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Journal of Threatened Taxa Building evidence for conservaton globally www.threatenedtaxa.org ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print) Review Appraising carnivore (Mammalia: Carnivora) studies in Bangladesh from 1971 to 2019 bibliographic retrieves: trends, biases, and opportunities Muntasir Akash & Tania Zakir 26 November 2020 | Vol. 12 | No. 15 | Pages: 17105–17120 DOI: 10.11609/jot.6486.12.15.17105-17120 For Focus, Scope, Aims, Policies, and Guidelines visit htps://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/about/editorialPolicies#custom-0 For Artcle Submission Guidelines, visit htps://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/about/submissions#onlineSubmissions For Policies against Scientfc Misconduct, visit htps://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/about/editorialPolicies#custom-2 For reprints, contact <[email protected]> The opinions expressed by the authors do not refect the views of the Journal of Threatened Taxa, Wildlife Informaton Liaison Development Society, Zoo Outreach Organizaton, or any of the partners. 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Member Threatened Taxa Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 November 2020 | 12(15): 17105–17120 ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print) PLATINUM OPEN ACCESS DOI: htps://doi.org/10.11609/jot.6486.12.15.17105-17120 #6486 | Received 29 July 2020 | Final received 05 November 2019 | Finally accepted 09 November 2020 R e v Appraising carnivore (Mammalia: Carnivora) studies in Bangladesh from i e 1971 to 2019 bibliographic retrieves: trends, biases, and opportunites w Muntasir Akash 1 & Tania Zakir 2 1,2 Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka 1000, Bangladesh. 1 [email protected] (corresponding author), 2 [email protected] Abstract: In contrast to <7% natural forest covers and >1,000 people living km-2, Bangladesh, one of the smallest countries in Asia, shelters 28 carnivorous mammals. The species are of six families, nearly half of the entre carnivore diversity of the Indian Subcontnent. Carnivores of Bangladesh are litle understood and they are disappearing fast despite receiving stern protecton. Yet, there has been no assessment on the status of existng knowledge. A review was aimed to assess the existng knowledge and evaluate the research trends in country’s mammalian carnivores. Peer-reviewed works published from 1971 to 2019 were skimmed and categorized systematcally according to fve traits: publicaton type, research topic, tme of publicaton, region, and species of study. In a total of 95 works examined, substantal numbers were on tger (n=45) and the Sundarbans (n=47). In imbalance to acton plans procured for tger conservaton, 14 carnivores have never been exclusively studied in Bangladesh. Of the research topics, preference was evident for wildlife management and confict analyses as there were 31 scientfc papers out of 63 in these categories. Inventory compilaton for books (18 of 24) comprised the next preferred subject. The assessment could identfy gaps in related knowledge in diferent regions of the country. Eastern region has experienced a meagre amount of work, although its mixed evergreen forests have larger combined area than the Sundarbans, and is known for its higher richness of diversity. Exclusive works outside legally defned protected areas were also low. We found no works in northwestern and southern Bangladesh. In the last two decades, the temporal trajectory of research efort has been more, and the topics have started to diversify. In order to improve conservaton practces, we stress that gaps in knowledge pertaining to region or subject may be bridged with contemporary study techniques. This is crucial to highlight the status of carnivore species that are otherwise ‘elusive’, ‘apparently absent’, or ‘least-known’. Keywords: Bibliography, conservaton priorites, meta-analysis, review. Editor: L.A.K. Singh, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. Date of publicaton: 26 November 2020 (online & print) Citaton: Akash.M & T. Zakir (2020). Appraising carnivore (Mammalia: Carnivora) studies in Bangladesh from 1971 to 2019 bibliographic retrieves: trends, biases, and opportunites. Journal of Threatened Taxa 12(15): 17105–17120. htps://doi.org/10.11609/jot.6486.12.15.17105-17120 Copyright: © Akash & Zakir 2020. Creatve Commons Atributon 4.0 Internatonal License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproducton, and