ISSN 1027-2992 I Special Issue I N° 8 | SPRING 2014 Non-CATPanthera cats in newsSouth-east Asia 02
CATnews is the newsletter of the Cat Specialist Group, a component Editors: Christine & Urs Breitenmoser of the Species Survival Commission SSC of the International Union Co-chairs IUCN/SSC for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It is published twice a year, and is Cat Specialist Group available to members and the Friends of the Cat Group. KORA, Thunstrasse 31, 3074 Muri, Switzerland For joining the Friends of the Cat Group please contact Tel ++41(31) 951 90 20 Christine Breitenmoser at [email protected] Fax ++41(31) 951 90 40
This Special Issue of CATnews has been produced with support Cover Photo: Non-Panthera cats of South-east Asia: from the Taiwan Council of Agriculture’s Forestry Bureau, Zoo Leipzig and From top centre clock-wise the Wild Cat Club. jungle cat (Photo K. Shekhar) clouded leopard (WCS Thailand Prg) Design: barbara surber, werk’sdesign gmbh fishing cat (P. Cutter) Layout: Christine Breitenmoser, Jonas Bach leopard cat (WCS Malaysia Prg) Print: Stämpfli Publikationen AG, Bern, Switzerland Asiatic golden cat (WCS Malaysia Prg) marbled cat (K. Jenks) ISSN 1027-2992 © IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group
The designation of the geographical entities in this publication, and the representation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the IUCN concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
CATnews Special Issue 8 Spring 2014 original contribution
DANIEL H. A. WILLCOX1, TRAN QUANG PHUONG1, HOANG MINH DUC2 AND NGUYEN THE Gekko gecko to Asian elephant (Bell et al. TRUONG AN1 2004, Roberton 2007, Venkatararam 2007). Very heavy indiscriminate snaring and target- The decline of non-Panthera ed hunting are driven by a demand for wild meat, exotic pets, pelts, and for body parts, cat species in Vietnam some to be used in traditional medicine. Ur- ban Vietnam consumes so much wildlife, in Vietnam is likely to have once supported globally significant populations of leopard part as a symbol of wealth and status, that cat Prionailurus bengalensis, Asiatic golden cat Catopuma temminckii, marbled cat local subsistence use of wild mammals is Pardofelis marmorata and mainland clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa, and prob- increasingly rare (Roberton 2007, Venkatara- ably also fishing cat Prionailurus viverrinus. Jungle cat Felis chaus is also recorded ram 2007, TRAFFIC 2008, Drury 2011). Much for Vietnam but the limited extent of the species’s preferred habitat type, deciduous is also exported, notably to China. forest, means that it is unlikely to have ever been widely distributed in the country. Impacts of these factors on Vietnam’s small The current conservation status of all these small cat species in Vietnam is poorly cats are unclear. Most small cats are elusive, understood. All traceable verifiable small cat field records from 1 January 1995 to 31 low-density species and therefore hard to de- October 2013 were collated and reviewed, as were the results of camera-trap sur- tect, and so are rarely targeted during field veys that did not record any cats at all. Only leopard cat had a sizeable number of con- surveys and are outside the focus of most firmed records. Several surveys of >1,000 camera trap nights did not record any other mainstream conservation initiatives. This species of small cat. Indiscriminate cable-snare trapping is likely to have caused review collates modern verifiable records for significant declines in Vietnam’s non-Panthera cat species, and probably extirpated Vietnam’s non-Panthera cats, to clarify each Asiatic golden cat, mainland clouded leopard and marbled cat from plausibly many of species’s national conservation status. Vietnam’s protected areas. Vietnam is unlikely to still hold globally significant popu- lations of these three species and immediate conservation efforts should focus on Methods the two countries in Indochina that are still likely to: Cambodia and Lao PDR. The last Wildlife surveys during the 1990s were gen- confirmed fishing cat record for Vietnam is now 13 years old, but given this species’s erally reconnaissances of the conservation relative tolerance to human-induced habitat changes, and the relatively low amount significance of declared or potential pro- of snare-trapping in its preferred wetland mosaic habitats, targeted searches for this tected areas. Most focused on diurnal land species in Vietnam are warranted and are a regional conservation priority. vertebrates and lasted less than a month. 53 Such surveys are poorly suited to elusive, Vietnam lies in the Indo-Burma hotspot (My- deciduous dipterocarp forests (Duckworth low density, partly nocturnal animals such as ers et al. 2000, CEPF 2012), among the most et al. 2005) and fishing cat may have been small cats. Their verifiable small cat records biodiverse regions on Earth. It covers approxi- mostly coastal, as has been suggested for were mostly of captive animals and hunted mately 330,000 km2 of land from sea level to some other South-east Asian range countries remains where a local provenance seemed 3,000 m, with one of the longest coastlines (Duckworth et al. 2010). likely; a few were direct sightings. in the region (3,260 km) and two large deltas: Vietnam is within a national species extinction Camera trapping, among the best methods the Mekong in the south and the Red River crisis. Javan rhinoceros Rhinocerus sondaicus, for verifiable records with accurate locations, in the north. The Annamite Mountains, along kouprey Bos sauveli, hog deer Axis porcinus, was used effectively from 1998 onwards. much of the country’s western border, are rec- and Bengal florican Houbaropsis bengalensis Most of the large-scale such surveys aimed ognised for their high endemism (Baltzer et (Platt & Ngo 2000, Brook et al. 2011, IUCN to establish a site’s conservation significance al. 2001, Sterling et al. 2006, CEPF 2012). In 2013) were extirpated from Vietnam during for mammals and birds. Few surveys targeted the