The IUCN Wild Pig Challenge 2015

Home , Palawan (island), Palawan bearded pig, Philippine warty pig

M ATTHEW L INKIE,JASLINE N G ,ZHI Q I L IM,MUHAMMAD I. LUBIS M ARK R ADEMAKER and E RIK M EIJAARD

Abstract Asian mammal species are facing unprecedented Sumatra it is often referred to as lumba lumba pressures from hunting and habitat conversion. Efforts to (Indonesian for dolphin) because local people believe that mitigate these threats often focus on charismatic large-bodied when sounders of up to  foraging pigs disappear from species, while many other species or even guilds receive less a forest patch they turn into dolphins and swim to the sea. attention, particularly Asian wild pigs. To address this we de- Also, because of their importance to many communities, veloped a rapid questionnaire survey and administered it to wild pigs are considered to be cultural keystone species. relevant experts to identify the presence, population trends The IUCN/SSC Wild Pig Specialist Group seeks to raise and conservation needs of Asia’s  threatened wild pig spe- the profile of wild pigs, draw attention to their plight and cies. The results highlighted geographical differences within support conservation interventions. Of the  extant pig spe- species (e.g. the near collapse of bearded pig populations in cies in the Suidae family,  occur in Asia and  of these are Peninsular Malaysia yet their widespread presence on threatened with extinction (categorized as Vulnerable, Borneo), and knowledge gaps for many endemic species of Endangered or Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red the Philippines, notably the Critically Endangered Visayan List; IUCN, ), mainly as a result of hunting and loss of warty pig Sus cebifrons. To support field-based conservation forest habitat. The remaining two species, Sus celebensis and projects, we identified  medium-to-large zoos in Asia, Sus scrofa, are categorized as Near Threatened and Least Europe and the USA that house Asian wild pigs and have ap- Concern, respectively. For most of these species there is a plicable conservation funding schemes. Our rapid survey lack of dedicated research and conservation management at- method, which yielded  wild pig records from across tention, and therefore their status is poorly known. Yet they Asia, proved effective in filling many of the existing knowl- have a worldwide presence in zoos, which also have conser- edge gaps, and may be widely applicable in assessing the sta- vation funding schemes that could be used to support in situ tus and needs of other non-flagship threatened species. efforts if the conservation priorities were better understood. To start addressing this knowledge gap we developed the Keywords Habitat loss, hunting, Indonesia, Malaysia, Wild Pig Challenge , a series of succinct questions on Philippines, Suidae the status of Asian wild pigs, the threats they face, and conservation opportunities (Ng et al., ). The questionnaire ,  sian wild pigs suffer from an image problem. Few con- was intentionally short (to be completed in minutes) Asider them to be as charismatic as orang-utans Pongo to elicit a greater response. We targeted members of the spp., elephants Elephas maximus and other Asian flagship Wild Pig Specialist Group and other relevant Specialist species. They have names such as warty pig (referring to Groups, such as Asian Wild Cattle, Asian Elephant and the noticeable lumps across the face) and bearded pig (refer- Galliformes, as well as academic researchers and ornitholo- ring to the bushy muzzle exhibited by males and females). gists, who often visit sites that overlap with pig species. Yet like the tiger Panthera tigris and snow leopard The first set of questions was sent via a group e-mail to .  Panthera uncia they can be considered enigmatic. The experts, with a request for them to forward to other Sunda bearded pig Sus barbatus is unique in being relevant experts. This meant that we were unable to track South-east Asia’s only terrestrial migratory mammal spe- the exact number of people contacted. The questions fo- cies. It follows mast fruiting events in the forest and tra- cused on species status (presence/absence and population  verses hundreds, sometimes thousands, of kilometres. In trend), and we received individual responses, of which nearly % were provided within the first  days. Following a second group e-mail the total increased to  individual species-level responses. These also included data † MATTHEW LINKIE* (Corresponding author), MARK RADEMAKER and from Warty Watch, an expert-based survey focused on re- ERIK MEIJAARD‡ IUCN/SSC Wild Pig Specialist Group. E-mail [email protected] cording presence of the Javan warty pig Sus verrucosus JASLINE NG and ZHI QI LIM National University of Singapore, Singapore (Rademaker, ). Excluding Sus scrofa (as a non- MUHAMMAD I. LUBIS Wildlife Conservation Society, Indonesia threatened wild pig species), we reported on the following *Also at: Wildlife Conservation Society, Indonesia countries and species: †Also at: Bawean Endemics Conservation Initiative, Indonesia ‡Also at: Borneo Futures, Brunei Darussalam .  Received  March . Revision requested  May . India (n = country-level responses): pygmy hog Porcula Accepted  May . First published online  September . salvania ( species-level responses)

