TY - JOUR
T1 - Reforestation could bring native mammal species back in the tropical highlands
AU - Wahdaniyah, Siti
AU - Khalidah, Ku Noor
AU - Sabar, Nabilah Hamidah
AU - Kamarudin, Norizah
AU - Sanusi, Ruzana
AU - Razi, Norhisham Ahmad
AU - Lechner, Alex M.
AU - Azhar, Badrul
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding for this research was provided by the federal government of Malaysia through the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources under the Restoration, Reclamation and Rehabilitation of Degraded Forest Areas in Peninsular Malaysia Programme. We thank the Forestry Department of Peninsular Malaysia and Pahang State Forestry Department for their cooperation and support throughout this research. We are also grateful to Jamhuri Jamaluddin, Farid Ramli, Samantha Liza Durit, Tee Sze Ling and Tharani Alagapan for assisting us in the field.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, International Society for Tropical Ecology.
PY - 2023
Y1 - 2023
N2 - The rapid conversion of highland forests into agricultural areas has caused deforestation in Peninsular Malaysia. Since 2017, in the Cameron Highlands, the Forestry Department of Peninsular Malaysia has reforested degraded highland areas by planting native tree species. To date, little is known about the effect of highland reforestation on wild mammals in the region. This study aimed to examine the relationship between mammal detections and habitat variables in the reforested areas that previously had been coverted into intensively managed vegetable farms (for at least 10 years), using camera trapping over four forest reserves. Seven wild mammal species were detected across the study area, including conservation priority species such as the Sumatran serow (Capricornis sumatrensis), the otter civet (Cynogale bennettii), and the Asian golden cat (Catopuma temminckii). The wild boar (Sus scrofa) had the highest detection and leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) was the most common carnivorous species at almost all of the study sites. Eight predictor variables determined mammal detection numbers in the highland reforestation areas. Mammal detections increased with elevation, sapling abundance, and number of trees with a DBH above 5 cm. While, detection numbers decreased with the number of fallen trees, palm abundance, and undergrowth coverage. Mammal detections varied with forest reserves and sampling months. Continuous monitoring is vital to understand long term trends in reforestation on wild mammal communities in highland areas, however, the outcome of our study is very promising and suggests reforestation could help reverse defaunation of highland forests in Peninsular Malaysia.
AB - The rapid conversion of highland forests into agricultural areas has caused deforestation in Peninsular Malaysia. Since 2017, in the Cameron Highlands, the Forestry Department of Peninsular Malaysia has reforested degraded highland areas by planting native tree species. To date, little is known about the effect of highland reforestation on wild mammals in the region. This study aimed to examine the relationship between mammal detections and habitat variables in the reforested areas that previously had been coverted into intensively managed vegetable farms (for at least 10 years), using camera trapping over four forest reserves. Seven wild mammal species were detected across the study area, including conservation priority species such as the Sumatran serow (Capricornis sumatrensis), the otter civet (Cynogale bennettii), and the Asian golden cat (Catopuma temminckii). The wild boar (Sus scrofa) had the highest detection and leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) was the most common carnivorous species at almost all of the study sites. Eight predictor variables determined mammal detection numbers in the highland reforestation areas. Mammal detections increased with elevation, sapling abundance, and number of trees with a DBH above 5 cm. While, detection numbers decreased with the number of fallen trees, palm abundance, and undergrowth coverage. Mammal detections varied with forest reserves and sampling months. Continuous monitoring is vital to understand long term trends in reforestation on wild mammal communities in highland areas, however, the outcome of our study is very promising and suggests reforestation could help reverse defaunation of highland forests in Peninsular Malaysia.
KW - Animal detection
KW - Camera trapping
KW - Deforestation
KW - Diversity
KW - Highland forest
KW - Wildlife
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85138537706&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s42965-022-00253-x
DO - 10.1007/s42965-022-00253-x
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85138537706
SN - 0564-3295
VL - 64
SP - 380
EP - 390
JO - Tropical Ecology
JF - Tropical Ecology
ER -