Debate Forum: preventing the extinction of the Sumatran rhinoceros

Sumatran rhino (SR), Dicerorhinus sumatrensis, represents one the oldest surviving mammal genera. Due to its role in traditional Chinese medicines, the horn of SR has been sought for well over a millennium and for many years the price of SR horn by weight rivalled that of gold. Extensive hunting lead to a precipitous decline in distribution and numbers of SR, particularly during the first decades of the twentieth century (van Strien, 1975) and it seems little short of a miracle that the species is not already extinct. By the mid twentieth century, the species was depleted from its former range and in danger of extinction in Malaya and Borneo (Hubback, 1939; Metcalf, 1961; Medway, 1977; Rookmaaker, 1977), and elsewhere on mainland Asia (Harper, 1945). Flynn and Abdullah (1984) suggested 52-75 SR roamed Peninsular Malaysia in the early 1980s, including 20- 25 individuals in the Endau-Rompin area, while Davies and Payne (1982) estimated 15-30 SRs in Sabah. By 1981, the only clear evidence of periodic breeding in wild SR in Malaysia was in Endau-Rompin and the Tabin area of eastern Sabah. At that time, the species was disappearing rapidly from the 20 or more locations where it had been present just a few decades earlier (Payne, 1990). Zainal Zahari (1995) found evidence of only five SRs, all adults, in Endau-Rompin by 1995, showing that published estimates of SR numbers were notoriously unreliable, and that actual numbers had declined by half over the preceding decade. The 1995– 1998 Global Environment Facility-UNDP Sumatran Rhinoceros Conservation Strategy project saw SR numbers declining still further, but inflated numbers kept appearing in public domain, largely due to some proponents’ disbelief that two decades of effort had failed. Zainal Zahari et al. (2001) plotted the disastrous decline of large mammals in Peninsular Malaysia from 1975-99

Establishment and cryopreservation of fibroblast cell line from a Sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus Sumatrensis)

Cell lines have been established to preserve the genetic material of endangered animals. This study aims to establish, characterize and authenticate fibroblast cells derived from the kidney tissue of a Sumatran rhinoceros’ carcass. The primary cultures were obtained using the mixed enzymatic-explant method, supplemented with complete media and maintained at 37ºC with 5% CO2 in an incubator. Following routine trypsinization, viability and growth curves were generated through the Trypan Blue counting method. Cellular senescence was quantified by Sa-β-gal staining assay and G-banding for karyotyping. As a result, the cell derivation had generated 81 frozen stocks. The viability of cells at P5 and P10 showed reasonable recovery after six months. Cell population doubling time at P5 was 20.45 hours, while it was 22.35 hours at P10 and P15. The senescence level significantly increased from P5 to P10, and was especially significant at P15. Genetic stabilities were considered stable at P5 and P10, with frequency of over 70 %. In conclusion, this study was able to derive a primary fibroblast culture from the preserved tissue of a Sumatran rhinoceros, with certain changes in morphology, senescence level, growth curves and cell viability as the number of passages increased

Genetics and the last stand of the Sumatran rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis

The Sumatran rhinoceros Dicerorhinus sumatrensis is on the brink of extinction. Although habitat loss and poaching were the reasons of the decline, today's reproductive isolation is the main threat to the survival of the species. Genetic studies have played an important role in identifying conservation priorities, including for rhinoceroses. However, for a species such as the Sumatran rhinoceros, where time is of the essence in preventing extinction, to what extent should genetic and geographical distances be taken into account in deciding the most urgently needed conservation interventions? We propose that the populations of Sumatra and Borneo be considered as a single management unit

Home Range and Ranging Behaviour of Bornean Elephant (Elephas maximus borneensis) Females

BACKGROUND: Home range is defined as the extent and location of the area covered annually by a wild animal in its natural habitat. Studies of African and Indian elephants in landscapes of largely open habitats have indicated that the sizes of the home range are determined not only by the food supplies and seasonal changes, but also by numerous other factors including availability of water sources, habitat loss and the existence of man-made barriers. The home range size for the Bornean elephant had never been investigated before. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The first satellite tracking program to investigate the movement of wild Bornean elephants in Sabah was initiated in 2005. Five adult female elephants were immobilized and neck collars were fitted with tracking devices. The sizes of their home range and movement patterns were determined using location data gathered from a satellite tracking system and analyzed by using the Minimum Convex Polygon and Harmonic Mean methods. Home range size was estimated to be 250 to 400 km(2) in a non-fragmented forest and 600 km(2) in a fragmented forest. The ranging behavior was influenced by the size of the natural forest habitat and the availability of permanent water sources. The movement pattern was influenced by human disturbance and the need to move from one feeding site to another. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Home range and movement rate were influenced by the degree of habitat fragmentation. Once habitat was cleared or converted, the availability of food plants and water sources were reduced, forcing the elephants to travel to adjacent forest areas. Therefore movement rate in fragmented forest was higher than in the non-fragmented forest. Finally, in fragmented habitat human and elephant conflict occurrences were likely to be higher, due to increased movement bringing elephants into contact more often with humans

Panduan Lapangan Mamalia di Kalimantan, Sabah, Sarawak dan...

Malaysia386 p : Illus ; 21 cm

The Kinabatangan Floodplain

64 hal.; ilust.: 21 cm, Inde

The Kinabatangan Floodplain

64 hal.; ilust.: 21 cm, Inde

Panduan Lapangan Mamalia di Kalimantan Sabah Sarawak dan Brunei Darussalam

385 hal,;ill,;22 c

Noninvasive genetic sampling on the rare sumatran rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis): Identification of the host species from the blood meal collected from the tabanid fly (Tabanidae: Haematopota sp.)

Objective:To demonstrate a noninvasive large mammalian genetic sampling method using blood meal obtained from a tabanid fly. Methods:Blood meal was recovered from the abdomen of an engorged tabanid fly(Haemotopota sp.) which was captured immediately after biting a Sumatran rhino in captivity.the blood was applied on to a Whatman FTA blood card. Subsequent laboratory work was conducted to extract,amplify and sequence the DNA from the sample. Validation was done by sampling the hair follicles and blood samples from the rhinocheros and subjecting it to the same laboratory process. Results:BLAST search and constructed phylogenetic trees confirmed the blood meal samples were indeed from rhino. Conclusions: This method could be used in the field application to noninvasively collect genetics samples. Collection of tabanids and other haematophagous artropods(e.g.mosquitoes and ticks) and other blood-sucking parasites (e.g. leeches and worms) could also provide information on vector-borne diseases