Records of small carnivores from Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, southern Sumatra, Indonesia
Jennifer L. MCCARTHY1 and Todd K. FULLER2
Abstract
Sumatra is home to numerous small carnivore species, yet there is little information on their status and ecology. A camera- trapping (1,636 camera-trap-nights) and live-trapping (1,265 trap nights) study of small cats (Felidae) in Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park recorded six small carnivore species: Masked Palm Civet Paguma larvata, Banded Civet Hemigalus derbyanus, Sumatran Hog Badger Arctonyx hoevenii, Yellow-throated Marten Martes flavigula, Banded Linsang Prionodon linsang and Sunda Stink-badger Mydaus javanensis effort, photo encounters for several of these species were few, despite their IUCN Red List status as Least Concern. This supports the need for current and comprehensive. An unidentified studies to otter assess (Lutrinae) the status was of also these recorded. species onEven Sumatra. given the relatively low camera-trap
Keywords: Arctonyx hoevenii, camera-trapping, Hemigalus derbyanus, Martes flavigula, Mydaus javanensis, Paguma larvata, Pri- onodon linsang
Catatan karnivora kecil dari Taman Nasional Bukit Barisan Selatan, Sumatera, Indonesia Abstrak
Sumatera merupakan rumah bagi berbagai spesies karnivora berukuran kecil, namun informasi mengenai status dan ekologi spesies-spesies ini masih sedikit. Suatu studi mengenai kucing berukuran kecil (Felidae) menggunakan kamera penjebak dan perangkap hidup di Taman Nasional Bukit Barisan Selatan (1626 hari rekam) mencatat enam spesies karnivora kecil, yaitu: musang galing Paguma larvata, musang tekalong Hemigalus derbyanus, pulusan Arctonyx hoevenii, musang leher kuning Martes flavigula, linsang Prionodon linsang, dan sigung Mydaus javanensis. Tercatat juga satu spesies berang-berang yang tidak teriden- status mereka sebagai Least Concern. Ini mendukung perlunya studi saat ini dan studi menyeluruh untuk menilai status spesies- spesiestifikasi. iniWalaupun di Sumatera. ukuran sampel relatif kecil, perjumpaan dengan beberapa dari spesies-spesies ini hanya sedikit, meskipun
Introduction some of the island’s last protected lowland forests, the park has been inundated by illegal logging and agriculture, causing Sumatra harbours high mammal diversity (Rhee et al. 2004, a loss of 28% of its forests between 1985 and 1999 (Kinnaird Schipper et al. 2008), but deforestation and habitat degrada- et al. 2003). Since then, encroachment has decreased in some tion continue at unprecedented rates, with over 3.1 million areas, but remains a problem in others. The present study fo- hectares of forest (roughly 36% of Sumatra’s forested area) lost from 2000 to 2008 (Broich et al. 2011). A two-year mora- torium on new agriculture and logging concessions by the it appears that high rates of deforestation continue in many areasIndonesian (Sloan government et al. 2012). in 2010 was of disputed efficacy and Sumatra is home to numerous small carnivore species. Schreiber et al. for small carnivore conservation. Yet there have been few stud- ies of small carnivores(1989) onidentified Sumatra the and island little asis knowna priority of eacharea species’s status on the island (Holden 2006). A live-trapping and camera-trapping study of small cats (Felidae) obtained photographs of other small carnivores and trapped some in- dividuals. These data, presented here, contribute to the sparse information on small carnivores on Sumatra.