North, the Hoang Lien Mountain Range, the late twentieth century and early twenty- small carnivores. Camera trap-use declined seen by some as the Himalayas’ eastern first century. Other species perilously close from 2005, and few surveys ever exceeded extremity, contains several Sino-Himalayan to extirpation include Asian elephant Elephas one year, hindering assessment of these spe- plant and animal species. Vietnam has a di- maximus, giant ibis Thaumatibis gigantea, cies’ population trends. verse range of habitats including evergreen, and tiger Panthera tigris (IUCN 2013). Hence to inform small cat conservation status semi-evergreen and deciduous forests, lime- These losses, and ongoing declines in many in Vietnam, this review collates all traceable stone karsts, and various types of wetland in- others, are driven by wildlife hunting and field records for small cats (excluding do- cluding Melaleuca cajuputi-dominated peat- in some cases exacerbated by habitat loss. mestic cat F. catus) in Vietnam from 1 Janu- swamp forest. Viet-nam’s human population is high (93 mil- ary 1995 to 31 October 2013. Records were Historical records of non-Panthera (hereafter lion) and much lowland evergreen forest, compiled from direct observations, camera ‘small’) cats in Vietnam comprise six spe- grassland and wetland are now agriculture trap images, and remains and captives in vil- cies (e.g. Osgood 1932, Delacour 1940; Sup- (Wege et al. 1999, Brooks et al. 2002, Sodhi lages within and near natural or semi-natural porting Online Material SOM T1). Based on et al. 2004). Even the higher altitude forest areas, where origin was explicitly investi- habitats occupied by each species elsewhere types, better protected by natural factors, gated. Direct observations were only consid- in South-east Asia, the country previously still suffer severe human-induced distur- ered confirmed if supported by photographic would have supported large populations of at bance. evidence and/or supporting notes, with the least four of these; however, jungle cat was Vietnam’s pernicious wildlife trade includes exception of leopard cat records which seem plausibly confined in Vietnam to its restricted animals ranging in size from tokay gecko very rarely erroneous. Notes were not requir-
Non-Panthera cats in South-east Asia Willcox et al.
mune, west of the northerly part of Ngoc Linh Ba Na NR (Frontier Vietnam 1996). No further proposed NR, Kon Tum province (Le Trong Trai details on the observation could be traced, so et al. 1999). A marbled cat ‘specimen’ was this record is treated as provisional. observed during village interviews in Cham A captive animal and remains were observed Chu proposed Nature Reserve, Tuyen Quang in Ben En NP in 1997 and 1998 respectively province (Le Khac Quyet et al. 2001). No de- (Frontier Vietnam 2000), and a ‘specimen’ tails were provided on whether the ‘speci- (age and body part unclear) was observed in men’ was freshly killed or a preserved skin or Mu Cang Chai Species/Habitat Conservation other part, but the report states that it had a Area SHCA, Yan Bai province (Le Trong Dat ‘known location of capture and caught within & Le Minh Phong 2010). These three records the previous year’. No supporting notes or lacked photographs or supporting notes so all photographs could be traced for these re- are treated as provisional. Single confisca- cords, and therefore both have been consid- tions were reported in 2004 and 2005, near or Fig. 1. Asiatic golden cat camera trapped ered provisional. within Chu Yang Sin NP (Birdlife International on 28 March 2004 in Pu Luong NR, North One ‘captured animal’ was observed in the 2010). That in December 2004 was reportedly Vietnam (Photo PL-CP, FFI/FPD Vietnam). village of Phu Nhieu on 24 September 1998, from a hunter in Hoa Phong commune, which approximately 2 km from the border of Phong forms part of Chu Yang Sin NP; the animal was ed for observers with significant experience Nha Khe Bang National Park NP, Quang Binh released in January 2005. The 2005 confisca- examining small cat museum specimens and province (Timmins et al. 1999). The marbled tion was transferred to Saigon Zoo, Vietnam a known cautious approach to identification. cat was reported by hunters to have been and a photograph of this animal is included in Reports from local villagers/hunters were not cable-snared in Khe Lan valley. Though the the report (Le Trong Trai in litt. 2013). collated. In Vietnam, single species can bear exact locality of Khe Lan valley could not be multiple local names, and several species can traced, it seems likely, based on the village’s Clouded leopard be grouped under one name e.g. ‘meo rung’, proximity to the protected area, that the mar- One was camera trapped on 19 December literally ‘jungle/forest cat’, is also the most bled cat was caught either in Phong Nha Khe 2003 in primary evergreen forest on lime- commonly used Vietnamese name for leop- Bang NP or forest near the NP. stone at 610 m in Pu Luong NR (20°32’09”N/ ard cat. Interviewees evidently readily apply A marbled cat was camera trapped at 2,060 m 105°05’52”E; Do Ngoc Cuong 2004; Fig. 2). 54 names for types of ‘cat’ inconsistently be- a.s.l. in upper montane forest (21°39’0.3’’N/ In February 2001 one was directly observed tween biological species and even between 104°04’53’’E), in Mu Cang Chai district, Yen in Hang Toong Chung forest, Yen Bai prov- cats and other taxonomic groups such as Bai province on 23 October 2004 (Flora and ince (Le Trong Dat et al. 2001, Long et al. civets (Viverridae). Interviews for superficially Fauna International, Vietnam Programme, un- 2001, Swan & O’Reilly 2004, where located similar small carnivore species are thus ex- publ. data). This was the only traced camera in Mu Cang Chai SHCA), for a few seconds tremely unreliable (see Sampaio et al. 2011) record for this species. at 05:00 h resting on the branch of a large and are not used here. tree (Le Trong Dat in litt. 2013). On 5 March Identification of field signs (e.g. footprints, Asiatic golden cat 2001 a fresh skin was observed in