Terrestrial Mammal Species Research Articles

The hearts of large mammals generate higher pressures, are less efficient and use more energy than those of small mammals.

A prevailing assumption in the cardiovascular field is that the metabolic rate of the heart is a constant proportion of a mammal's whole-body aerobic metabolic rate. In this Commentary, we assemble previously published cardiovascular, metabolic and body mass data from matched terrestrial mammalian species, at rest and during heavy exercise, and reveal scaling relationships that challenge this assumption. Our analyses indicate that the fractional metabolic cost of systemic perfusion compared with whole-body metabolic rate increases significantly with body size among resting mammals, from ∼2.5% in a mouse to ∼10% in an elephant. We propose that two significant body size-dependent effects contribute to this conclusion; namely, that larger species generate higher mean systemic arterial blood pressure and that their myocardium operates with lower external mechanical efficiencies compared with those of smaller species. We discuss potential physiological and mechanical explanations, including the additional energy needed to support the arterial blood column above the heart in larger species, especially those with long necks, as well as the possible sources of greater internal energy losses from the heart of larger species. Thus, we present an updated view of how increasing blood pressure and decreasing efficiency of the myocardium result in an increasing fractional metabolic cost of perfusion as body size increases among resting mammals.

Divergent Importance and Geographic Patterns in Threats to Birds and Mammals in China

ABSTRACTAimWildlife populations are continuing to decrease worldwide. Understanding the ranking and distribution of drivers of species declines is crucial to enable targeted actions to counteract major threats. However, few studies have assessed the relative importance and geographic distribution of threats to biodiversity in China, even for high‐profile groups such as birds and mammals. Therefore, this study aims to rank and map the distribution of threat to birds and mammals in China, which could provide novel insight into biodiversity conservation in China.LocationChina.MethodsA database of different threats for 147 threatened bird species and 176 threatened terrestrial mammal species was obtained from China's Red List of Biodiversity published in 2021. We collated information on the distribution and threat categories for birds and mammals in China, aiming to classify, rank and map threats. We used Bray–Curtis dissimilarity index to examine the correlations of threats occurring simultaneously, and compared the distribution of habitat of threatened birds and mammals. In addition, we conducted threat ranking analyses of threatened birds and mammals between different orders and traits (body mass and clutch/litter sizes).ResultsThe results showed that the most common threats to birds were habitat loss, hunting, human disturbance, agriculture, pollution and logging, while the most common threats to mammals were hunting, agriculture, logging, habitat loss, human disturbance and livestock farming or ranching. These threats showed different geographic patterns, and some threats frequently co‐occur as threat syndromes. Forests were the primary habitat for most threatened species, and orders formed by larger species with small clutch or litter sizes were more likely to be threatened.Main ConclusionsWe highlight the most common threats and key areas for conservation. Furthermore, focusing on clusters of co‐occurring threats may be the most effective way to aid recovery of threatened species, and targeted actions are needed to counter ongoing population declines in many groups. These actions should not be limited to the protection of regions where species are at risk of multiple significant threats, but should also include the maintenance and restoration of native forests and strategic planning of afforestation through planted forests.

An Update on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) Virus, Clade 2.3.4.4b.

Since the resurgence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) virus, clade 2.3.4.4b, during 2021, these viruses have spread widely among birds worldwide, causing poultry outbreaks and infections of a wide range of terrestrial and marine mammal species. During 2024, HPAI A(H5N1) virus, clade 2.3.4.4b, was detected in dairy cattle for the first time and caused an ongoing multistate outbreak, with high levels of virus documented in raw cow milk. Human infections with clade 2.3.4.4b viruses from exposures to infected poultry or dairy cattle have resulted in a wide spectrum of illness severity, from conjunctivitis or mild respiratory illness to severe and fatal pneumonia in different countries. Vigilance, and stronger global virologic surveillance among birds, poultry, terrestrial and marine mammals, and humans, with virus characterization and rapid data sharing, is needed to inform the threat of clade 2.3.4.4b viruses, as they continue to evolve, to public health.