Methods
This study was conducted in Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (NP) in southern Sumatra (Fig. 1). Bukit Barisan Selatan NP is the third largest protected area in Sumatra and is bor- Fig. 1. Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park in southern Sumatra, Indonesia. dered by villages and agricultural fields. Although it contains 59 Small Carnivore Conservation, Vol. 51: 59–63, December 2014 McCarthy & Fuller cused in the east-central region of the park, outside the small village of Talang Lima (5°06′33″S, 104°09′01″E). Despite some They were baited with commercial lure (Hawbakers Wild Cat encroachment into this area of the park, a sharp ridgeline west Luresthe infrared Number beam One wasand Two)roughly and 25 chicken cm above meat. the Camera-traps forest floor. of the village limited coffee plantations to lower elevations. A were programmed to operate continuously and to take a series largely untouched primary evergreen forest remains at the top of the ridge (1,089 m). This ridge, down to 800 m, was the between sequential triggers. Each photograph of an animal location of all the study’s camera-trapping and live-trapping. of five photographs per triggering event, with a 60 sec delay No trapping was conducted outside the park or in non-forest- ed areas. The rough topography consists of sharp, secondary was identified to species. Photographs that did not allow an- ridges descending perpendicularly from the primary ridgeline. absolute identification were excluded from the dataset. Unless There is no vehicular access into this forest and few trails, notindividual considered identification a new event. was possible, any subsequent photo although there is some evidence of limited human activity graphLive-trapping of the same species from November taken within 2008 30 minto February of the first 2009 was inside the park boundaries. deployed 23 size 1 and 1½ soft-catch foot hold traps (Oneida This study was initiated to assess the ecology and status Victor) opportunistically within the camera-trapping block. of small cats within the park. It used both camera-trapping and live-trapping (McCarthy 2013, McCarthy et al. 2015). tension in an effort to decrease the likelihood of catching small Most of the camera-trapping was conducted from January to animalsEach trap such was as fitted murids with or a birds. pan tension Traps useddevice the set same to high attract pan- September 2011, with a methodology following O’Brien et al. ants as the camera-traps and were placed directly on well- (2003). A sampling block was designated and divided into 20 travelled game trails and at spots with cat signs. The traps subunits each of 1 km2. Camera-traps (Reconyx HC500) were were staked into the ground using cable stakes (Finned Super placed within 100 m of randomly chosen UTM coordinate in- Stakes) and were concealed with torn leaves. Traps were man- side each subunit along a large animal trail, or in an area with ually checked twice daily. Captured animals were anaesthe- sign of recent mammal activity. Four camera-traps had been tised by a veterinarian, then removed from the trap and given set opportunistically within the sampling block during 2010 a full physical examination. Morphological information was to assess potential live-trapping sites and camera perfor- recorded for all individuals, which were then monitored until mance. All camera-traps were mounted on tree trunks so that fully recovered.
(a) (b)
(c) (d) Fig. 2. Four small carnivore species camera-trapped in Talang Lima, Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, southern Sumatra, 2010–2011: (a) Banded Civet Hemigalus derbyanus, 8 February 2011; (b) Sumatran Hog Badger Arctonyx hoevenii, 16 August 2011; (c) Sunda Stink-badgerMydaus javanensis, 6 September 2010; (d) Masked Palm Civet Paguma larvata, 9 February 2011.
Small Carnivore Conservation, Vol. 51, December 2014 60 Small carnivores of Sumatra, Indonesia
Table 1. Camera-trap photograph rates of small carnivores in Talang Lima, Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, Sumatra, Indonesia. Number of notionally Photo rate (N/100 Species independent photos (N) camera-trap-nights) Masked Palm Civet Paguma larvata 17 1.04 Banded Civet Hemigalus derbyanus 12 0.73 Sumatran Hog Badger Arctonyx hoevenii 3 0.18 Yellow-throated Marten Martes flavigula 2 0.12 Banded Linsang Prionodon linsang 2 0.12 Sunda Stink-badger Mydaus javanensis * * *camera-trapped only during the 2010 pilot phase.
Results and discussion trapped only during the 2010 pilot phase. All six species are categorised on The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN A total of 1,636 camera-trap-nights during 2011 photographed 2014) as Least Concern except Banded Civet (Vulnerable) and Sumatran Hog Badger (Not Recognised). Live-trapping for a to- highest for Masked Palm Civet Paguma larvata and Banded tal of 1,265 trap nights captured four small carnivore species Civetfive small Hemigalus carnivore derbyanus species, but (Fig. substantially 2). Encounter lower rates for Suma were- (Table 2, Fig. 3): three Masked Palm Civets, one Yellow-throat- tran Hog Badger Arctonyx hoevenii, Yellow-throated Marten - Martes flavigula and Banded Linsang (Table 1). One additional species, Sunda Stink-badger Mydaus javanensis, was camera- haded Marten, several one ticks, Sumatran but were Hog in excellent Badger and condition one unidentified otherwise. ot ter, which escaped before handling. All five handled individuals
(a) (b)
(c) Fig. 3. Small carnivore species live-trapped in Talang Lima, Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, southern Sumatra, Indonesia, November 2008 – February 2009: (a) Sumatran Hog Badger Arctonyx hoevenii; (b) Yellow-throated Marten Martes flavigula; (c) Masked Palm Civet Paguma larvata.
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Table 2. Small carnivores captured in live-traps in Talang Lima, Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, Sumatra, Indonesia. Weight HB* length Tail length Paw width Species Sex Age (kg) (cm) (cm) (cm) Masked Palm Civet Female Adult 4.25 68 56 3 Masked Palm Civet Male Adult 5.40 80 58 4 Masked Palm Civet Male Subadult 2.47 52 43 - Yellow-throated Marten Male Adult 2.78 61 41 3.5 Sumatran Hog Badger Male Adult 5.42 71 17 5 Otter ------*HB = head-and-body.
