scholarly journals Human disturbance affects habitat use and behaviour of Asiatic leopard Panthera pardus in Kaeng Krachan National Park, Thailand

Oryx ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 343-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dusit Ngoprasert ◽  
Antony J. Lynam ◽  
George A. Gale

AbstractEdge effects arising from road construction and other development in protected areas can negatively affect the behaviour of wildlife, particularly large carnivores. The Asiatic leopard Panthera pardus is a large carnivore that may be sensitive to edge effects. Camera trapping was used to assess the influence of human disturbance along forest edges on leopard behaviour and habitat use in a 104 km2 area of Kaeng Krachan National Park, Thailand. A minimum of four male and two female leopards was recorded in the study area. A Park access road bisecting the study area was not a barrier to leopard movement but movements and activity were affected by human traffic inside the Park. A regression model showed that leopard habitat use increased with distance from human settlements at the forest edge. As in other parts of its range, leopards at Kaeng Krachan National Park tended to show less diurnal activity in areas more heavily used by people compared to areas less used. As is the case with tigers, such responses may pose a threat to leopard population persistence but more research is needed to determine the demographic implications of edge effects for Asiatic leopards and other large tropical carnivores, and the appropriate mitigation strategies required.

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wuttisak Kummoo ◽  
Jiraporn Teampanpong ◽  
Pantiya Utsa ◽  
Paanwaris Paansri ◽  
Warong Suksavate ◽  
...  

Abstract. Kummoo W, Teampanpong J, Paansri P, Suksavate W, Utsa P, Duengkae P, Prompat S. 2020. Impact of highway on vertebrate roadkill in Nam Nao National Park, Thailand. Biodiversitas 21: 5540-5550. Roads lead to biodiversity loss, primarily through wildlife collisions. This phenomenon is widespread, despite limited attention in Thailand. To reduce road mortality, the roadkilled species and their distributions along the road become a significant component for designing management strategies. We surveyed vertebrate mortality covering 44 kilometers of Highway 12, passing through Nam Nao Nation Park in Phetchabun Province of Thailand for 34 replicates between August 2018 and July 2019. We recorded 1,389 carcasses of 578 amphibians, 540 reptiles, 190 mammals and 81 birds. The rate of wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVCs) was 1.089 ± 0.823 carcasses-km-1day-1, comprised mostly of amphibians. The distribution pattern of WVCs was arranged in spatial clusters. Five wildlife collision hotspots for four taxa groups were identified. Overall, the WVC presence was positively associated with vegetation types but negatively associated with distance to the forest edge, the presence of road barriers and the number of road lane. Concurrently, the numbers of roadkill incidents were positively associated with amphibians more than other vertebrate groups, the night time and number of daily vehicles. Our results suggest that WVC rates on HW12 vary among taxonomic groups, temporal scales and environmental factors. It highlights key hotspots where mitigation strategies should be implemented for biodiversity conservation.


Biotropica ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
pp. 724-731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca J. Foster ◽  
Bart J. Harmsen ◽  
C. Patrick Doncaster

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 776-779 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Mark Elbroch ◽  
Heiko U. Wittmer

Large carnivores perform keystone ecological functions through direct predation, or indirectly, through food subsidies to scavengers or trophic cascades driven by their influence on the distributions of their prey. Pumas ( Puma concolor ) are an elusive, cryptic species difficult to study and little is known about their inter-trophic-level interactions in natural communities. Using new GPS technology, we discovered that pumas in Patagonia provided 232 ± 31 kg of edible meat/month/100 km 2 to near-threatened Andean condors ( Vultur gryphus ) and other members of a diverse scavenger community. This is up to 3.1 times the contributions by wolves ( Canis lupus ) to communities in Yellowstone National Park, USA, and highlights the keystone role large, solitary felids play in natural systems. These findings are more pertinent than ever, for managers increasingly advocate controlling pumas and other large felids to bolster prey populations and mitigate concerns over human and livestock safety, without a full understanding of the potential ecological consequences of their actions.


Oryx ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 207-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tshering Tempa ◽  
Mark Hebblewhite ◽  
L. Scott Mills ◽  
Tshewang R. Wangchuk ◽  
Nawang Norbu ◽  
...  