Mammals show faster recovery from capture and tagging in human-disturbed landscapes

Wildlife tagging provides critical insights into animal movement ecology, physiology, and behavior amid global ecosystem changes. However, the stress induced by capture, handling, and tagging can impact post-release locomotion and activity and, consequently, the interpretation of study results. Here, we analyze post-tagging effects on 1585 individuals of 42 terrestrial mammal species using collar-collected GPS and accelerometer data. Species-specific displacements and overall dynamic body acceleration, as a proxy for activity, were assessed over 20 days post-release to quantify disturbance intensity, recovery duration, and speed. Differences were evaluated, considering species-specific traits and the human footprint of the study region. Over 70% of the analyzed species exhibited significant behavioral changes following collaring events. Herbivores traveled farther with variable activity reactions, while omnivores and carnivores were initially less active and mobile. Recovery duration proved brief, with alterations diminishing within 4–7 tracking days for most species. Herbivores, particularly males, showed quicker displacement recovery (4 days) but slower activity recovery (7 days). Individuals in high human footprint areas displayed faster recovery, indicating adaptation to human disturbance. Our findings emphasize the necessity of extending tracking periods beyond 1 week and particular caution in remote study areas or herbivore-focused research, specifically in smaller mammals.

Wildlife resilience in an urban landscape: understanding land-use impacts in Cape Town

AbstractUrbanisation is rapidly transforming and fragmenting natural habitats, disrupting ecosystems and negatively impacting biodiversity. The City of Cape Town (CoCT) is situated in a global biodiversity hotspot, but sustained anthropogenic activities have resulted in the local extirpation of most medium and large mammals. A recent survey of mammals within urban protected areas of CoCT revealed that a few, mostly medium-sized generalist species, persist. It is uncertain which native mammal species, if any, inhabit the unprotected green belts and parks in suburban and urban areas of the city. A total of 37 camera trap sites were established along four transects for a period of four months between 31 January and 31 May 2022. A total of 12 terrestrial mammal species were detected, nine of which were wild native mammals and three domestic species. Most detections were in natural habitat followed by suburban, with urban areas having the lowest detection rate of wildlife. Single season hierarchical multi-species occupancy models revealed that tree cover had a significant positive effect on both community and individual species occupancy. Contrary to our predictions, neither human population density nor the extent of the impervious surface at sites significantly affected occupancy. Cape grysbok (Raphicerus melanotis) were significantly more likely to occur at sites with a higher proportion of impervious surfaces supporting other recent research, which showed this species together with water mongoose (Atilax paludinosus) and Cape porcupine (Hystrix africaeaustralis) are one of only a few native mammals that appear to persist and may even thrive in human-modified landscapes. Our findings underscore the complexity of urban biodiversity conservation and the species-specific responses to environmental factors, emphasising the importance of tree cover in urban wildlife management.

Identification of biodiversity hotspots for threatened mammal species under future climate

Climate change has led to changes in distribution, movement, and extinction risk for various wildlife species, raising concern among conservation biologists. Therefore, this study aimed to predict suitable habitats that help wildlife managers protect wildlife more effectively. To achieve our aim, we first evaluated the vulnerability of 183 terrestrial mammal species identified in Iran under climate change based on habitat, phenology and physiology, biotic interactions, and national protection status. Then, MaxEnt was used to predict the potential changes in the distribution of vulnerable species due to climate change in the next 70 years under two scenarios: SSP126 and SSP585. In the third step, a framework was employed to identify existing and future hotspots of mammal biodiversity, and the potential changes in these areas for the species were predicted in the next 70 years. The results showed that 69 terrestrial mammals were vulnerable to climate change. Subsequently, 15 species wereselected for modeling based on presence records and vulnerability to climate change. The species modeling results showed that 42 % of Iran’s habitats are currently suitable for the studied mammal species. In the future, under both climate scenarios, biodiversity hotspots for these species will be reduced, and approximately 37 % of Iran’s habitats will be suitable for the species. As a result, the current conservation network will have diminished capacity to protect the species from climate change.

