Dawna Tenasserim: The Land of Cats Protecting our Feline Natural Heritage Executive Summary Tiger, leopard, clouded leopard - names that conjure up images of graceful, mysterious felines stalking prey in the world’s most spectacular forests. To scientists they are Felidae - and they live in every region of the world except for Antarctica and Australia. Amazingly, almost one fifth of the world’s 36 cat species can be found in a landscape straddling Myanmar and Thailand - the Dawna Tenasserim. The landscape is home to at least 7 of the 11 felines found in Southeast Asia. However, these big cats that underpin the cultures, art and identities of many of the region’s inhabitants are under threat. The 2019 Intergovernmental Panel for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services detailed the shocking rate of biodiversity loss globally, and the risks to wildlife in tropical and sub-tropical areas especially. Saving the spectacular feline biodiversity of the Dawna Tenasserim demands concerted effort now. In 1850, Francis Mason, an American naturalist visiting the ‘Tenasserim’ region of Myanmar (a part of the Dawna Tenasserim landscape) described, a land of “unimaginable beauty” with “tigers almost everywhere.” So prevalent once was this big cat, that in 1903 shocked visitors to Yangon’s famous Shwedagon Pagoda spotted a tigress crouching on its golden steps. Chaos ensued as monks fled the structure and British soldiers fumbled to kill the unwelcome visitor. Right up until 1931, tigers were so common that they were considered pests, and the government of Myanmar at the time even provided licenses and rewards for killing them. However, decades of rampant killing of tigers and other big cats have taken a major toll on their numbers. Populations have plummeted and in Myanmar in 2018, an official from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation expressed concerns over whether tigers had become functionally extinct in the country. Thailand however has taken a somewhat different approach to its tigers and is increasingly recognized as a hub of tiger conservation in Southeast Asia.1 However other felines have been and continue to be hunted as pests and for skins and bushmeat. © Diana Rudenko / WWF Rudenko © Diana Dawna Tenasserim Stretching across the Myanmar-Thai border, the still relatively unknown Dawna Tenasserim landscape contains the largest contiguous forested area - eight million hectares - within mainland Southeast Asia. Forests cover 82% of the Dawna Tenasserim landscape and serve as important refuges for many wildlife species, including some that are critically endangered or endemic. The Dawna Tenasserim landscape is recognized as one of the Earth’s most biologically significant areas for biodiversity conservation and is one of WWF’s 9 priority places around the world. Ethnic minorities and indigenous groups are an important part of the Dawna Tenasserim, serving in many cases as stewards of the landscape their ancestors have lived in for centuries. That this landscape harbours such a treasure trove of feline biodiversity is truly remarkable, home to seven of the nine cat species found in Southeast Asia: tiger, leopard, clouded leopard, Asiatic golden cat, jungle cat, marbled cat and leopard cat. Six can be found within a single national park (Kaeng Krachan National Park in Thailand). However, of these, jungle cat is particularly rare and known from few records and localities. It is likely that populations of this species may be particularly threatened due to persecution, and loss and degradation of habitat.2 Southeast Asia in general is significant for feline biodiversity, covering about 3% of the world’s land area yet supporting 30% (11) of the 36 global cat species presently recognised by The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.3 Tigers are the best known of the felines and the Western Forest Complex (WEFCOM) of Thailand harbours the largest population of tigers within mainland Southeast Asia. This complex of parks, sanctuaries and protected areas in the northern part of the Dawna Tenasserim is the largest protected area complex in the region and presents the best hope for the survival of tigers within Southeast Asia. Despite the threats to wildlife described in this report, it is important to point out that the feline populations are still relatively healthy and intact. In the most recent camera trapping in the Myanmar side of the Dawna Tenasserim in mid-2019 (covering only limited areas) six of the seven cat species in the landscape were camera trapped (with the exception of jungle cat). © Adam Oswell / WWF-Thailand Oswell © Adam In these selected sites from the Dawna Tenasserim, the following felines were camera trapped over this period clouded leopard leopard cat in 2018/19 WWF, along with partners, conducted camera trapping surveys in: 1. Tanintharyi Division 2. Kaeng Krachan National Park 3. Kuiburi National Park 4. Umphang Wildlife Sanctuary tiger leopard 5. Mae Wong and Klong Lan National Parks marbled cat Asiatic golden cat PHOTO CREDITS: CLOUDED LEOPARD, LEOPARD (left page): © KWCI /WWF-Myanmar TIGER (left and right page), MARBLED CAT (left and right page), LEOPARD CAT, LEOPARD (right page): © The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) / WWF-Thailand ASIATIC GOLDEN CAT: © Karen Forest Department / WWF Myanmar Tigers, Asian elephants, gaur, banteng, be attributed to the rain shadow effect of clouded leopards, Asian tapirs, Asiatic wild the mountain ranges which result in dogs, hornbills and Siamese crocodiles differences in average annual rainfall The Land that roam the jungles and rivers of the Dawna from around 140cm on the Thai side to Tenasserim. 