaeology) Mr Wijeratne Bohingamuwa - Senior Lecturer (Dept of Humanities & Social Sciences) University of Ruhuna Dr Starin Fernando - Geologist
    [Show full text]
  • ZOOLOGISCHE MEDEDELINGEN UITGEGEVEN DOOR HET RIJKSMUSEUM VAN NATUURLIJKE HISTORIE TE LEIDEN Vol
    MINISTERIE VAN ONDERWIJS, KUNSTEN EN WETENSCHAPPEN ZOOLOGISCHE MEDEDELINGEN UITGEGEVEN DOOR HET RIJKSMUSEUM VAN NATUURLIJKE HISTORIE TE LEIDEN vol. 40 no. 10 8 juli 1964 NEW RECORDS OF MAMMALS FROM THE MIDDLE PLEISTOCENE OF SANGIRAN, CENTRAL JAVA by D. Α. HOOIJER Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie, Leiden Collections of fossil vertebrate remains from the Sangiran area in Java have recently been presented to the Rijksmuseum van Natuurlijke Historie by Mr. H. R. van Heekeren and by Mr. J. H. Houbolt. They form a most welcome addition to the Museum collection of fossil vertebrates made by Eugene Dubois in Java in the 189o's; Sangiran is a site known to but not collected at by Dubois. We are grateful to Messrs. Van Heekeren and Houbolt for their generous gift to the Museum; the more important speci­ mens in the Sangiran collection will be the subject of the present note. The Sangiran dome (for the geology of the area see Van Es, 1931: 55-68, and Von Koenigswald, 1940: 26-39), situated approximately 12 km north of Solo (Soerakarta) between the Kali Brangkal and the Kali Tjemoro in Central Java, has been extensively collected at by Dr. G. H. R. von Koenigswald during the 1930's. The cranial and mandibular remains of hominids retrieved from this site between 1936 and 1941 by that indefati­ gable collector rank among the most important fossil hominid specimens­ ever found in Asia. In the course of his investigations in Java Von Koenigswald established a succession of faunas two of which, the Djetis and the Trinil fauna, are of special interest here as both do occur at Sangiran.
    [Show full text]
  • Proboscidean Fossils from the Japanese Archipelago and Taiwan Islands and Their Relationship with the Chinese Mainland
    The World of Elephants - International Congress, Rome 2001 Proboscidean fossils from the Japanese Archipelago and Taiwan Islands and their relationship with the Chinese mainland K. Takahashi1, C.H. Chang2, Y.N. Cheng2 1 Lake Biwa Museum, Shiga, Japan - [email protected] 2 National Museum of Natural Science, Taichung, Taiwan [email protected], [email protected] SUMMARY: The colonization, evolutionary processes and the relationship between the faunas of the Japanese Islands and Taiwan Island have been summarised, based on a comparison of their fossil pro- boscidean taxa with those of the Chinese mainland. The comparison indicates that Mammuthus protomam- monteus and Stegodon aurorae evolved in the Japanese Islands and Taiwan respectively, and that S. shin- shuensis, S. orientalis and Palaeoloxodon naumanni migrated to Japan from the mainland of China. Although P. huaihoensis migrated to Taiwan, P. naumanni did not migrate there. 1. INTRODUCTION There are two main factors influencing the faunas in these islands. Firstly, the depth of The Japanese Archipelago and Taiwan are the strait between the islands and the Asian located along the east margin of the Asian mainland. The maximum depth of the Strait of Continent, with Japan in the north and Taiwan Korea between the continent and the Japanese in the south, ranging from 45° ~ till about 24° islands is about 130 m. Most of the depth of the morthern latitude. Between the Japanese island Strait of Taiwan between the continent and of Kyushu in the north and Taiwan are situated Taiwan is less than 100 m depth. These differ- the Ryukyu Islands, a series of small islands ences suggest that Taiwan has been connected belonging to Japan.
    [Show full text]