The Range Contraction and Future Conservation of Green Peafowl (Pavo muticus) in China

The Green Peafowl (Pavo muticus) is vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures and has undergone an extensive decline through much of its range in Southeast Asia. However, little is known about the changing distribution of Green Peafowl in China through historical periods. We described a 5000–6000 years distribution change of Green Peafowl in China by using historical archives. We examined the present distributions of Green Peafowl by using camera traps and transect surveys and predicted the suitable habitat to support future conservation planning for this species. Although Green Peafowl was once widely distributed across China, the species experienced a southward range retreat over the past 5000–6000 years and is now restricted to a small part of Yunnan. The results of prediction from maximum entropy modeling (MaxEnt) showed that the size of suitable habitat of Green Peafowl in Yunnan was 17,132 km2. The suitable habitat concentrated in nine prefectures of Yunnan and Pu’er, Chuxiong, and Yuxi accounted for 48.64%, 27.39% and 15.83%, respectively. These results suggest that central Yunnan can cover most of the current larger and more contiguous populations of Green Peafowl in China and should be protected. Moreover, some areas in southern Yunnan, such as Xishuangbanna, can be a candidate for reestablishing populations, given that the species disappeared in this region less than 20 years ago and has a large remaining habitat.

PRODUKSI KERAJINAN DADAK MERAK TERHADAP POPULASI JENIS BURUNG MERAK HIJAU (Pavo Muticus) di KABUPATEN PONOROGO

Pelestarian budaya Reog di Kabupaten Ponorogo sangat bergantung pada kesediaan bahan baku burung Merak Hijau. Namun saat ini pertumbuhan populasi Merak Hijau semakin menurun, disisi lain Kabupaten Ponorogo perlu melestarikan keberadaan kesenian Reog. Sehingga penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui hubungan pertumbuhan produksi dadak merak terhadap tingkat populasi jenis merak hijau (Pavo muticus) secara ex situ di Kabupaten Ponorogo. Analisis hubungan antara pertumbuhan populasi dan pertumbuhan produksi dadak merak menggunakan metode korelasi spearman rank untuk mengetahui tingkat signifikansi. Selanjutnya dilakukan analisis peluang usaha menggunakan B/C ratio untuk mengetahui prospek usaha kerajinan dadak merak. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa produksi dadak merak yang tinggi tidak berkolerasi terhadap pertambahan populasi merak hijau. Hal ini disebabkan karena minimnya ifnormasi dan kurangnya pendampingan terhadap para penangkar terhadap metode penangkaran secara ex-situ sehingga pengrajin memilih melakukan subtitusi menggunakan merak biru dari bahan impor. Nilai B/C ratio pada dadak merak hijau menunjukkan nilai 1,11 dan dadak merak biru 1,32 sehingga kegiatan usaha kerajinan dadak merak memiliki prospek yang layak.Kata Kunci: Produksi Dadak Merak, Merak Hijau

Population genomic, climatic and anthropogenic evidence suggest the role of human forces in endangerment of green peafowl ( Pavo muticus )

Both anthropogenic impacts and historical climate change could contribute to population decline and species extinction, but their relative importance is still unclear. Emerging approaches based on genomic, climatic and anthropogenic data provide a promising analytical framework to address this question. This study applied such an integrative approach to examine potential drivers for the endangerment of the green peafowl ( Pavo muticus ). Several demographic reconstructions based on population genomes congruently retrieved a drastic population declination since the mid-Holocene. Furthermore, a comparison between historical and modern genomes suggested genetic diversity decrease during the last 50 years. However, climate-based ecological niche models predicted stationary general range during these periods and imply the little impact of climate change. Further analyses suggested that human disturbance intensities were negatively correlated with the green peafowl's effective population sizes and significantly associated with its survival status (extirpation or persistence). Archaeological and historical records corroborate the critical role of humans, leaving the footprint of low genomic diversity and high inbreeding in the survival populations. This study sheds light on the potential deep-time effects of human disturbance on species endangerment and offers a multi-evidential approach in examining underlying forces for population declines.

GREEN PEAFOWL (Pavo muticus) FEATHERS’S NEEDED FOR REOG PONOROGO

Ringkasan. Kesenian Reog Ponorogo merupakan budaya asli Indonesia yang berasal dari Jawa Timur. Barongan (dadak merak) sebagai salah satu unsur dominan Reog Ponorogo memanfaatkan bagian satwa dilindungi jenis merak hijau (Pavo muticus). Hasil penelitian yang dilakukan di salah satu penangkaran merak di Madiun dan terhadap 4 kelompok pengrajin dadak merak di Kabupaten Ponorogo (Jawa Timur) yang dilakukan pada tahun 2018, diketahui bahwa seekor merak jantan dapat menghasilkan 100-150 helai bulu setiap kali musim rontok, sedangkan kebutuhan sebuah barongan adalah 900 – 1.500 helai bulu merak. Sehingga untuk dapat mencukupi kebutuhan bulu merak untuk para pengrajin dadak merak yang ada di Kabupaten Ponorogo, dibutuhkan 20 buah penangkar merak hijau dengan jumlah jantan dewasa setidaknya 6-10 ekor.

Peafowl Production

Peafowl is a common name of three species of the Phasianidae family. It is known as a sacred bird in many Asian countries and India that is the homeland of the peafowl. They live in groups and prefer cultivated areas and forests where they can find more food in nature. They feed on cereal grains, insects, fruits, leaves, seeds. It has a strong structure and adapts very well to different climates. Because of this feature can be produced anywhere in the world. There are commonly known three different types of peafowl. Blue (Indian) Peafowl (Pavo cristatus), Green Peafowl (Pavo muticus) and Congo Peafowl (Afropavo congoensis). The most recognizable species of them is the Indian Peafowl. Peafowl has always been the center of attention with its striking, bright and eye-catching colors on its body and long tail, and it is natural wonders. Therefore, they are especially indispensable members of zoos and ornamental gardens. Although peafowl are usually produced for their beautiful appearance, their meat is also very tasty and beneficial. This article is prepared to give brief information about peafowl.

Importance of isolated forest fragments and low intensity agriculture for the long-term conservation of the green peafowl Pavo muticus

Low intensity subsistence agriculture is generally believed to be less damaging to wildlife than intensive farming. As Myanmar is undergoing rapid modernization, subsistence farming may shift to intensive agriculture, resulting in increased threats to species of conservation concern such as the green peafowl Pavo muticus. Here we investigate habitat use of the green peafowl in a low intensity agricultural landscape surrounding a small forest fragment in southern Shan State, Myanmar. The forest belongs to Nan Kone Buddha Monastery and the green peafowl is protected from hunting in the area on the basis of religious beliefs. We established three survey transects with a total length of 3,414 m. During February 2016–January 2017 we conducted surveys twice daily for 4 consecutive days every month, walking all transects in both directions in the mornings and afternoons and recording visual and auditory peafowl encounters. We estimated peafowl density to be 2.63 animals/km2 in the less disturbed western part of the study area and 1.13 animals/km2 in the eastern part, which had higher levels of human disturbance. The peafowl's habitat use was significantly non-random, with forest patches being the most utilized habitat, followed by croplands. Within a 300 m buffer zone around the forest patch, the order of habitat preference was crop > scrub > fallow, with crop significantly preferred over the other two habitats. We conclude that preserved isolated forest blocks adjacent to community-managed agricultural areas are important for green peafowl conservation, and discuss the implications for long-term conservation management of the species.