Oryx, 2017, 51(3), 477–481 © 2016 Fauna & Flora International doi:10.1017/S0030605316000557 Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. IP address: 170.106.40.139, on 29 Sep 2021 at 08:35:22, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0030605316000557 478 M. Linkie et al.

FIG. 1 Results from the Wild Pig Challenge , with presence or absence of South-east Asian wild pigs according to expert opinion, and IUCN species range data.

. Indonesia (): Sulawesi babirusa Babyrousa celebensis Peninsular Malaysia, which follows on from a previous (), Sulawesi warty pig Sus celebensis (), Sunda bearded study that documented this decline (Kawanishi et al., ). pig (), Bawean warty pig/Javan warty pig (), Togean A single respondent with long-term experience from the babirusa Babyrousa togeanensis () and hairy babirusa small Indonesian island of Bangka indicated that bearded Babyrousa babyrussa () pigs were no longer present on the island, which was probably . Malaysia (): Sunda bearded pig () only ever a peripheral part of the species’ range, but we did . Philippines (): Mindoro warty pig Sus oliveri (), Palawan record S. scrofa there. The species was reported to be wide- bearded pig Sus ahoenobarbus (), Philippines warty pig spread in Borneo, although more records are needed from Sus philippensis (), Visayan warty pig Sus cebifrons () Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo), which was under- represented in our survey. Based on survey feedback we mapped the presence and ab- Javan warty pig (Endangered;  of  records indicated pres-  sence of the South-east Asian wild pig species (Fig. ). Most ence) Species presence was reported from only one of eight  ( %) respondents were unsure of species population trends sites in mainland Java. Java has one of the highest human  − or perceived them to be decreasing ( %). The only response population densities (, people km ) in the world and for Visayan warty pig indicated an increasing trend, whereas many large-bodied mammal species have been extirpated  only one of responses for bearded pigs indicated that po- (e.g. Javan tiger Panthera tigris sondaica) or are at risk of ex- pulations were increasing. The species-specific data yielded tinction (e.g. Javan leopard Panthera pardus melas and ban- the following results. teng Bos javanicus). That the Javan warty pig is reported to Sunda bearded pig (Vulnerable;  records from respondents, occur in Tempuredjo is encouraging. The remoteness of of which % indicated presence) Species presence was re- Bawean island, c.  km from mainland Java, affords a ported from only one (Endau Rompin) of six sites in level of protection to the resident warty pigs, which are the

