Changes in the human footprint in and around Indonesia’s terrestrial national parks between 2012 and 2017

The human footprint (HF) was developed to measure of the impact of human activities on the environment. The human footprint has been found to be closely related to the vulnerability of protected areas around the world. In Indonesia, as nature conservation is still seen as hindering economic development, it is especially important to assess the human footprint in order to comprehend the overall pressures resulting from the various human activities on Indonesia’s national parks. This study measured the change in the human footprint in and around 43 terrestrial national parks over 5 years, between 2012 and 2017. As many as 37 out of 43 NPs experienced an increase in the HF, ranging from 0.4 to 77.3%. Tanjung Puting in Kalimantan experienced the greatest increase (77.3%), while Ujung Kulon in Jawa Bali bioregion had the greatest decrease (10.5%). An increase in human population density and improved access to parks from roads, rivers and coastlines are the main drivers of increasing impacts on national parks

Forest cover changes in Indonesia's terrestrial national parks between 2012 and 2017

Forest cover changes in Indonesia’s terrestrial national parks between 2012 and 2017. Biodiversitas 22: 1235-1242. Tropical rainforests are among the most important ecosystems on earth. After Brazil, Indonesia has the second-largest tropical forest area in the world. Since the 1970s, Indonesia's forests have decreased from covering 87% to 50% of its land area. With the ever-increasing pressures from economic and human development, it appears likely that much of the biodiversity and ecosystem services provided by forests in Indonesia will only remain in protected areas. National parks currently cover around 60% or 16 Mha of the total area of protected areas in Indonesia. Between 2012 and 2017, 43 terrestrial national parks in Indonesia lost 1.62% of their total forest cover. However, primary forest cover increased by 0.07%. National parks in the Jawa Bali bioregion, through their better management inputs and community collaborations, ecosystem services to the surrounding areas, as well as natural mountainous conditions, have contributed to the increase of primary forest covers and keeping total forest loss relatively low in Indonesia’s national parks

Experimental Validation of Specialised Questioning Techniques in Conservation

Conservation increasingly relies on social science tools to understand human behavior. Specialized questioning techniques (SQTs) are a suite of methods designed to reduce bias in social surveys and are widely used to collect data on sensitive topics, including compliance with conservation rules. Most SQTs have been developed in Western, industrialized, educated, rich, and democratic countries, meaning their suitability in other contexts may be limited. Whether these techniques perform better than conventional direct questioning is important for those considering their use. We designed an experiment to validate the performance of four SQTs (unmatched count technique, randomized response technique, crosswise model, and bean method) against direct questions when asking about a commonly researched sensitive behavior in conservation, wildlife hunting. We developed fictional characters, and for each method asked respondents to report the answers that each fictional character should give when asked if they hunt wildlife. We collected data from 609 individuals living close to protected areas in two different cultural and socioeconomic contexts (Indonesia and Tanzania) to quantify the extent to which respondents understood and followed SQT instructions and to explore the sociodemographic factors that influenced a correct response. Data were modeled using binomial general linear mixed models. Participants were more likely to refuse to answer questions asked using SQTs compared with direct questions. Model results suggested that SQTs were harder for participants to understand. Demographic factors (e.g., age and education level) significantly influenced response accuracy. When sensitive responses to sensitive questions were required, all SQTs (excluding the bean method) outperformed direct questions, demonstrating that SQTs can successfully reduce sensitivity bias. However, when reviewing each method, most respondents (59–89%) reported they would feel uncomfortable using them to provide information on their own hunting behavior, highlighting the considerable challenge of encouraging truthful reporting on sensitive topics. Our results demonstrate the importance of assessing the suitability of social science methods prior to their implementation in conservation contexts

Shortening harvest interval, reaping benefits? A study on harvest practices in oil palm smallholder farming systems in Indonesia