Che Thao faeces, prey remains) from small carnivores Asiatic golden cat has been camera trapped village, Yen Bai province (Le Trong Dat et al. in Vietnam is extremely difficult. Footprints in three sites: Pu Luong NR (Do Ngoc Cuong 2001, Long et al. 2001) of an adult recently can sometimes be identified as those of small 2004; Fig. 1), Pu Mat NR (SFNC 2000) and trapped from Che Thao forest (Le Trong Dat cats, but with several similarly sized cat spe- Song Thanh NR (Long 2005). The latter site in litt. 2013), which is within the Mu Cang cies potentially present anywhere, identifica- had two locality records, one each within the Chai SHCA. All these records are treated as tion to species is irresponsible. Faeces offer Nam Giang Main and Phuoc Son West For- confirmed following the production of addi- reliable records only if identified using DNA est Management Units FMUs in Long (2005). tional record details. One other ‘specimen’ analysis (see references in Duckworth et al. Both of these records are within Song Thanh record was traced for Mu Cang Chai SHCA 2010). Therefore, sign records identified visu- NR (B. Long in litt. 2014). The Pu Luong NR re- (Le Trong Dat & Le Minh Phuong 2010) but as ally were excluded from this review. cord was on 28 March 2004 on ‘a valley floor there were no record details in the report and near a water source’ at ca. 600 m (Do Ngoc none could be traced, it has been treated as Species accounts Cuong 2004). Camera trapping in Pu Mat NR provisional. Marbled cat gave four records from three locations (SFNC A marbled cat was reportedly observed at 2000). Two were from one camera trap (in the Jungle cat 600 m outside the core area of Pu Mat Nature Khe Toi survey sector) and could have been Duckworth et al. (2005) traced only two pre- Reserve NR. No identification details were of the same individual (SFNC 2000). Only one 2003 records for jungle cat in Vietnam, both given, the authors stated (Frontier Vietnam had an elevation given: ca. 400 m in the Khe mounted skins: one reportedly from Kon Tum 1995: 23) that their team lacked experienced Khang survey sector (SFNC 2000). The fourth, province (undated), the other bought in a mar- mammal surveyors, and leopard cat and mar- final, record was added in proof and was ket in Gia Lai province in the mid-1990s. bled cat have somewhat similar pelage. The taken in the Khe Bu survey sector; no further On 23 March 2009 a juvenile and a female record must thus be considered provisional. details were available. jungle cat were photographed 200 m apart A recently killed marbled cat, reportedly The only direct sighting traced was one at during a spotlighting survey in Phu Quoc Is- caught locally, was seen in Dac Plo com- approx. 5 m distance in secondary forest in land (Huong Trung Thanh et al. 2009, includ-
CATnews Special Issue 8 Spring 2014 decline of non-Panthera cats in Vietnam ing photographs of both). A juvenile was cultural mosaics. It is therefore plausible that sighted at the same location on 24 March similar, as yet unknown, factors influence 2009. The juvenile shows large pointed ears jungle cat distribution in deciduous forest in and white cheek patches typical of jungle Vietnam, which is higher and less plains-like cat, but the photograph of the female is less than the deciduous forest on the Cambodian clear (S. Mukherjee in litt. 2013), even on side where jungle cat is still regularly record- the original photographs. Domestic cats ob- ed (Gray et al. 2014, this issue). The species served by DHAW in the Mekong Delta super- might thus be naturally either very rare in or ficially resembled jungle cat (relatively short now absent from Vietnam. banded tail, golden brown coat with mostly Other possible habitats that may have for- faint markings bolder on the upper forelegs merly supported jungle cat populations are and black tips to solid-coloured ears), sug- the shrub/thicket formations that occur gesting the possibility of past hybridisation. at various places along Vietnam’s coast, Therefore these individuals might not be pure and the coastal dry forests (in lowlands Fig. 2. Clouded leopard camera trapped jungle cats and a particularly cautionary ap- and lower hill slopes) of Khanh Hoa, Ninh on 19 December 2003 in Pu Luong Nature proach should be used when identifying this Thuan and Binh Thuan provinces. Jungle cat Reserve, North Vietnam (Photo PL-CP, species, especially outside its core range. populations are unlikely to persist in these FFI/FPD Vietnam). These sightings were at approximately 350 habitats in Vietnam (if they were ever there m a.s.l. in lowland evergreen forest, a habitat at all); the human population density along small trees and fallow land (SOM F2, S. De- type not used extensively by the species in SE Vietnam’s coastline is high, and nearly all longlee in litt. 2013). Asia (Duckworth et al. 2005, Gray et al. 2014, of Khanh Hoa, Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan’s These cats could conceivably have been re- this issue). A claim of golden jackal Canis au- lowlands have been converted to agricul- leased or escaped animals (or descendants reus from Phu Quoc Island (Dang Huy Huynh ture. A possible exception is Nui Cha NP, of such) brought to Hanoi by people. Leopard 1994) and unconfirmed records (no indication Ninh Thuan province, which does contain cats are traded, amongst other reasons, as of source in the report and could be based on examples of lowland scrub habitats and has pets in Vietnam (Carnivore and Pangolin Con- interviews) of dry forest/open habitat birds, been under-surveyed for fauna. The prob- servation Program CPCP, unpubl. confiscation including rufous-winged buzzard Butastur liv- ability of jungle cat persisting in a 250 km2 data). Vietnam’s Forest Protection Depart- enter and white-rumped falcon Polihierax in- protected area that has 30,000 people living ment FPD often releases animals confiscated 55 signis (Nguyen Xuan Dang 2009) suggest that inside it (BirdLife 2004), a large proportion from illegal holdings or trade into the nearest the island may contain