Masked Palm Civet, the species encountered most fre- the Talang Lima study area: Malay Weasel is rarely camera- quently by both camera-trap and live-trap, is thought to be trapped even when present (Ross et al. 2013) and Talang Lima fairly common in central Sumatra (Holden 2006). These high lies at lower altitude than all records of Indonesian Mountain trapping rates suggest that it is fairly common in the Talang Weasel traced by Meiri et al. (2007). No otter species or Otter Lima study area. However, threats to the species on Suma- Civets Cynogale bennettii were camera-trapped, although sta- tions were not selected to represent riverine habitats. Holden species in Indonesia, making trade technically illegal, but it is (2006) did not record mongooses Herpestes, Small Indian Civ- tradedtra are innot northern well defined. Sumatra, There with are the no exact harvest amount quotas of harvestfor the et Viverricula indica, Malay Civet Viverra tangalunga or Com- and trade unknown (Shepherd 2008). The species uses a wide mon Palm Civet Paradoxurus hermaphroditus in Kerinci Seblat variety of habitats in China (Wang & Fuller 2003), but with no NP’s forest, nor were any of those species recorded in Talang Lima. With all survey located in primary forest within the habitat alteration there are unknown. park, their presence locally but in other habitats is possible. studiesBanded of its Civethabitat was use camera-trapped on Sumatra, effects relatively of the frequently. significant Al- Neither Binturong Arctictis binturong nor Small-toothed Palm though none was live-trapped, it was photographed through- Civet Artogalidia trivirgata were recorded, although this might out the Talang Lima study area and seemed common. In Ker- inci Seblat NP, central Sumatra, Holden (2006) found it only The ecology and status of most Sumatran small carni- in primary lowland forests; but in this part of Bukit Barisan voreswell simply remain reflect largely their undocumented. arboreal nature. The rapid deforestation Selatan NP it was photographed up to over 1,000 m asl. Re- on the island is presumably detrimental to forest-dependent duction of primary forest is thought to be the main threat to species. Small carnivores are harvested, although the extent this species, although its present status on Sumatra is barely and effects on each species are unknown. This study encoun- documented. tered some species categorised as Least Concern only rarely, Sumatran Hog Badger was photographed thrice and cap- raising the question of their status on Sumatra. Although this tured once. Holden (2006) recorded it frequently in Kerinci study was limited to a single small area, it highlights the neces- Seblat NP, concluding that it was common at elevations higher sity of attaining current information on small carnivore status than those covered in the present survey. However, it is con- in Sumatra. sidered rare in other areas of Sumatra, so might be distributed patchily (Holden 2006). Yellow-throated Marten was recorded Acknowledgements frequently by Holden (2006) in Kerinci Seblat NP. In Talang This study was supported by the Wildlife Conservation Society-In- Lima it was photographed twice and captured once. The survey donesia Program, the Mohammed bin Zayed Species Conservation area, at 800–1,089 m, lies right at the lower edge of the altitu- Fund, Panthera, The Clouded Leopard Project, the University of Dela- dinal range proposed for the species by Helgen et al. (2008). ware, the Small Cat Conservation Fund, the Cat Action Treasury and Banded Linsang and Sunda Stink-badger were recorded Idea Wild. It was undertaken with the cooperation of the University only by camera-trap. The linsang was recorded twice. It was of Lampung, the staff of Bukit Barisan Selatan NP, the Indonesian also recorded infrequently by Holden (2006) and although Ministry of Research and Technology and the Indonesian Ministry of camera-trapped widely across its range, it is rarely among the commonly encountered species (e.g. Hedges et al. 2013). Sun- the many others who helped set camera-traps in the midst of often da Stink-badger, recorded only once, was not camera-trapped challengingForestry. We conditions. thank our fieldHariyo assistants Wibisono Agus, reviewed Nedy and the Teeunk, translation and by Holden (2006), although one was directly observed. In Bor- into Indonesian. neo Payne et al. (1985) recorded the species mostly in second- ary forest, which may contribute to the low photograph rate References for this species in the Talang Lima study area, located in pri- Broich, M., Hansen, M., Stolle, F., Potapov, P., Margono, B. A. & Adusei, B. mary forest. 2011. Remotely sensed forest cover loss shows high spatial and A Malay Weasel Mustela nudipes was sighted along the temporal variation across Sumatera and Kalimantan, Indonesia side of a large mammal trail in lowland secondary forest 2000–2008. Environmental Research Letters 6(1): (014010) 1–9. near the Way Canguk Research Station, but neither it nor In- Hedges, L., Clements, G. R., Aziz, S. A., Yap, W., Laurance, S., Goosem, M. donesian Mountain Weasel M. lutreolina were recorded in & Laurance, W. F. 2013. Small carnivore records from a threatened
Small Carnivore Conservation, Vol. 51, December 2014 62 Small carnivores of Sumatra, Indonesia
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