Clements Gopalasamy Reuben, Rayan D Mark, Aziz Sheema Abdul, Kawanishi Kae, Traeholt Carl, Magintan David, Yazi Muhammad Fadlli Abdul, Tingley Reid
Center for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science and School of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Cairns, AustraliaCenter for Malaysian Indigenous Studies, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaWWF Malaysia, Petaling Jaya, MalaysiaDurrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, University of Kent, Canterbury, UKMalaysian Conservation Alliance for Tigers (MYCAT) Secretariat's Office, Petaling Jaya, MalaysiaCopenhagen Zoo, Copenhagen, DenmarkDepartment of Wildlife and National Parks Peninsular Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaSchool of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Integr Zool. 2012 Dec;7(4):400-406. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-4877.2012.00314.x.
In 2008, the IUCN threat status of the Asian tapir (Tapirus indicus) was reclassified from 'vulnerable' to 'endangered'. The latest distribution map from the IUCN Red List suggests that the tapirs' native range is becoming increasingly fragmented in Peninsular Malaysia, but distribution data collected by local researchers suggest a more extensive geographical range. Here, we compile a database of 1261 tapir occurrence records within Peninsular Malaysia, and demonstrate that this species, indeed, has a much broader geographical range than the IUCN range map suggests. However, extreme spatial and temporal bias in these records limits their utility for conservation planning. Therefore, we used maximum entropy (MaxEnt) modeling to elucidate the potential extent of the Asian tapir's occurrence in Peninsular Malaysia while accounting for bias in existing distribution data. Our MaxEnt model predicted that the Asian tapir has a wider geographic range than our fine-scale data and the IUCN range map both suggest. Approximately 37% of Peninsular Malaysia contains potentially suitable tapir habitats. Our results justify a revision to the Asian tapir's extent of occurrence in the IUCN Red List. Furthermore, our modeling demonstrated that selectively logged forests encompass 45% of potentially suitable tapir habitats, underscoring the importance of these habitats for the conservation of this species in Peninsular Malaysia.
2008年，亚洲貘（马来貘）在世界自然保护联盟（IUCN）的受威胁等级从“易危”重新分类为“濒危”。IUCN红色名录的最新分布图显示，在马来西亚半岛，貘的原生栖息地正变得越来越破碎，但当地研究人员收集的分布数据表明其地理分布范围更广。在此，我们编纂了一个包含马来西亚半岛1261条貘出现记录的数据库，并证明该物种的地理分布范围确实比IUCN分布图所显示的要广得多。然而，这些记录在空间和时间上存在的极端偏差限制了它们在保护规划中的作用。因此，我们使用最大熵（MaxEnt）建模来阐明亚洲貘在马来西亚半岛可能出现的范围，同时考虑现有分布数据中的偏差。我们的MaxEnt模型预测，亚洲貘的地理分布范围比我们的精细尺度数据和IUCN分布图所显示的都要广。马来西亚半岛约37%的区域包含潜在适宜的貘栖息地。我们的研究结果证明有必要对IUCN红色名录中亚洲貘的分布范围进行修订。此外，我们的建模表明，选择性采伐的森林覆盖了45%的潜在适宜貘栖息地，凸显了这些栖息地对马来西亚半岛该物种保护的重要性。