more typical jungle of which are likely to depend on natural re- natural or semi-natural habitat, even if this be cat habitat, perhaps the open ‘savannah-like sources (including wildlife) for subsistence outside the species’s known distribution. Re- habitat’ with sparse Melalueca of Abramov during the province’s long and harsh dry sea- leases are usually into well-known forested et al. (2007). Most survey effort to date fo- son, seems low. protected areas: the nearest such areas to cused on the island’s savannah, so the cur- Hanoi, Ba Vi NP and Tam Dao NP, are both rent extent of this habitat type and whether Leopard cat approximately 60 km from the sighting. it does support a suite of dry forest species Of 28 locations with 34 leopard cat records On the day of the November sighting, a is unknown. Huong Truong Thanh et al. (2009) (SOM T2, F1), 19 are formally protected, two known hunter at this site, and farmers who gave a (datum-less) UTM locator but all likely are proposed nature reserves, three are pro- live and work in the area, all suggested long- datums place the record inland in Kien Giang duction forests (State Forest Enterprises SFEs term presence of leopard cat (S. Delonglee province, precluding any assessments of the and Fishery and Forestry Enterprises FFEs) of in litt. 2012). The area is heavily hunted for record’s proximity to more typical habitat on varying levels of activity, two are ambiguous, resident and migratory birds, using mist-nets Phu Quoc Island. and one was in agricultural land in the Red and guns; cable snaring is apparently not Jungle cat is/was probably mainly restricted River Delta. Most records (32) were based used there. in Vietnam to the provinces of Gia Lai, Kon on direct observation and/or camera trap This site, and its surrounds, has never been Tum and Dak Lak, which support most of the photographs. Three site records were based surveyed for small carnivores so it is unknown country’s deciduous forest (Duckworth et al. on remains and captives for which a local whether it historically supported a leopard cat 2005). However, this may not necessarily all provenance is likely: one freshly dead, near population. However, degraded habitats sup- have been suitable habitat. Long-term cam- Tam Dao NP (Nguyen Xuan Dang et al. 2006), port leopard cats in other parts of Vietnam, in- era trapping in deciduous forest in Huai Kha a captive near Pu Hoat NR (Frontier Vietnam cluding active forestry enterprises (U Minh Ha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary WS, Thailand, 2000), and a ‘specimen’ caught within the FFEs; DHAW pers. obs., La Nga SFE; Nguyen failed to detect the species (Simcharoen et last year observed near/within Cham Chu NR Xuan Dang et al. 2004a), and protected areas al. 2014, this issue). The absence of records (Le Khac Quyet et al. 2001). with significant levels of human-induced habi- from Huai Kha Khaeng WS has been suggest- Within a few kilometres of Hanoi’s city tat disturbances (e.g. Le Trong Trai et al. 1999, ed to reflect the site’s more hilly deciduous centre along the Red River (approximately Frontier Vietnam 2000, Nguyen Xuan Dang et forest; sites that jungle cat formerly used in 31°03’14’’N/105°50’55’’E), a duo was seen al. 2004b), and in agricultural landscapes in Thailand (which have now all been cleared), at 14:09 h on 16 November 2012 (Fig. 3), and, other range countries (e.g. Rajaratnam et al. were typically lower and on flatter land, sup- 400 m away, in May 2013, in riverine scrub 2007, Lorica & Heaney 2013). This, in com- porting scrub and deciduous forest, or agri- and grass amid a complex mosaic of crops, bination with the lack of snaring at the Red
Non-Panthera cats in South-east Asia Willcox et al.
ing. Compared with other small cat species, spotlighting can detect this species effec- tively (see SOM T2). Leopard cat plausibly re- mains relatively common in Vietnam, persist- ing in various natural/semi-natural habitats and in agricultural landscapes where there is some connectivity to the latter; leopard cats that are killed in cleared/mostly agricultural areas can be replaced by animals diffusing out of more densely forested habitats. Areas of land with high-intensity agriculture and with little or no connectivity to more natu- ral/semi-natural habitats, which now make up a large proportion of Vietnam’s lowlands, might be less likely to support any leopard cat populations. Leopard cat is one of the most frequently recorded small carnivore species in Vietnam’s illegal wildlife trade (Education Fig. 3. An uncropped photograph of a leopard cat seen on 16 November 2012 along the for Nature Vietnam’s ENV wildlife crime bul- Red River, Hanoi (Photo S. Delonglee). letins, November 2006 - August 2013; CPCP confiscation data). The offtake that it can River site, the substantial distance from likely (CPCP, unpubli. data). The former focused on withstand is unknown, so there might be FPD release sites, and the local people’s in- U Minh Ha NP whilst the latter focused on long-term conservation issues for species in formation all suggest that these sightings are the U Minh Ha FFEs, an area of active SFEs. Vietnam. plausibly wild leopard cats, not of escaped/ Both sites contain habitat types similar in No other small cat had many confirmed re- released animals. structure and plant species composition to U cords. Three site records were traced for Leopard cat is the most commonly recorded Minh Thuong NP, though neither has any ex- golden cat, as well as several provisional re- 56 small cat species in Vietnam with confirmed tensive open swamp. All three comprise the cords. Elsewhere in the region golden cat is, field records from both protected and non- U Minh Wetlands, but connectivity is limited. after leopard cat, amongst the more frequent- protected sites and a wide range of habitats All three are surrounded by agriculture, and ly recorded small cat species (Duckworth et including; Melaleuca dominated swamp for- the relatively large town of U Minh separates al. 2005, Tantipisanuh et al. 2014, this issue). est (Fig. 