only known viable wild population, underlining the importance of forest and species protection on the island. Sulawesi babirusa (Vulnerable;  of  records indicated presence) Reports largely confirm the little that is known about the species; it remains widespread on Sulawesi but is under high hunting pressure (Milner-Gulland & Clayton, ). Hairy babirusa (Vulnerable;  of  records indicated presence) No records were found from the islands of Taliabu or Buru, although these reports are both from a single source (Eaton & Hutchinson, ). Surveys on both islands are now a priority for the Wild Pig Specialist Group.   Togean island babirusa (Endangered; of record indicated FIG. 2 Conservation priorities for Asian wild pig species, presence) Although from a smaller island than the identified through an expert-based opinion survey (n = ). Moluccan (hairy) babirusa, reported species presence was confirmed. Recent unpublished population estimates indi- cate that several hundred Togean babirusas may remain According to the responses there are existing in situ  and this may be among the largest populations of all three conservation actions (n = ) in Indonesia and India. babirusa species (Macdonald et al., ). Conservation research focused specifically on warty pigs on Bawean island has been conducted by Bawean Sulawesi warty pig (Near Threatened;  of  records indicated Endemics Conservation Initiative and there are plans to presence) This species was reported to be widespread, despite introduce conservation education activities on the island. high hunting pressure from the predominantly Christian popu- More generally, forest reserves on Buton Island (Sulawesi) lation of Sulawesi (Milner-Gulland & Clayton, ). and an IndoMet Coal concession (Central Kalimantan) Visayan warty pig (Critically Endangered;  of  record indi- have local bans on hunting of wild pigs, which for the latter cated presence) There was a report of an increase in the applies to all of its employees and contractors. However, Visayan warty pig population on Negros island. However, despite the ban on Buton Island the respondent noted we were unable to ascertain its status on the islands of Panay that hunting is still widely practised there. In India the and Masbate, which IUCN includes in the species’ range. Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme appears to be making Palawan bearded pig (Vulnerable;  of  records indicated progress, with conservation activities across several sites. presence) There were two positive presence records for this Compared to specific conservation actions with direct species from the single island (Palawan) where it occurs. benefit, there were more conservation actions (n = ) that were considered to be benefiting Asian wild pig species in- Philippine warty pig (Vulnerable;  of  records indicated directly. These responses came from Malaysia (), Indonesia presence) This relatively wide-ranging species was reported (), India (), Cambodia () and the Philippines (). The ma- at the northern (Luzon) and southern (Mindanao) parts of jority of responses (%) cited habitat protection (via pro- its range but there were no reports from the Visayas islands. tected areas) at project sites as the conservation action ’   Oliver s/Mindoro warty pig (Endangered; of record indi- benefiting Asian wild pigs. Some responses mentioned cated presence) This range-restricted species was reported that habitat protection was put in place specifically for ti- to be present on Mount Iglit Baco on Mindoro, the only is- gers, elephants and orang-utans. The most critical conserva- land where it is known to occur. tion actions cited for Asian wild pigs were habitat Pygmy hog (Critically Endangered;  of  records indicated management, anti-poaching patrols, and research/species presence) Presence was reported in the national parks of status monitoring (Fig. ). Nearly half ( of ) of respon- Manas, Nameri and Orang. dents expressed interest in implementing conservation ac- After the first survey we administered a second set of questions rather than just conducting research. tions that aimed to identify threats and the conservation ac- Seeking means to support ongoing conservation pro- tions required to mitigate these threats. A second group jects or stimulate new projects for wild pig conservation, e-mail was sent to the same list of experts whom we contacted we conducted an internet search for medium-to-large in the first survey, but this elicited a lower response ( re- zoos in Asia (India, Singapore and Malaysia), Europe sponses, plus four that were excluded because they related to and the USA that housed wild pig species and had conser- non-Asian pig species). From this we identified existing in vation funding schemes. We identified  zoos from  situ conservation actions, other conservation actions with in- countries with five Asian wild pig species (S. scrofa ex- direct benefits, top conservation action priorities, and interest cluded; Table ). Of these zoos, nearly half (%) had con- in conducting specific conservation actions for Asian wild pigs. servation funding schemes but none specifically for wild

TABLE 1 Summary of medium-to-large zoos in Asia, Europe and the USA with Asian wild pig species and conservation funding schemes.

Species No. of zoos surveyed1 Potential funding Support for wild pigs Housing Supporting pig species conservation2 In situ Ex situ Sunda bearded pig Sus barbatus 81 7 11 Javan warty pig Sus verrucosus 11 1 11 Sulawesi babirusa Babyrousa celebensis 18 0 13 9 1 Sulawesi warty pig Sus celebensis None found Visayan warty pig Sus cebifrons 48 0 22 19 7 Palawan bearded pig Sus ahoenobarbus None found Philippine warty pig Sus philippensis None found Oliver’s/Mindoro warty pig Sus oliveri None found Pygmy hog Porcula salvania 11 1 01

 Some zoos host more than one species, and therefore numbers in table may not completely match those in the main text.  Zoos that fund pig conservation but do not house the species.