Dependence of Europe's most threatened mammals on movement to adapt to climate change.

Current rates of climate change and gloomy climate projections confront managers and conservation planners with the need to integrate climate change into already complex decision-making processes. Predicting and prioritizing climatically stable areas and the areas likely to facilitate adaptive species' range adjustments are important stages in maximizing conservation outcomes and rationalizing future land management. I determined, for the most threatened European terrestrial mammal species, the spatial adaptive trajectories (SATs) of highest expected persistence up to 2080. I devised simple spatial network indices for evaluation of species in those SATs: total persistence; proportion of SATs that offer in situ adaptation (i.e., stable refugia); number of SATs converging in a site; and relationship between SAT convergence and persistence and protected areas, the Natura 2000 and Emerald networks, and areas of low human disturbance. I compared the performance of high-persistence SATs with a scenario in which each species remained in the areas with the best climatic conditions in the baseline period. The 1000 most persistence SATs for each of the 39 species covered one fifth of Europe. The areas with the largest adaptive potential (i.e., high persistence, stability, and SAT convergence) did not always overlap for all the species. Predominantly, these regions were located in southwestern Europe, Central Europe, and Scandinavia, with some occurrences in Eastern Europe. For most species, persistence in the most climatically suitable areas during the baseline period was lower than within SATs, underscoring their reliance on adaptive movements. Importantly, conservation areas (particularly protected areas) covered only minor fractions of species persistence among SATs, and hubs of spatial climate adaptation (i.e., areas of high SAT convergence) were seriously underrepresented in most conservation areas. These results highlight the need to perform analyses on spatial species' dynamics under climate change.

Phylogeography of mammals in Southeast Alaska and implications for management of the Tongass National Forest

AbstractInsular evolution on archipelagos generates a significant proportion of global biodiversity, yet islands are among the ecosystems most sensitive to accelerating anthropogenic disturbance, introductions of non‐native species, and emerging pathogens, among other conservation challenges. The Alexander and Haida Gwaii archipelagos along North America's North Pacific Coast support a disproportionate number of endemic taxa compared to other high‐latitude terrestrial ecosystems. In this region, endemics in Canada are explicitly protected, but in the United States, endemics have been operationally ignored. We reviewed regional research on terrestrial mammals and endemics from 2000–2022 to guide wildlife management. Elevated regional endemism is due to a combination of deep and shallow temporal processes (i.e., long‐term refugial isolation vs. recent colonization). With adequate sampling, genomic analyses are well‐suited to identifying nuanced patterns of divergence and endemism, thereby facilitating a deeper understanding of regional diversity. We identified 18 mammalian endemics in Southeast Alaska, USA, at varying taxonomic scales, but research effort has significant taxonomic biases and sampling infrastructure remains inadequate. Of the 66 terrestrial and aquatic mammal species in Southeast Alaska, only 55% are represented by ≥10 archived samples over the last 2 decades. Across taxa, major spatial and temporal sampling gaps limit interpretations of wildlife responses to changing environmental conditions. The Tongass National Forest is spread across an island archipelago, and climate change is projected to have disproportionate impacts on island endemics worldwide. In this case, the United States Forest Service is not closely monitoring endemic taxa, as was required by the Tongass Land Management Plan in 1997. Our review underscores a need for increased consideration of how endemism can be incorporated into land and wildlife management across the Alexander Archipelago. Moving forward, we encourage state and federal agencies, Indigenous communities, and international collaborators to continue to partner with natural history biorepositories to ensure strategic wildlife sampling infrastructure is built and made accessible to the broader scientific community as part of the land management process.

Human disturbance increases spatiotemporal associations among mountain forest terrestrial mammal species.

