Banteng, Bos javanicus, as wild cattle is a vital and importance source of germplasm in Indonesia. Various human activities currently threaten their conservation status. Nonetheless, no long-term ...monitoring programmes are in place for this species. Using distribution point and statistical analysis based on 46,116 camera trap days from December 2015 to January 2017, we aimed to provide habitat preferences, activity patterns and ecological data for banteng population in Ujung Kulon National Park (UKNP). It is the largest population of banteng in Indonesia and is living in a limited habitat area. According to the best occupancy model, the most suitable areas for this species were the secondary forest located at the center portion of UKNP. The presence of the invasive cluster sugar palm, Arenga obtusifolia, in dry season provides additional alternative food for banteng when its main food is scarcer in the forest. Banteng was cathemeral all year round, with the proportion of cathemeral records and the recording rate did not change with the protection of the level area, moon phase or season. To reduce the probability of encountering predators, banteng avoided the space use of dholes. Selection and avoidance of habitats was stronger than avoidance of the predator activity areas. Habitat competition from domestic cattle which grazed illegally in the national park appears to be a problem to the species since zoonosis appears from domestic cattle to banteng. Therefore, effective law enforcement and an adequate conservation strategy are required to eliminate the impacts of both direct and indirect threats.
The high mountains of northern Pakistan comprise the western section of the Hindu Kush-Karakoram-Himalayas (HKH) region of South and Central Asia. They are home to some rare and endangered species of ...fauna and flora which form an important link in the biodiversity of the region as a whole. Increasing population and changing life styles in recent decades have brought unprecedented pressures on the biodiversity of this region. Along with the government, the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and communities have a crucial role to play in conserving biodiversity. In this regard, a number of undertakings to protect depleting species have been initiated by governmental and non-governmental entities. These efforts are commendable and some have produced positive results, but many exist on a small scale and, with a few exceptions, are not self-sustaining. This paper reports on some of these initiatives of conserving big mammal species like the Astor markhor, Blue sheep, Himalayan brown bear, Himalayan ibex and Snow leopard, with the aim of collating and highlighting them, identifying gaps in conservation and suggesting a way forward so as to promote conservation projects on a larger and more sustainable basis.
The Tournal cave, near Bize-Minervois (Aude, Southern France), yielded a very thick archaeological filling, subdivided into four units by A. Tavoso who excavated it. Each unit is composed of several ...levels with Middle and Upper Paleolithic material. Big mammals from the three lower units were submitted to the archaeozoological study presented in this paper. This allowed us, among other things, to work out that : Mousterian and Aurignacian layers are contemporaneous with isotopic stage 3 ; the cave was alternately occupied by cave Hyena, cave Bear and humans ; Neandertal men hunted the Horse during a long span of time ; Aurignacian men too have eaten Horse, but also, in similar proportions, Bovins and Reindeer, their hunting was apparently more diversified. The interstadium "Early Wurm-Late Wurm" could be dated between 38,000 and 34,000 years BP (if radiometric dates are confirmed) ; the transition from Equus caballus cf. germanicus to Equus caballus cf. gallicus might have happened around 33,000 years and the change from the Mousterian rich in denticulates to the Early Aurignacian between 35,000 and 34,000 years BP, during a temperate event (Les Cottès ?).
La grotte Tournal, située près du village de Bize-Minervois dans l'Aude, a livré un remplissage archéologique très important que le fouilleur A. Tavoso a subdivisé en quatre ensembles formés chacun de plusieurs niveaux contenant du matériel attribué au Paléolithique moyen et au Paléolithique supérieur. Les grands mammifères des trois ensembles inférieurs ont fait l'objet de l'étude archéozoologique présentée dans cet article. Celle-ci a permis, entre autres, de mettre en évidence : que les couches moustériennes et aurignaciennes sont contemporaines du stade isotopique 3 ; une alternance d'occupation de la grotte par la Hyène des cavernes, l'Ours des cavernes et l'Homme ; que les Néandertaliens ont pratiqué, durant une longue période, une chasse orientée vers le Cheval ; que les Aurignaciens ont consommé, eux aussi, du Cheval mais également, et en proportions voisines, des Bovinés et du Renne, leur chasse était apparemment plus diversifiée. L'interstade «Würm ancien-Würm récent» se situerait entre 38 000 et 34 000 ans BP (si les âges radiométriques sont confirmés) ; la transition entre Equus caballus cf. germanicus et Equus caballus cf. gallicus aurait eu lieu vers 33 000 ans et le passage d'un Moustérien riche en denticulés à un Aurignacien ancien entre 35 000 et 34 000 ans BP durant une oscillation tempérée (Les Cottès ?).
La formation deCassole, déjà datée par une faunule de Rongeurs, appartient au système de transition entre les dépôts littoraux du Pléistocène inférieur et ceux du Pléistocène moyen. Les restes osseux ...recueillis sur ce gisement ont permis de déterminer huit espèces ou genres de grands Mammifères : Canis sp . , Equus sp . , Sus scrofa, cf. Praemegaceros, Capreolus sp., Cervus sp., Cervus elaphus, Elephas antiquus. Cette faune peut être attribuée au Cromérien (biozone 21). Elle correspond à un biotope boisé, probablement les abords du cône estuarien d'un petit cours d'eau côtier, lors d'une période interglaciaire du début du Pléistocène moyen.
The formation of Cassole, which was formerly dated by a Rodent fauna, belongs to the intermediate system of the early-middle Pleistocene littoral deposits. The bones collected on this site led us to determine eight species or genera of big Mammals : Canis sp., Equus sp., Sus scrofa, cf. Praemegaceros, Capreolussp., Cervus sp., Cervus elaphus, Elephas antiquus. This fauna may be attributed to the Cromerian period (biozone 21). Its corresponds to a woodland biotope, being the surroundings of the estuarian fan of a small coastal stream, during the beginning of the middle Pleistocene.
Wildlife especially large mammals such as elephants are an important part of an ecosystem providing various ecological functions and services, although they are often involved in human-wildlife ...conflict. The National Elephant Conservation Center (NECC) in the Pahang state of Peninsular Malaysia was established to ensure that the survival of the Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) in Peninsular Malaysia through direct management, as well as educational and public awareness activities. However, no entrance fee has been imposed since the establishment of the center in 1989 (32 years). This study aimed to determine public willingness to pay for an entrance fee in the NECC. By using the open-ended contingent valuation method (CVM), the mean public willingness to pay for an entrance fee in the NECC during the non-peak season amounted to RM4.65/person/visit whereas it was RM7.09/person/visit during the peak season. The study would serve as a reference for entrance fee implementation for a conservation center as a form of financial aid to sustain the center as well as highlight the importance of public engagement in elephant conservation.
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