4), secondary and degraded habitats, U Minh Ha NP from the FFEs. The 2008 and Marbled cat had the fewest confirmed re- deciduous forest, semi-evergreen forest, and 2010 surveys used camera traps, spotlighting cords of evergreen forest species, as is also evergreen forest at various altitudes from low- and diurnal observations to record small car- regionally typical. land to upper montane. Altitudes were rarely nivore species, methods comparable to those Jungle cat is unlikely to have ever had a wide stated, but vary from a few metres above sea of Nguyen Xuan Dang et al. (2004b), and to distribution in Vietnam: deciduous forest is level (U Minh Thuong NP; Nguyen Xuan Dang a greater total survey effort. Fishing cat was relatively limited, whilst widespread hunting et al. 2004b) to at least 2,200 m a.s.l (Hoang recorded in neither 2008 nor 2010. Hoang presumably excludes it from scrub and agri- Lien Son-Van Ban NR; Swan & O’Reilly 2004). Truong Thanh et al. (2009) listed three occur- culture it might otherwise occupy (Duckworth rences for fishing cat in U Minh Thuong NP in et al. 2005). In contrast to leopard cat, jun- Fishing cat ‘2007’, but two were based on local reports gle cat lacks populations in dense forest that Fishing cat was camera trapped on five dates and the one specimen referred to had been could diffuse out to replace animals killed in (21 March, 8, 10 and 21 June and 4 August collected in 2000. Therefore fishing cat has agricultural/cleared habitats. 2000) in U Minh Thuong NP (Nguyen Xuan not been reliably recorded in the U Minh area Even if Phu Quoc is later confirmed to hold Dang et al. 2004b). Additionally an animal since 2000. jungle cat, the island’s population is likely to identified as fishing cat was watched along be small and perhaps not a conservation pri- Canal KT1 (9°36’40’’N/105°05’46’’E) at Discussion ority; the island is small (574 km2), dominated 14:24 h on 11 November 2000. On 19 Novem- Records of small cat species in Vietnam by evergreen forest, historically probably had ber an adult female was found dead along Leopard cat was by far the most commonly only little scrub/open forest and thus few jun- Canal 120 (9°37’50’’N/105°03’58’’E), possib- recorded small cat in Vietnam during 1995- gle cats, and is now threatened by unregu- ly having succumbed to rat poison. U Minh 2013, in a wide range of habitats; it seems lated tourism development. Similarly, even Thuong NP, dominated by Melaleuca cajupu- to be a habitat generalist, as in other parts of if Gia Lai, Kon Tum and/or Dak Lak provinces ti, has a core zone of 85 km2 and buffer zone its range (Duckworth et al. 2005, Rajaratnam hold jungle cat, populations would probably of 133 km2. The area is <1 m altitude, and is et al. 2007, Lorica & Heaney 2013). Its persis- be of low global significance: much larger surrounded by intensive rice farming (Safford tence where most, if not all, similar sized and areas of deciduous forest in Cambodia still et al. 1998, Sage et al. 2004). larger mammal species are extirpated e.g. contain a suite of dry forest specialist spe- Further surveys in the U Minh Wetlands in Red River Delta, suggests relative tolerance cies extinct or close to local extinction in Vi- 2008 and 2010 failed to record fishing cat of anthropogenic pressures, including hunt- etnam (Gray et al. 2014, this issue). Efforts to
CATnews Special Issue 8 Spring 2014 decline of non-Panthera cats in Vietnam conserve jungle cat in Indochina should thus survey effort that should have been, based on focus on Cambodia. encounter rates in other countries, sufficient The multiple fishing cat records from U to record these species if present at compara- Minh Thuong NP during a short survey in ble densities. They recorded only leopard cat. 2000 (Nguyen Xuan Dang et al. 2004b), and The lack of post-2000 fishing cat records re- the lack of records in Vietnam from forest quires specific consideration. Very few fish- habitats that have been well surveyed using ing cat records are produced from camera camera traps placed along forest trails, salt trap ‘by-catch’ anywhere in South-east Asia. licks, in natural clearings etc., suggest that The lack of incidental fishing cat records in this species may be very localised, perhaps the region suggests a distribution largely primarily close to watercourses or wetlands. outside (at major habitat and/or microhabi- The failure of more recent surveys in U Minh tat scale) that targeted during camera trap Ha NP and the intervening U Minh Ha FFEs surveys for e.g. tigers, and/or rarity within (CPCP unpublished survey data) to produce the region. The great rarity of camera trap any fishing cat records is of concern: thirteen ‘by-catch’ records of this species anywhere years have passed since the records from U combined with relatively recent records in Minh Thuong NP. Recent confirmed records Vietnam strongly urges targeted searches for of this species in small remnant patches of fishing cat in the country. wetland in Howrah, a city district of Kolkata, In 1995, leopard cat was seen in a brief sur- Fig. 4. Camera-trap photograph of a leo- India (Adya 2011) , do not suggest that fish- vey of Ke Go NR (Le Trong Trai et al. 1999) but pard cat at the edge of an active Melaleu- ing cat is a forest obligate that needs large the much more intensive specific small car- ca plantation in the U Minh Ha FFEs taken intact areas of forested wetland. Though nivore surveys in October 2006 - March 2007 on the 10 September 2010 (Photo Carnivo- small in size and depauperate compared to and January - July 2010 failed to record any re and Pangolin Conservation Program). some of the region’s wetlands, Vietnam’s U cat species (CPCP, unpubl. data). This is prob- Minh wetlands might thus still support a sig- ably because of the widespread intensive trap nights recorded only leopard cat. A pre- nificant fishing cat population. Clarification hunting: approximately 1,200 cable-snare vious survey in 2006-07 in the same sector of whether fishing cat persists in the wider U traps were collected during the survey and recorded