Spatial and temporal associations between sympatric species underpin biotic interactions, structure ecological assemblages, and sustain ecosystem functioning and stability. However, the resilience of interspecific spatiotemporal associations to human activity remains poorly understood, particularly in mountain forests where anthropogenic impacts are often pervasive. Here, we applied context-dependent Joint Species Distribution Models to a systematic camera-trap survey dataset from a global biodiversity hotspot in eastern Himalayas to understand how prominent human activities in mountain forests influence species associations within terrestrial mammal communities. We obtained 10,388 independent detections of 17 focal species (12 carnivores and five ungulates) from 322 stations over 43,163 camera days of effort. We identified a higher incidence of positive associations in habitats with higher levels of human modification (87%) and human presence (83%) compared to those located in habitats with lower human modification (64%) and human presence (65%) levels. We also detected a significant reduction of pairwise encounter time at increasing levels of human disturbance, corresponding to more frequent encounters between pairs of species. Our findings indicate that human activities can push mammals together into more frequent encounters and associations, which likely influences the coexistence and persistence of wildlife, with potential far-ranging ecological consequences.

No evidence for the consistent effect of supplementary feeding on home range size in terrestrial mammals.

Food availability and distribution are key drivers of animal space use. Supplemental food provided by humans can be more abundant and predictable than natural resources. It is thus believed that supplementary feeding modifies the spatial behaviour of wildlife. Yet, such effects have not been tested quantitatively across species. Here, we analysed changes in home range size owing to supplementary feeding in 23 species of terrestrial mammals using a meta-analysis of 28 studies. Additionally, we investigated the moderating effect of factors related to (i) species biology (sex, body mass and taxonomic group), (ii) feeding regimen (duration, amount and purpose), and (iii) methods of data collection and analysis (source of data, estimator and spatial confinement). We found no consistent effect of supplementary feeding on changes in home range size. While an overall tendency of reduced home range was observed, moderators varied in the direction and strength of the trends. Our results suggest that multiple drivers and complex mechanisms of home range behaviour can make it insensitive to manipulation with supplementary feeding. The small number of available studies stands in contrast with the ubiquity and magnitude of supplementary feeding worldwide, highlighting a knowledge gap in our understanding of the effects of supplementary feeding on ranging behaviour.

Extralimital terrestrials: A reassessment of range limits in Alaska's land mammals.

Understanding and mitigating the effects of anthropogenic climate change on species distributions requires the ability to track range shifts over time. This is particularly true for species occupying high-latitude regions, which are experiencing more extreme climate change than the rest of the world. In North America, the geographic ranges of many mammals reach their northernmost extent in Alaska, positioning this region at the leading edge of climate-induced distribution change. Over a decade has elapsed since the publication of the last spatial assessments of terrestrial mammals in the state. We compared public occurrence records against commonly referenced range maps to evaluate potential extralimital records and develop repeatable baseline range maps. We compared occurrence records from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility for 61 terrestrial mammal species native to mainland Alaska against a variety of range estimates (International Union for Conservation of Nature, Alaska Gap Analysis Project, and the published literature). We mapped extralimital records and calculated proportions of occurrences encompassed by range extents, measured mean direction and distance to prior range margins, evaluated predictive accuracy of published species models, and highlighted observations on federal lands in Alaska. Range comparisons identified 6,848 extralimital records for 39 of 61 (63.9%) terrestrial mainland Alaskan species. On average, 95.5% of Alaska Gap Analysis Project occurrence records and ranges were deemed accurate (i.e., > 90.0% correct) for 31 of 37 species, but overestimated extents for 13 species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature range maps encompassed 68.1% of occurrence records and were > 90% accurate for 17 of 39 species. Extralimital records represent either improved sampling and digitization or actual geographic range expansions. Here we provide new data-driven range maps, update standards for the archiving of museum-quality locational records and offer recommendations for mapping range changes for monitoring and conservation.

