Paudel Rajan Prasad, Kadariya Rabin, Lamichhane Babu Ram, Subedi Naresh, Sashika Mariko, Shimozuru Michito, Tsubota Toshio
Laboratory of Wildlife Biology and Medicine Department of Environmental Veterinary Science Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine Hokkaido University Sapporo Japan.
National Trust for Nature Conservation Lalitpur Nepal.
Ecol Evol. 2022 Mar 6;12(3):e8699. doi: 10.1002/ece3.8699. eCollection 2022 Mar.
Mammals have experienced a massive decline in their populations and geographic ranges worldwide. The sloth bear, (Shaw, 1791), is one of many species facing conservation threats. Despite being endangered in Nepal, decades of inattention to the situation have hindered their conservation and management. We assessed the distribution and patterns of habitat use by sloth bears in Chitwan National Park (CNP), Nepal. We conducted sign surveys from March to June, 2020, in 4 × 4 km grids ( = 45). We collected detection/non-detection data along a 4-km trail that was divided into 20 continuous segments of 200 m each. We obtained environmental, ecological, and anthropogenic covariates to understand determinants of sloth bear habitat occupancy. The data were analyzed using the single-species single-season occupancy method, with a spatially correlated detection. Using repeated observations, these models accounted for the imperfect detectability of the species to provide robust estimates of habitat occupancy. The model-averaged occupancy estimate for the sloth bear was 69% and the detection probability was 0.25. The probability of habitat occupancy by sloth bears increased with the presence of termites and fruits and in rugged, dry, open, undisturbed habitats. Our results indicate that the sloth bear is elusive, functionally unique, and widespread in CNP. Future conservation interventions and action plans aimed at sloth bear management must adequately consider their habitat requirements.
全球范围内，哺乳动物的种群数量和地理分布范围都大幅减少。懒熊（Shaw，1791年）是众多面临保护威胁的物种之一。尽管在尼泊尔已濒临灭绝，但数十年来对其状况的忽视阻碍了对它们的保护和管理。我们评估了尼泊尔奇特旺国家公园（CNP）内懒熊的分布及栖息地利用模式。2020年3月至6月，我们在4×4千米的网格（共45个）中进行了痕迹调查。我们沿着一条4千米长的步道收集检测/未检测数据，该步道被分成20个连续的200米路段。我们获取了环境、生态和人为协变量，以了解懒熊栖息地占用情况的决定因素。数据采用单物种单季节占用方法进行分析，并考虑空间相关检测。通过重复观测，这些模型考虑了该物种检测不完美的情况，以提供可靠的栖息地占用估计。懒熊的模型平均占用估计为69%，检测概率为0.25。懒熊的栖息地占用概率随着白蚁和果实的存在以及崎岖、干燥、开阔、未受干扰的栖息地而增加。我们的结果表明，懒熊在CNP中难以捉摸、功能独特且分布广泛。未来针对懒熊管理的保护干预措施和行动计划必须充分考虑它们的栖息地需求。