560cm in Myanmar. Additionally, the Dawna Tenasserim is the origin of about Endemic species dwell here that exist 1300 species and 180–190 genera of Time Forgot nowhere else on Earth, including the orchids, comprising the majority of Gurney’s Pitta, Burmese Yuhina, and the tropical orchid genera in the world. As Impossibly high waterfalls cascade over rock Kitti’s hog-nosed bat, the world’s smallest parts of the landscape remain poorly mammal, weighing a little more than a large explored scientifically, particularly in outcroppings and plunge into dense jungle. bumblebee. The Dawna Tenasserim was a Myanmar, more biodiversity discoveries stronghold for both Javan and Sumatran are expected. Deep valleys huddle beneath towering rhinoceroses in the Greater Mekong throughout the 1950s and 60s and possibly Despite its natural abundance, the granite and limestone mountains cloaked in well beyond, although there is no recent landscape also has an ancient and diverse evidence of them. history of human habitation intertwined misty clouds. The Dawna Tenasserim is with the environment. For example, the The Dawna Tenasserim is remarkable in that cave art at Khao Pla Ra, just outside of truly a unique and beautiful place where it is the meeting point of four distinct Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary biogeographic zones: Indo-Burmese, in Uthai Thani, Thailand, dates back to global biodiversity thrives; home to at least IndoChinese, Sundaic and Sino-Hima- approximately 3,000 years. The highly layan. It is comprised of two ecoregions: stylized cave art depicts the way of life 168 mammal species and 560 bird species. the Kayah-Karen Montane Rain Forests for prehistoric communities, including the ecoregion and the Tenasserim Moist Forests vital importance of their interactions with ecoregion. The warm climate in the landscape the natural landscape. Today, the largest also promotes abundant plant growth and its ethnic group within the Dawna forests are considered among the oldest in the Tenasserim Landscape is the Karen. world. ‘Karen’ refers to a number of ethnic groups who speak 12 related ‘Karenic The great forests of the Dawna Tenasserim languages’ that are part of the Tibeto- are however not homogenous. Due to Burman language group. In addition to different rainfall patterns, forests in the east the Karen, the Dawna Tenasserim is also or Thai side of the mountains are made up home to Thai, Shan, Bamar, Mon, Lisu, of more dry deciduous varieties, while the Lahu, Hmong and various other ethnic west-facing or Myanmar slopes are a mixture groups. of moist deciduous and evergreen. This can © Adam Oswell / WWF-Thailand “The Dawna Tenasserim is a modern day “We count tigers because we are trying to save Eden - a place of staggering beauty and rich Myanmar’s nature. When tigers are present, you biodiversity. The fact that it harbors seven cat can generally infer that the ecosystem is thriving, species puts it right up there with some of the so we use them like a metric. It takes a whole lot world’s most iconic ecosystems and begs for of effort to save tigers and increase their numbers, us to protect this world class landscape.” but once you know you’re keeping tiger numbers stable, you can be sure that their habitat is thriving - Stuart Chapman, WWF Tigers Alive Leader with all the other significant wildlife.” - Paing Soe, Conservation Biologist, WWF-Myanmar © Suyash Keshari / WWF The first documenter of the Dawna Tenasserim’s biodiversity Rev. Francis Mason, originally born in England and an American émigré, was a notable force in the cataloguing and documentation of wildlife in the Tenasserim (Tanintharyi) area of the Dawna Tenasserim landscape. In 1850 the amateur naturalist published the landmark publication “The natural products of Burmah, or notes on the fauna, flora and minerals of the Tenasserim provinces, and the Burman empire” still referred to today by feline and wildlife experts interested in the region. 1. Tiger (Panthera tigris) Endangered Tigers are arguably one of the most iconic large parts of their potential range are out- species in the world. Tigers used to roam across side of any formal protection. The Western most of Asia, but today they are restricted to Forest Complex in Thailand harbors the just 7% of their original range, in isolated largest population of tigers within mainland forests and grasslands across 13 countries.