Expanding China’s protected areas network to enhance resilience of climate connectivity

Expanding the network of connected and resilient protected areas (PAs) for climate change adaptation can help species track suitable climate conditions and safeguard biodiversity. This is often overlooked when expanding PAs and quantifying their benefits, resulting in an underestimate of the benefits of expanding PAs. We expanded PAs through terrestrial mammalian species distribution hotspots, Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs), and wilderness areas. Then, we constructed climate connectivity networks using a resistance-based approach and further quantified the network resilience to propose resilient climate response strategies in China. The results showed that existing PAs suffered from location biases with important biodiversity areas. The existing PAs represented about half of the KBAs and wilderness areas, yet only 12.08% of terrestrial mammalian species distribution hotspots were located within existing PAs. Compared with the existing PA network, the network efficiency and resilience of the expanded PAs’ climate connectivity increased to 1.80 times and 1.78 times, respectively. With 56% of the nodes remaining, the network efficiency of the expanded PAs was equivalent to that of the existing PAs with all nodes. The network resilience of preferentially protecting and restoring low human footprint patches was approximately 1.5–2 times that of the random scenario. These findings highlighted that confronted with the unoptimistic situation of global warming, nature conservation based on existing PAs was no longer optimal. It was critical to construct a connected and resilient conservation network relying on both important biodiversity areas and low human footprint patches.

Mammals of Myanmar: an annotated checklist

Abstract When the book Wild mammals of Myanmar (Tun Yin 1993) was published, a total of 252 mammal species were reported. Since that publication, numerous new species have been described, taxonomic revisions published, and additional distribution records produced that have expanded Myanmar’s mammals considerably. Therefore, we aimed to provide an updated checklist of the mammals of Myanmar, which includes the scientific and common names, global and Myanmar distributions, remarks on taxonomy, and conservation information including the IUCN Red List status and legal protection status under The Conservation of Biodiversity and Protected Areas Law 2018 of Myanmar. Our new checklist includes 365 (33 marine and 332 terrestrial) mammal species belonging to 13 orders and 49 families. We also confirmed that Myanmar is home to at least nine endemic mammal species. Our results highlight the areas that require further exploration to gain a more comprehensive understanding of Myanmar’s diverse fauna.

Exploring the potential effects of forest urbanization on the interplay between small mammal communities and their gut microbiota

Urbanization significantly impacts wild populations, favoring urban dweller species over those that are unable to adapt to rapid changes. These differential adaptative abilities could be mediated by the microbiome, which may modulate the host phenotype rapidly through a high degree of flexibility. Conversely, under anthropic perturbations, the microbiota of some species could be disrupted, resulting in dysbiosis and negative impacts on host fitness. The links between the impact of urbanization on host communities and their gut microbiota (GM) have only been scarcely explored. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the bacterial composition of the GM could play a role in host adaptation to urban environments. We described the GM of several species of small terrestrial mammals sampled in forested areas along a gradient of urbanization, using a 16S metabarcoding approach. We tested whether urbanization led to changes in small mammal communities and in their GM, considering the presence and abundance of bacterial taxa and their putative functions. This enabled to decipher the processes underlying these changes. We found potential impacts of urbanization on small mammal communities and their GM. The urban dweller species had a lower bacterial taxonomic diversity but a higher functional diversity and a different composition compared to urban adapter species. Their GM assembly was mostly governed by stochastic effects, potentially indicating dysbiosis. Selection processes and an overabundance of functions were detected that could be associated with adaptation to urban environments despite dysbiosis. In urban adapter species, the GM functional diversity and composition remained relatively stable along the urbanization gradient. This observation can be explained by functional redundancy, where certain taxa express the same function. This could favor the adaptation of urban adapter species in various environments, including urban settings. We can therefore assume that there are feedbacks between the gut microbiota and host species within communities, enabling rapid adaptation.