AbstractThe non-uniformity of the distribution of biodiversity makes allocation of the limited resources available for conservation of biodiversity a difficult task. Approaches such as biodiversity hotspot identification, endemic bird areas, crisis ecoregions, global 200 ecoregions, and the Last of the Wild are used by scientists and international conservation agencies to prioritize conservation efforts. As part of the biodiverse Eastern Himalayan region, Bhutan has been identified as a conservation priority area by all these different approaches, yet data validating these assessments are limited. To examine whether Bhutan is a biodiversity hot spot for a key taxonomic group, we conducted camera trapping in the lower foothills of Bhutan, in Royal Manas National Park, from November 2010 to February 2011. We recorded six species of wild felids of which five are listed on the IUCN Red List: tiger Panthera tigris, golden cat Pardofelis temminckii, marbled cat Pardofelis marmorata, leopard cat Prionailurus bengalensis, clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa and common leopard Panthera pardus. Our study area of 74 km2 has c. 16% of felid species, confirming Bhutan as a biodiversity hot spot for this group.


Author(s):  
Matt McGee ◽  
Stan Anderson ◽  
Doug Wachob

A study of coyote (Canis latrans) habitat use and mortality in Grand Teton National Park and the suburban-agricultural land surrounding Jackson, WY was conducted between September 1999 and August 2000. This research focused on the influence of human development, habitat type, topography, and simulated wolf presence on coyote habitat use and on coyote mortality patterns in undeveloped and suburban-agricultural land. The overall goal of this project was to provide baseline information on the coyote population in Jackson Hole that can be used in the future to determine what, if any, impact wolves and human developments may have on coyotes. There were a total of fifteen radio-collared coyotes in the suburban-agricultural area and fourteen radio collared coyotes in Grand Teton National Park and adjacent areas in the National Elk Refuge and Bridger-Teton National Forest. Marked coyotes were tracked weekly using short interval telemetry relocations and triangulation to determine habitat use patterns. During the winter, track transects were skied weekly and coyote trails were backtracked and mapped using hand held GPS units to determine fine scale habitat use patterns. Coyote mortality was determined via telemetry and direct observation. Preliminary data analyses suggest that coyotes use mainly sagebrush-grasslands or forest-shrub-grass edge areas and avoid forest interior areas. Coyotes frequently use trails and roads in the undeveloped area when moving long distances. Preliminary analysis also indicates that roads and trails are used in a greater proportion than their abundance on the landscape. Coyotes were frequently observed using riparian corridors to move between open meadows in the suburban-agricultural area. There is some evidence that suggests coyotes selectively travel fences and irrigation ditches for long distances in agricultural areas. The movement data also suggests that coyotes avoid developed areas during the day and travel in these developed areas at night. The data on coyote locations suggests some avoidance of wolf urine scent grids in the undeveloped area, but not in the developed area. Coyote mortality was primarily human caused, and coyotes that were male, transient, and lived in the suburban-agricultural area were the most commonly killed animals.


2013 ◽  
Vol 59 (6) ◽  
pp. 707-717 ◽  
Author(s):  
Solomon A. Tadesse ◽  
Burt P. Kotler

Abstract We studied the habitat use of mountain nyala Tragelaphus buxtoni in the northern edge of the Bale Mountains National Park, Ethiopia. The aims of this study were to: (1) measure and quantify habitat-specific stem bite diameters of mountain nyala foraging on common natural plant species in two major habitat types (i.e. grasslands versus woodlands), and (2) quantify the bite rates (number of bites per minute) and the activity time budgets of mountain nyala as functions of habitat type and sex-age category. We randomly laid out three transects in each habitat type. Following each transect, through focal animal observations, we assessed and quantified stem diameters at point of browse (dpb), bite rates, and time budgets of mountain nyala in grasslands versus woodlands. Stem dpb provide a measure of natural giving-up densities (GUDs) and can be used to assess foraging costs and efficiencies, with greater stem dpb corresponding to lower costs and greater efficiencies. The results showed that stem dpb, bite rates, induced vigilance, and proportion of time spent in feeding differed between habitats. In particular, mountain nyala had greater stem dpb, higher bite rates, and spent a greater proportion of their time in feeding and less in induced vigilance in the grasslands. In addition, adult females had the highest bite rates, and the browse species Solanum marginatum had the greatest stem dpb. Generally, grasslands provide the mountain nyala with several advantages over the woodlands, including offering lower foraging costs, greater safety, and more time for foraging. The study advocates how behavioural indicators and natural GUDs are used to examine the habitat use of the endangered mountain nyala through applying non-invasive techniques. We conclude that the resulting measures are helpful for guiding conservation and management efforts and could be applicable to a number of endangered wildlife species including the mountain nyala.


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