seven small carnivore species dur- Minh wetland landscape is urgently needed. active hunting/logging camps were seen on ing approximately 3,500 camera trap nights 57 All surveys, even the camera trap surveys, re- nearly every major pathway. Hunting at Ke Go (Shih-chih Yen 2009). Again, only leopard cat viewed here were too brief to conclude that NR has, based on camera trap data and inci- was recorded. the small cat species not recorded were gen- dental records collected during the survey, re- Hunting might be the main factor behind the uinely absent from the site. However, compa- duced populations of similar sized and larger absence of records for other cat species in rable camera-trapping elsewhere in South- mammal species including relatively tolerant Cat Tien NP. Although the main tourist trails east Asia typically detects clouded leopard, species such as common palm civet Paradox- and areas close to the FPD headquarters golden cat, leopard cat, and jungle cat fre- urus hermaphroditus (four records) and wild have little if any visible hunting, 500 cable- quently when in suitable habitat. Marbled cat pig Sus scrofa (no records) (CPCP unpublished snares were collected in approximately 6 km2 is typically found less often than these spe- survey data). Wild pig had been previously re- on Nam Cat Tien’s periphery in 2013 (Nguyen cies, but still regularly and widely. All these corded in Ke Go NR (Le Trong Trai et al. 1999). The Truong An in litt. 2013). Relative to Viet- five small cat species can be recorded using Similarly in Phong Nha – Khe Bang NP no cat nam’s other protected areas, hunting in Nam camera traps set for other species including records resulted from approximately 1,800 Cat Tien is generally still low, and this incident tiger and large ungulates (e.g. Holden 2001, camera trap nights; 500 cable-snare traps remains the only significant hunting observa- Azlan & Sharma 2006, Datta et al. 2008, Gray were collected there over 30 days, and wild- tion in nearly a year’s survey effort, though et al. 2012, Tantipisanuh et al. 2014, this is- life hunting is assumed to be the main reason most survey effort has focused on or near the sue). The great paucity of small cat records for population declines suspected in a wide main tourist routes. The current lack of other (excepting leopard cat) from camera trap range of mammals there (Nguyen Xuan Dang small cat records at this relatively well pro- surveys in Vietnam, even those with efforts et al. 2012). tected site despite a targeted and high survey exceeding 1,500 effective camera trap nights Despite Cat Tien NP’s failure to protect Javan effort, and an apparently healthy prey base of amid large extents of suitable habitat, thus rhinoceros (Brook et al. 2011), it still boasts small-medium sized mammals, reptiles and reflects small cats’ genuine scarcity in these several globally threatened mammal and bird ground-dwelling bird species, does not bode areas (SOM T3; Fig. 5). Of particular concern species including green peafowl Pavo muti- well for the status of these species at this is that camera-trap surveys were undertaken cus, gaur Bos gaurus and black-shanked douc site. However, it is also possible that species in several of the largest remaining evergreen Pygathrix nigripes, and several small carni- other than leopard cat are naturally absent; forest blocks. Three recent targeted small vore species are readily camera trapped and Polet & Ling’s (2004) extensive compilation carnivore surveys, two surveys for Edwards’s spot-lit. An ongoing small carnivore survey also traced records of only leopard cat, and pheasant Lophura edwardsi and one ongoing in the Nam Cat Tien sector of the park has small carnivore distribution in the region is saola Psedoryx nghetinhensis survey in Viet- so far confirmed at least nine small carni- only known at the course-habitat scale for the nam, in habitat suitable for clouded leopard, vore species by these methods (Nguyen The majority of species. Another possible reason golden cat and marbled cat, had camera trap Truong An in litt. 2013). Over 2,000 camera for the apparent absences/very low densities
Non-Panthera cats in South-east Asia Willcox et al.
shown any cat recovery; however, this has unpubl, data), or no cats at all e.g. Phong only been well tested at Cat Tien NP where Nha Khe Bang NP (Nguyen Xuan Dang et al. other possible factors (discussed earlier) may 2012). Though the ecology of most of these be at play. small cat species is poorly known, several of Few survey reports reviewed quantified the smaller possible prey items e.g. murid threats (notably excepting Timmins & Trinh rodents, still appear relatively abundant in Viet Cuong 2001, Long 2005, Nguyen Xuan the majority of Vietnam’s protected areas. Dang et al. 2012), but nearly all described Few of these smaller prey items are targeted hunting pressures at their respective sites as for the wildlife trade, at least at an interna- ‘high’. Ground-level trapping, usually in the tional level, and the impact of ground-level form of cable-snares, is widespread in Viet- trapping on small animals (i.e. <1 kg), espe- nam’s forests and there are several reports cially those species that are semi-arboreal/ of thousands of snares confiscated annually arboreal, is likely to be negligible. It there- from some individual PAs (Birdlife Interna- fore seems unlikely that prey depletion is a tional 2010, CPCP, unpubl. data), and in some main threat to Vietnam’s small cats, at least cases tens of thousands (WWF 2013). The not to the extent it is for larger carnivores only sites not intensively targeted with this in South Asia (e.g tiger; Datta et al. 2008, hunting method appear to be areas where Barber-Meyer et al. 2013). Clouded leopard most ground-dwelling fauna has already does take larger prey than Vietnam’s other Fig. 5. Approximate location of sites listed been depleted, such as in Cuc Phuong NP five small cat species, including primates in SOM T3. Bach Ma NP and Phong Dien and Ngoc-Son Ngu Luong NR where hunt- (Matsuda et al. 2008), which are targeted