distributon of this artcle in any medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publicaton. Funding: Self-funded. Competng interests: The authors declare no competng interests. Author details: Muntasir Akash is a lecturer at the Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka. He is moulding his career around the least-known carnivore mammals. He is leading a systematc camera-trapping work in northeastern Bangladesh funded by Conservaton Leadership Program (CLP). His indulgence also lies in deciphering Wallacean shortalls. Tania Zakir is an aspiring wildlife biologist and science illustrator. With an MS in zoology from the University of Dhaka, she has developed a keen interest in carnivore mammals. At present, she is investgatng human-carnivore mammal confict scenario in Bangladesh. She is a member of the CLP-funded project. Author contributon: MA conceived the research idea. MA and TZ designed the methodology. TZ collected necessary data and prepared the frst draf. MA fnalized the manuscript. Both authors reviewed and approved the manuscript. Acknowledgements: The authors are thankful to the anonymous reviewers as their comments have inspired and assisted greatly. 17105 J TT Reviewing carnivore studies in Bangladesh Akash & Zakir INTRODUCTION (Fig. 1). The Sundarbans mangroves support the only stable Tiger populaton in the country. Wet deciduous Carnivora that consttute the ffh largest mammalian forests which once swathed from central to north and order faces taxon-wide existental crisis (Inskip & northwest, is now extremely fragmented, but contnue Zimmermann 2009; Ripple et al. 2014). According to to be known for civets, mongooses, Felis and Prionailurus IUCN (2019), 88 species are threatened with a trend of cats. Concentratons of mixed evergreen forests are decreasing populaton. Conserving carnivores is now a in eastern regions typifed by hills, streams, rugged major concern worldwide (Treves & Karanth 2003). terrain, and, in cases, tea-gardens on the periphery. The concern is in recogniton of the fact that for Eastern forests are long credited for every natve a stable and diverse community of wild animals, carnivore. Apart from the forests, homestead jungle and carnivorous mammals exert intangible infuences. wetland vegetaton support small mammals. Although They can act as apex predators and their absence ofen protected under several formal defnitons, here, leads to trophic cascades (Prug et al. 2009; Ripple et threats to wildlife and wildlife habitats are surmountng al. 2014; Suraci et al. 2017). As the ecosystem services because of encroachment, altercaton, destructon, of a carnivore can be of an umbrella or keystone to high-dependency on forest products, agro-industries, conserve an ecosystem in its entrety (Sergio et al. 2008; trafcking, persecuton, and retaliatory killings, to name Baker & Leberg 2018), human interventon in wildlife but a few (Khan 2015, 2018). management practces cannot supersede or bypass We fnd no comprehensive assessment of the status a carnivore’s natural impact in the wild (Gitleman & of existng knowledge on mammalian predators of Gompper 2005; Ripple et al. 2014). Bangladesh. But on global or regional scales, extensive Bangladesh is the world’s 92nd largest country reviews tend to highlight species in critcal research covering an area of 147,610km2 and the 8th most needs, and steer conservaton interventons to new populous with about 165.6 million people. Also, the perspectves as exemplifed by Dalerum et al. (2008), country is rich in biodiversity and harbors 138 extant Inskip & Zimmermann (2009), Periago et al. (2014), mammals; 28 of which are carnivores (IUCN Bangladesh Broto & Mortellit (2018). 2015; Khan 2015, 2018). For instance, Broto & Mortellit (2018) highlighted the Geographically, Bangladesh is traversed by the Tropic patern of researches on mammals of Sulawesi Island in of Cancer, and there exists a transiton zone between the Indonesia with high insular endemism. Similarly, Periago Indo-Himalayan and the Indo-Chinese sub-regions of the et al. (2014) assessed the patern and consequence of Oriental realm, which are considered advantageous to losing mammalian herbivores and frugivores in savanna form wildlife habitats (Corlet 2007; Feeroz 2013; Khan woodland of Central South America. On a larger scale, 2018). Historical anecdotes indicate about the rich Inskip and Zimmerman (2009) evaluated the nature and presence of carnivores all over Bangladesh once. Many level of confict between human and each of the wild carnivore species