CONTEXT: Smallholders are responsible for a large share of global palm oil production. Yet, in Indonesia, the main palm oil producing country, smallholders’ yields remain low. Better management practices, including short harvest interval (HI, the number of days between two harvest rounds), could help to raise smallholder yields. However, at present, HI is long in smallholder fields and the drivers underlying this phenomenon are poorly understood. OBJECTIVE: We explored agronomic, socio-economic, and institutional factors that underlie harvesting practices in independent oil palm smallholder farming systems in Indonesia to assess scope for sustainable intensification through shorter HI and reduced harvest losses. METHODS: Combining methods from agronomy and anthropology, we followed harvest interval of 950 farmers in six representative locations across Indonesia via farmer diaries over a period of two years to establish a correlation with yield. To quantify this relationship, we conducted post-harvest field measurements, and to explain which underlying factors impact HI we did qualitative interviews and surveys. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The HI of smallholders in our study ranged from 10 to 39 days (average: 17-d). Half of the farmers followed long HI (\u3e16-d). Key factors impacting HI include annual fresh fruit bunch (FFB) yield, total palm area per farmer, trusted labor availability, plantation accessibility, and FFB price. Farmers responded to low yield by prolonging HI to increase labor productivity and optimize labor and transportation costs. SIGNIFICANCE: This study contributes to a better understanding of the relation between HI and yield in smallholder farming systems, by uncovering how socio-economic and institutional factors sometimes override agronomic considerations. Long HI can potentially lead to harvest loss from loose fruits and missed bunches, and reduce oil quality from overripe bunches. However, to obtain the benefits of shorter HI requires collective action and incentives along the supply chain to streamline the harvest and sale process

Deforestation of primate habitat on Sumatra and adjacent islands, Indonesia

The severe declines in forest cover on Sumatra and adjacent islands have been well-documented but that has not slowed the rate of forest loss. Here we present recent data on deforestation rates and primate distribution patterns to argue, yet again, for action to avert potential extinctions of Sumatran primates in the near future. Maps of forest loss were constructed using GIS and satellite imagery. Maps of primate distributions were estimated from published studies, museum records and expert opinion, and the two were overlaid on one another. The extent of deforestation in the provinces of Sumatra between 2000 and 2012 varied from 3.74% (11,599.9 ha in Lampung) to 49.85% (1,844,804.3 ha in Riau), with the highest rates occurring in the provinces of Riau, Jambi, Bangka Belitung and South Sumatra. During that time six species lost 50% or more of their forest habitat: The Banded langur Presbytis femoralis lost 82%, the Black-And-white langur Presbytis bicolor lost 78%, the Black-crested Sumatran langur Presbytis melalophos and the Bangka slow loris Nycticebus bancanus both lost 62%, the Lar gibbon Hylobates lar lost 54%, and the Pale-Thighed langur Presbytis siamensis lost 50%. Two species, the Pagai langur Presbytis potenziani and the Pagai macaque Macaca pagensis, both from the southern part of the Mentawai islands, are not represented in national parks or protected areas at all, and a further five species are found in only one protected area. The causes of deforestation are many and varied, but by far the leading causes are logging, followed by fire and/or conversion to plantations. Enforcement of existing regulations protecting primates, disentanglement of land claims and overlapping boundaries, a halt to logging in existing forests, a halt to road building through forests, clarification of how traditional adat law relates to protected areas, and the creation of new, enforceable laws protecting species from trade and exploitation will all be needed if Indonesia is to uphold the commitments to primate conservation that it has already made

Herpetofaunal diversity of West Bali National Park, Indonesia with identification of indicator species for long-term monitoring

We report on the results of a survey of the herpetofauna of West Bali National Park (Taman Nasional Bali Barat in Indonesian, hereafter TNBB) that was carried out in 2015. The survey also included other taxa and the motivation for it was to identify a species or group of species that could be used as indicators of management success for Protected Area Credits (PAC) under the Rainforest Standards (RFS™) system. Four major ecosystems, moist forest, deciduous monsoon forest, savanna and an abandoned Teak plantation, were sampled over a period of 10 days, using belt transects and pitfall traps. We measured species richness, abundance and density, herpetofaunal diversity (Simpson’s Index of Dominance and the Shannon Weiner Index) and community similarity. We also estimated the indicator value to determine which species, if any, might be suitable as indicators of environmental conditions. The survey yielded 30 species, 12 frogs and toads, 7 snakes and 11 lizards. Out of them there is an endangered gecko, Cyrtodactylus jatnai, a vulnerable frog, Microhyla orientalis, and a vulnerable tree-skink, Cryptoblepharus baliensis. Diversity was highest in the moist forest, followed closely by both the deciduous forest and the savanna. The greatest abundance was found in the savanna, followed by the moist forest and then the deciduous forest. Both diversity and abundance were extremely low in the abandoned teak plantation. Eleven species were identified as potential indicators of environmental deterioration if their numbers were to decrease. Frogs and toads were the best indicators in the moist forest, while lizards were the most suitable indicators for savanna and deciduous forest. No snakes were identified as indicators. It is concluded that herpetofauna can be useful and cost-effective indicators of environmental change