NR are indicated separately on this map ing methods have switched to those suitable for the illegal wildlife trade (Geissmann et but are part of the WWF ‘Green Corridor for arboreal species i.e. guns and crossbows al. 2000). The extent to which this species is Forest Landscape’ that runs approxima- (DHAW pers. obs.), or where the habitat only dependent on species themselves depleted tely north-south across Hue province (Di- supports using this method for part of the year by overhunting is however unknown. ckinson & Van Ngoc Thinh 2006). Likewise e.g. the seasonally flooded U Minh Wetlands Despite all cat species in Vietnam being with Que Son West FMU, which was one in the Mekong Delta (DHAW pers. obs.). afforded full legal protection, none is unaf- 58 of several survey sites in Quang Nam pro- Cable snares are usually placed in lines along fected by illegal wildlife trade there. Leopard vince in Long (2005), but has been shown man-made pathways, sometimes in the hun- cat is most frequently traded, apparently in as single site for clarity. dreds, with drift fences of cut vegetation demand as an exotic pet (TQP pers. obs.). alongside to funnel fauna across the snares’ Confiscated golden cats both live and dead/ of small carnivores that ought to be present triggers. This unselective method seems like- frozen (ENV 2010, 2011, 2013a, 2013b) have and in some cases relatively common at this ly to be an extremely effective way to hunt been recorded. These two species were site, is the as yet unknown indirect effects small cats. Trail use varies between ecologi- the most frequent small cats observed in of the defoliants that were sprayed over the cally similar species (Harmsen et al. 2010), the wildlife trade based on CPCP confisca- area now comprising Cat Tien NP during the but leopard cat, clouded leopard, Asiatic tion data and confiscation reports published America-Vietnam war (Polet & Ling 2004). golden cat, jungle cat and marbled cat have by Education for Nature Vietnam ENV from all been recorded along such trails by camera 2006 onwards. Only two possible trade re- Threats to small cat species in Vietnam traps (e.g. Grassman 2003, Do Ngoc Cuong cords for clouded leopard were traced during Although historical information is too patchy 2004, Kawanishi & Sunsquist 2008, Wibisono the same time period, and none for the other to be sure of past small cat status in Viet- & McCarthy 2010, Majumder et al. 2011), and three species (a single live leopard cat, misi- nam, it seems likely that all species were so are presumably vulnerable to this hunting dentified as fishing cat was confiscated July formerly considerably more common. Though method. 2011; DHAW examined the original photo- the more tolerant and widespread leopard Several potential small cat prey items e.g. graphs and confirmed identification). A two- cat is still relatively easily observed in parts macaques Macaca, wild pig, chevrotains month survey on bear (Ursidae) bile trade of Vietnam (Table 2), even its numbers are Tragulus, and red junglefowl Gallus gallus, covering Traditional Medicine outlets in all likely to have declined. Hunting, notably in- are hunted in protected areas in Vietnam to Vietnam’s major cities recorded only one discriminate snaring, is doubtless the main supply the illegal wildlife trade. Whilst in- species of small cat: leopard cat (TRAFFIC, factor behind these suspected declines, as tensive hunting pressures, particularly unse- in press). Since 2011 there have been three it is for many threatened mammal, bird and lective cable-snaring, have caused apparent records of dead golden cats confiscated from reptile species in the country (CEPF 2012). population declines in some of these prey the illegal wildlife trade in Vietnam painted Vietnam’s only areas afforded some respite items at some sites (e.g. the Ke Go-Khe Net to resemble tiger. from hunting are those that are naturally Lowlands; CPCP, unpubl. data), other sites in- All small cat species have been recorded in the barely accessible (Eberhardt 2012), and the cluded in this review seem to retain relatively illegal wildlife trade in South-east Asia (Duck- vicinities of FPD headquarters and the main healthy prey bases of small to medium sized worth et al. 1999, 2005, Shepherd & Nijman tourist trails in protected areas, which do at animals, yet among cats have only recorded 2008), with clouded leopard in high demand some sites show signs of wildlife recovery. leopard cat e.g. Cat Tien NP (Shih-chih Yen because of its striking coat pattern (Shepherd Crucially though, these areas have not yet 2009), and the Saola NRs (WWF-Vietnam, & Nijman 2008, Sanderson et al. 2009). The
CATnews Special Issue 8 Spring 2014 decline of non-Panthera cats in Vietnam
few recent trade records for clouded leopard nam, are urgently needed to clarify that spe- by Vietnam Forest Protection Department and in Vietnam are unlikely to reflect decreasing cies’s present status. Any population is likely Fauna & Flora International Vietnam Programme or low demand, which is likely to be increas- to warrant direct conservation intervention for allowing use of their photographs. Two anony- ing as numbers grow of wildlife consumers/ as it could potentially be of regional signifi- mous reviewers greatly improved the quality of users in Vietnam, i.e. middle-class urbanites cance. Surveys should use camera traps in this paper. (Roberton 2007, TRAFFIC 2008). More plausi- the same locations as Nguyen Xuan Dang et bly there are simply fewer animals to hunt and al. (2004) as well as additional locations to References trade. That leopard cat and golden cat are the ensure a sufficient coverage of the site. Abramov A. V., Kalinin A. A. & Morozov, P. N. 2007. small cat species most frequently recorded in Targeted surveys for fishing cat in the U Mammal survey on Phu Quoc Island, southern the illegal wildlife trade corroborates the field Minh landscape as well as other sites in the Vietnam. Mammalia 71, 40-46. records relative to the other small cat species. Mekong Delta are also warranted. In other Adhya T. 