Insights from 20 years of mammal population research in Indonesia

Abstract Mammal populations are declining in biodiverse tropical regions. Global analyses have identified Indonesia as a hotspot of vertebrate decline, although relatively few data are available to substantiate these claims. We reviewed research articles published during 2000–2020 on 104 medium-sized to large terrestrial mammal species found in Indonesia to help inform conservation management and future research. We identified 308 peer-reviewed studies published in English or Bahasa Indonesia, with an increase in publication rate (articles published per year) over time. Studies of species distributions dominated the literature, followed by publications on abundance, species diversity and combinations of these topics. Most publications concerned single-species studies conducted at a single location and a single point in time. We identify four key issues that should be addressed by future research and conservation efforts: (1) disproportionate focus on a small number of species; (2) geographical bias towards west Indonesia (Sumatra, Kalimantan and Java–Bali), with few published studies from central (Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara and Maluku) and east (Papua) Indonesia; (3) limitations to survey design, sampling effort and data analysis; and (4) lack of long-term wildlife population studies. We also note challenges local researchers face in publishing their studies in international journals because of language barriers and costs. Greater use of existing biodiversity data and continued capacity building for local researchers, particularly those in central and east Indonesia, are critical to effectively guide future wildlife monitoring and improve the conservation status of Indonesian mammals.

Identifying umbrella and indicator species to support multispecies population connectivity in a Himalayan biodiversity hotspot

Successful conservation hinges on the reliable prediction and prioritisation of population core habitats and dispersal corridors. However, reliance on single-species connectivity has produced mixed results and, in most cases, failed to protect other species under the appealing but often unfulfilled guise of umbrella protection. The main objectives of this study were: (1) to identify core habitats and dispersal corridors for population connectivity of 15 terrestrial mammal species across Bhutan, (2) to identify indicator species of wildlife connectivity, (3) to prioritise core areas and dispersal corridors for the focal umbrella and indicator species, (4) to develop composite multispecies connectivity maps and evaluate the effectiveness of the existing protected area network. We used kernel density (KD) to identify core habitat areas and factorial least-cost path (LCP) to map dispersal corridors. We used correlation and cluster analyses to identify umbrella and indicator species, and quantitative ranking to prioritise core areas and corridors for these focal species. Finally, we produced maps of multispecies core areas and corridors, and identified gaps in the existing protected area network (PAN). We found that ungulates were generally more effective than carnivores in serving as umbrella species for core habitat protection, with Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) emerging as the most effective umbrella for core habitats and muntjac (Muntiacus muntjac) for dispersal corridors. We identified six focal connectivity indicator species in Bhutan: tiger (Panthera tigris), dhole (Cuon alpinus), clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa), Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus), Asian elephant, and sambar deer (Rusa unicolor). Most indicator species’ core areas and dispersal corridors outside the PAN were in southern Bhutan, indicating opportunities for increased multispecies connectivity through expanding protected area network in this region. A total of 40% of multispecies core areas and 24% of dispersal corridors were under PAN, with large parts of Bhutan offering suitable core areas and corridors for multispecies conservation. Core areas and corridors of the 15 considered species only partially overlapped, stressing the importance of multi-species consideration in designating wildlife corridors.

Projecting community trophic structures for the last 120 000 years

Studying past community dynamics can provide valuable insights for anticipating future changes in the world's biota. However, the existing fossil record is too sparse to enable continuous temporal reconstructions of wholesale community dynamics. In this study, we utilise machine learning to reconstruct Late Quaternary community structure, leveraging the climate–trophic structure relationship. We followed a four‐stage approach: 1) identify and map trophic structure units (TSUs) at the global scale based on the guild richness and composition of terrestrial mammal species weighing over 3 kg; 2) train a random forest classifier to predict the observed distribution of TSUs based on contemporary climatic conditions; 3) hindcast the global distribution of TSUs using climatic conditions as reconstructed over the past 120 000 years; and 4) compare TSU hindcasts against elements of community structure as estimated with the fossil record. Models project significant shifts in the geographical distribution of community trophic structures, with more pronounced changes occurring during the Pleistocene–Holocene transition. These shifts exhibit regional variations, particularly in Eurasia and North America, where the models project reductions in the distribution of less‐complex trophic structures over the last 24 000 years. Hindcasts partially identified the alterations in community structure seen in the fossil record, demonstrating a match between the observed and predicted times of change in mammal community structure (between 24 and 8 ka BP). However, projections of trophic guilds diverged from fossil records during the Holocene. While the fossil record indicated a decrease in the number of grazers and carnivores, our models projected an increase in these numbers. Characterising community‐wide responses to climatic changes is essential to address key questions about past and future impacts of such changes. Although further research is needed to refine the models, our approach offers a perspective for addressing the complex interactions among climate and trophic structures and model their distributions over time.

