Abstract
Tomistoma schlegelii, the Freshwater Malayan Gharial or Tomistoma (local name: buaya jejulong), is secretive in nature; thus, very limited information is currently available on its wild population, especially in Sarawak. The objective of this study is to describe effort in assessing the Tomistoma wild populations in Ulu Sebuyau, Samarahan, and Serian, western Sarawak. Despite many challenges faced, this research has been successful at different levels. There was no Tomistoma seen during day surveys (2014-2015) in tributary of Samarahan River (Samarahan), Bunga-Baki River (Serian), and Kepayang River (Ulu Sebuyau). However, the research team came across two incidents of Tomistoma captured by the local people: (i) an adult male Tomistoma, captured in February 2015 in peat swamp area of Samarahan River tributary, and (ii) a hatchling, caught in Bunga-Baki River in March 2015. The sightings of Tomistoma in Kepayang River were reported by local people in February 2016; however, no individual was captured. The presence of hatchling in Bunga-Baki River indicates that a breeding population is most likely to occur in the area, and this gives hope for future conservation of Tomistoma in Sarawak. All sampling sites recorded almost similar water quality parameters and landscape of peat swamp areas, which previous studies claimed to be the potential Tomistoma habitats. The findings of this study should help relevant state agencies to step up efforts related to conservation of Tomistoma in Sarawak.
Highlights
Tomistoma schlegelii is known by English common name as Freshwater Malayan Gharial or False Gharial or Tomistoma or Sunda Gharial whereas its local name in Sarawak is “buaya jejulong.”
Negative result obtained during this study most probably is due to (i) the nature of Tomistoma who are very secretive and wary about any disturbances, (ii) surveys done only during day light, (iii) relatively short time spent on boat and foot surveys in each river, and (iv) rivers involved being relatively difficult in terms of accessibility
All three rivers involved in this study show presence of wild population of Tomistoma based on captured individuals as well as recent reports of Tomistoma sightings by the local people
Summary
Tomistoma schlegelii is known by English common name as Freshwater Malayan Gharial or False Gharial or Tomistoma or Sunda Gharial whereas its local name in Sarawak is “buaya jejulong.” This species is listed under International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List as vulnerable species [1] and listed under Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). Tomistoma schlegelii is known by English common name as Freshwater Malayan Gharial or False Gharial or Tomistoma or Sunda Gharial whereas its local name in Sarawak is “buaya jejulong.”. This species is listed under International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List as vulnerable species [1] and listed under Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). In Peninsular Malaysia, it is protected under Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 It is listed as a Protected Animal in the Sarawak Wild Life Protection Ordinance (1998); any hunting, killing, or selling of wild Tomistoma in the state is prohibited. [5] produced reports on status and conservation on Tomistoma in Southeast Asia, but it reported very limited information regarding
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