2011. Status survey of Fishing Cat in Though leopard cat is probably relatively re- countries, fishing cat does not need pristine Howrah and Hooghly, West Bengal. Interme- sistant to hunting pressures, it is likely to have or large areas of habitat to persist, even us- diate report for WWF India small grants pro- gone through significant declines in Vietnam, ing small highly modified wetland-agriculture gramme. in part still appearing to be ‘common’ in the mosaics (Adhya 2011, Mukherjee et al. 2012). Azlan J. M. & Sharma D. S. K. 2006. The diver- trade because the species’s starting popula- The Mekong Delta may thus hold other fish- sity and activity patterns of wild felids in a tion (i.e. prior to the growth of the illegal wild- ing cat populations. Mui Ca Mau NP is a pri- secondary forest in Peninsular Malaysia. Oryx life trade) was much larger and more wide- ority site for a targeted survey as it contains 40, 36-41. spread, relative to the other small cat species. suitable habitat and remains little-surveyed. Baltzer M. C., Nguyen Thi Dao & Shore R. G. (Eds). Vietnam is extremely unlikely to retain glob- 2001. Towards a vision for biodiversity con- Conclusion ally significant populations of clouded leop- servation in the forests of the lower Mekong The most plausible explanation of the great ard, golden cat, marbled cat or jungle cat. Ecoregion complex. WWF Indochina/WWF US, rarity in Vietnam of recent records of small National populations of each are clearly Hanoi and Washington D.C. cats, except leopard cat, is that they are in se- not now large, and there is no suggestion Barber-Meyer S. M., Jnawali S. R., Karki J. B., rious decline in the country and are plausibly of taxonomic distinctiveness of Vietnamese Khanal P., Loahni S., Long B., MacKenzie D. I., being extirpated from an increasing number populations. Both Cambodia and Lao PDR Pandav B., Pradhan N. M. B, Shrestha R., Sube- of protected areas. The rapid loss of natural have many fewer people than Vietnam and di N., Thapa G., Thapa K. and Wikramanayake, habitat is unlikely to have been an important much larger areas of wild habitat. Crucially, E. 2013. Influence of prey depletion and human 59 driver of current status, even the more forest the intensive industrial-scale snare trapping disturbance on tiger occupancy in Nepal. Jour- dependent species, because of the lack of re- presumed to be the main factor behind the nal of Zoology 289, 10-18. cords from even large blocks of surviving and decline in Vietnam’s small cat population is Bell D. J., Roberton S. I. & Hunter P. R. 2004. Ani- little-degraded habitat. not yet widespread in Cambodia (S. Mahood mal origins of SARS coronavirus: possible links Targeted hunting of some prey items and in- in litt. 2013) and even some areas of Lao PDR with the international trade in small carni- discriminate cable-snaring of others may have remain to be affected (Coudrat et al. 2014, vores. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal resulted in a depleted prey base for clouded this issue). Society of London 359, 1107-1114. leopard populations at some sites in Vietnam. BirdLife International. 2004. Sourcebook of exist- However, several camera trap surveys at sites Acknowledgements ing and proposed protected areas in Vietnam. with suitable habitat and relatively healthy Field studies of DHAW, TQP and NTTA were sup- BirdLife International in Indochina, Hanoi, Viet- populations of known prey items have failed ported by Newquay Zoo, Papoose Conservation nam. to record the species. Hunting, particularly Fund, Mohamed Bin Zayed Conservation Fund, BirdLife International. 2010. The Biodiversity of Chu cable-snare trapping, which is widespread Minnesota Zoo, Panthera, Seaworld and Busch Yang Sin National Park, Dak Lak Province, Viet- and intensive within and outside nearly all of Gardens Conservation Fund, Ocean Park Conserva- nam. Compiled and edited by Hughes, R. Bird- Vietnam’s accessible natural and semi-natural tion Fund, People’s Trust for Endangered Species, Life International in Indochina, Hanoi, Viet-nam. areas, irrespective of whether a site is formal- Zoological Society of London’s EDGE programme, Brook S., van Coeverden de Groot P., Mahood S. & ly protected or not, is surely the main cause of and BP’s Conservation Leadership Program. DHAW Long B. 2011. Extinction of the Javan rhinocer- decline in Vietnam’s small cats. and TQP also kindly thank the management boards os (Rhinoceros sondaicus) from Vietnam. WWF Vietnam’s protected areas are mostly under and staff of Cuc Phuong National Park, Ke Go Na- report, WWF Vietnam Programme. 500 km², limiting the resilience of their fauna ture Reserve, Khe Net proposed Nature Reserve, Brooks, T. M., Mittermeier, R. A., Mittermeier, C. to hunting. The country may no longer hold U Minh Ha National Park and the U Minh Ha FFEs G., Da Fonseca, G. A. B., Rylands, A. B., Kon- significant populations of any globally threat- for supporting surveys. Many thanks to Scott stant, W. R., Flick, P., Pilgrim, J., Oldfield, S., ened small cat species, although were hunt- Roberton, Shomita Mukherjee, Le Trong Trai, Le Magin, G. and Hilton-Taylor, C. (2002), Habitat ing controlled, the present habitat could be Trong Dat, Le Khac Quyet, Thomas Gray, Andrew Loss and Extinction in the Hotspots of Biodiver- reoccupied by large and significant numbers Tilker, Matthew Grainger, Philip McGowan, Kur- sity. Conservation Biology, 16: 909–923. of small cats. tis Pei, Barney Long, Neil Fury, Louise Fletcher, CEPF. 2012. Ecosystem Profile: Indo-Burma Biodi- Steve Swan and Jeremy Holden for discussions on versity Hotspot, 2011 Update. Conservation Recommendations various records and for sharing unpublished data. Coudrat C. N. Z, Nanthavong C., Sayavong S., Surveys in U Minh Thuong NP, the last site Thanks also to the Pu Luong - Cuc Phuong Lime- Johnson A., Johnston J. B. Robichaud W. G. with confirmed fishing cat records in Viet- stone Landscape Conservation Project, managed 2014. Non-Panthera cats in Nakai-Nam Theun
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