Defining priority areas for conservation based on multispecies functional connectivity

Habitat fragmentation poses a significant challenge to biodiversity conservation. Well-designed ecological corridors can effectively enhance connectivity between habitat areas, particularly within Protected Areas (PAs), thereby mitigating biodiversity loss. Herein, we proposed a methodological approach for identifying Priority Areas for Conservation (PACs) of biodiversity based on functional connectivity for different species of birds and terrestrial mammals. We applied the proposed methodology in a biodiverse region in Brazil that harbors a mosaic of PAs and remaining areas of natural vegetation under anthropogenic pressure, primarily from mineral extraction activities. We used ecological corridor simulations as input data and a set of geographic information systems tools to delineate the priority areas. In total, we identified 24 priority areas for the conservation of 10 bird and 5 mammal species under different extinction threat levels and preferential habitat types, which varied among seasonal semideciduous forests, savannas, and rupestrian grasslands. The sizes of the priority areas identified ranged from 834.42 to 7954.36 ha. The proposed methodology can be applied to define priority areas for biodiversity conservation at a regional scale for different species or groups of species worldwide.

Living in the edge: large terrestrial mammal and bird species traits and the ability to cope with extreme environmental conditions and human disturbance in a tropical dry forest in Colombia

Abstract Tropical drylands are characterized by extreme environmental conditions that, coupled with anthropogenic habitat degradation, can limit the occurrence of native species. Species that are most sensitive to these pressures may be prone to disappear in the context of climate change. In this study, we evaluated the influence of environmental and anthropogenic variables on the occurrence of large mammals and birds at the Tatacoa Desert, an arid region in central Colombia. We tested the relationship between the magnitude of the species’ responses to environmental, human-related variables and to body mass, and percentage of carnivory. Overall, we found a positive association between forest cover and the occupancy of the largest mammals (> 8kg), negative associations between solar radiation and human footprint with individual species occupancy, and a positive association of species occupancy with distance to touristic sites. Our results suggest that the largest and/or more carnivore species may be affected positively by forest cover and negatively by intense solar radiation highlighting the consequences of the increasing process of desertification on large mammals and birds at the upper Magdalena River basin of Colombia under the current scenario of global climate change.

Viewable Terrestrial Mammals along the Nature Trails at the Lowland Tropical Forests of Western Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

The information related to the species of terrestrial mammals that can be detected along the nature trails established in the lowland tropical forests of Western Sabah remains scarce at this moment. The camera trapping surveys were commenced at the Tenghilan Community Forest (TCF), Kawang Forest Reserve (KFR), and the urban forest of Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) to investigate the terrestrial mammal species that could be observed along the local trails. A total of 20 terrestrial mammal species belonging to 13 different families were observed in 2,077 trap nights, where most of them were validated to be non-threatened (n = 16 or 80.0%) and omnivorous (n = 13 or 65.0%) species. Twelve species were found along the nature trails in TCF (H’ = 2.223; 1-D = 0.8650) and KFR (H’ = 1.730; 1-D = 0.7078), whereas seven species were detected along the trails in the urban forest of UMS (H’ = 1.217; 1-D = 0.5567). The differences in the mammalian composition, diversity richness, and distribution evenness between these three study sites were validated as significant (p<0.05). The present findings emphasize that these three study sites are favorable habitats for four threatened species. Hence, conservation efforts are needed to protect these terrestrial mammal species from facing extinction risks in future.