pigs. Some (%) zoos supported wild pig projects, either Acknowledgements in situ ( zoos) or ex situ (). From our survey, the Visayan warty pig was most represented in zoos, followed We thank the IUCN/SSC Specialist Group chairs, their by the Sulawesi babirusa. We uploaded the data on the members and other taxonomic experts who provided valu- zoos and their funding schemes to the Wild Pig able information on the Asian wild pig species. Specialist Group website (). Expert-based opinion surveys are commonly used for References mapping species occurrence (e.g. Johnson & Gillingham,  ) and ascertaining threat status (Donlan et al., DONLAN,C.J.,WINGFIELD,D.K.,CROWDER,L.B.&WILCOX,C.() ). A main limitation may arise through varying levels Using expert opinion surveys to rank threats to endangered species: a of bias and expertise among respondents (Martin et al., case study with sea turtles. Conservation Biology, , –.  ). This seems relevant regarding population trends, EATON,J.&HUTCHINSON, R.O. ( ) Surveys on Buru and Taliabu fail to reveal sign of babirusa. Suiform Soundings, , –. for which more in-depth knowledge and longer-term ex- IUCN () The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species v. -. perience are required, and probably explains why most ex- Http://www.iucnredlist.org [accessed  June ]. perts in our study were unable to comment on species JOHNSON, C.J. & GILLINGHAM, M.P. () Mapping uncertainty: trends. Although it is difficult to quantify uncertainty, sensitivity of wildlife habitat ratings to expert opinion. Journal of  – we believe that the rapid survey method yielded useful re- Applied Ecology, , . KAWANISHI, K., GOPALASAMY, R.C., GUMAL, M., GOLDTHORPE, G., sults on species presence, based on our own knowledge, YASAK, M.N. & SHARMA, D.S.K. () Using BAD for good: how developed from having visited the relevant sites, known best available data facilitated a precautionary policy change to people who had visited recently, or being familiar with lit- improve protection of the prey of the tiger Panthera tigris in erature on these sites. The results provided insights into Malaysia. Oryx, , –.  the state of Asian wild pigs at a regional scale. The result- MACDONALD, A., LEUS, K., MASAAKI,I.&BURTON,J.( ) Babyrousa togeanensis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species ing map will provide the basis for future Wild Pig : e.TA. Http://dx.doi.org/./IUCN.UK. Specialist Group discussions on prioritizing more detailed -.RLTS.TA.en [accessed  June ]. site-specific studies, and we are following up with several MARTIN, T.G., BURGMAN, M.A., FIDLER, F., KUHNERT, P.M., LOW- respondents regarding subsequent contributions to species CHOY, S., MCBRIDE,M.&MENGERSEN,K.() Eliciting expert status based on their future expeditions. This highlights knowledge in conservation science. Conservation Biology, , –.  another advantage of our approach. By contacting a wide MILNER-GULLAND, E.J. & CLAYTON,L.( ) The trade in babirusas and wild pigs in North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Ecological Economics, variety of experts who are working on overlapping non-pig , –. species we expanded our network of contacts with valuable NG, J., LIM, Z.Q., MEIJAARD,E.&LINKIE,M.() Update on the knowledge on wild pig habitats. Our rapid questionnaire- ‘Wild Pig Challenge ’. Suiform Soundings, , –. based approach has wide application and may, for ex- RADEMAKER,M.() ‘Warty Watch’: Putting the spotlight on ’  – ample, be used to update the status of wild pig species Indonesia s most distinct pig. Suiform Soundings, , . WILD PIG SPECIALIST GROUP () Https://sites.google.com/site/ in Africa and peccary species in Latin America, as well wildpigspecialistgroup/iucnssc-wild-pig-specialist-group/research- as increasing knowledge exchange between Specialist and-conservation-priorities/funding-opportunities [accessed Groups and other field experts.  September ].

Biographical sketches Programme. M UHAMMAD I. LUBIS is a geographical information systems expert focusing on Sumatra. M ARK R ADEMAKER is co- M ATTHEW L INKIE is Asia Coordinator for the Wild Pig Specialist founder of Bawean Endemics Conservation Initiative and a mem- Group. J ASLINE N G and Z HI Q I L IM developed the questionnaire ber of the Wild Pig Specialist Group focused on Javan and Bawean survey and analysed the response data through the National warty pigs. E RIK M EIJAARD is the Chair of the Wild Pig University of Singapore Environmental Studies Internship Specialist Group.