Distribution and abundance of the Amami rabbit <i>Pentalagus furnessi</i> in the Amami and Tokuno Islands, Japan

Sugimura, Ken; Sato, Shigeho; Yamada, Fumio; Abe, Shintaro; Hirakawa, Hirofumi; Handa, Yukari

doi:10.1046/j.1365-3008.2000.00119.x

Cited by 19 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 10 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Takatsuki (1986) also found that although M. sinensis was an abundant species on Mount Goyo (39°05′N, 141°42′E) in Iwate Prefecture, it was only partly grazed by C. nippon and only comprised 2% of their fecal composition. Sugimura et al (2000), however, observed numerous feeding signs on M. sinensis by Pentalugus furnessi (Amami rabbit), which is an endemic species to the Amami (28°17′N, 129°22′E) and Tokuno (27°46′N, 128°57′E) Islands of Japan. Although not entirely conclusive, M. sinensis may not be a preferred source of forage for wild ruminants in potential production regions of the crop, but might be suitable for smaller mammals.…”

Section: Biotic Interactions Of M Sinensismentioning

confidence: 99%

The ecology and agronomy of Miscanthus sinensis, a species important to bioenergy crop development, in its native range in Japan: a review

et al. 2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Among several candidate perennial taxa, Miscanthus Â giganteus has been evaluated and promoted as a promising bioenergy crop. Owing to several limitations, however, of the sterile hybrid, both at the taxon and agronomic production levels, other options need to be explored to not only improve M. Â giganteus, which was originally collected in Japan, but to also consider the development of other members of its genus, including Miscanthus sinensis, as bioenergy crops. Indeed, there is likely much to be learned and applied to Miscanthus as a bioenergy crop from the long history of intensive interaction between humans and M. sinensis in Japan, which in some regions of the country spans several thousand years. Combined with its high amount of genetic variation, stress tolerance, biotic interactions with fauna, and function as a keystone species in diverse grasslands and other ecosystems within its native range, the unique and extensive management of M. sinensis in Japan as a forage grass and building material provides agronomists, agroecologists, and plant breeders with the capability of better understanding this species in terms of potential contribution to bioenergy crop development. Moreover, the studies described in this review may serve as a platform for future research of Miscanthus as a bioenergy crop in other parts of the world.

show abstract

Section: Biotic Interactions Of M Sinensismentioning

confidence: 99%

The ecology and agronomy of Miscanthus sinensis, a species important to bioenergy crop development, in its native range in Japan: a review

et al. 2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The droppings of the rabbit P. furnessi were counted along streams and forest roads across the whole study area (Sugimura et al, 2000; Sugimura & Yamada, 2004; Japanese Ministry of the Environment, unpubl. data).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Monitoring the effects of forest clear-cutting and mongoose Herpestes auropunctatus invasion on wildlife diversity on Amami Island, Japan

Sugimura

Ishida

Abe

et al. 2013

Oryx

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Wildlife populations on Amami Island, Japan, have been affected by forest clear-felling and the introduction of alien species, in particular the mongoose Herpestes auropunctatus. We used monitoring data collected over 24 years to track changes in the population sizes of five species of mammals and 20 species of birds. We assigned species to the following groups: indigenous, rare, insectivorous, negatively affected by forest clear-cutting, and negatively affected by mongoose invasion. We examined trends in each group at four time points between 1985 and 2010 using two methods: species abundance estimates and the Living Planet Index. We then assessed the usefulness of these methods as tools for conservation planning. Inspecting species individually we identified four main patterns of abundance change: (a) an increase from the first to the last census period, (b) an increase in all periods except 2009-2010, (c) a decrease from 1985-1986 to 2001-2002 but an increase in 2009-2010, and (d) a decrease in all census periods. We observed certain relationships between these patterns and the species groups assigned as above. According to the Living Planet Index the group negatively affected by forest clear-cutting did not show significant recovery and the groups of rare species and species negatively affected by mongoose recovered to c. 40% of the original level after a sharp decline during 1985-2002.The Living Planet Index is a more useful tool for assessing the urgency of particular conservation needs, although limited information on species abundance reduces its representativeness for some groups.

show abstract

“…Eleven endemic mammal species including those in families Soricidae, Hipposideridae, Vespertilionidae, and Leporidae (Yamada ) and a subspecies of wild boar ( Sus scrofa ) live on Tokunoshima Island as relict species from the Eurasian Continent. The Amami rabbit is the only rabbit species and one of the relict species endemic to the Ryukyu archipelago and lives only on Tokunoshima Island and Amami Ohshima Island, Japan (Sugimura et al ). The Amami rabbit mainly lives in forested areas and is thought to have low mobility because of its small home range (1.3 ha for males and 1.2 ha for females; Yamada et al ).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Historical and recent impacts on genetic structure of an island rabbit

Ando

Tsuda²,

Kaneko

et al. 2018

J Wildl Manag

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Population fragmentation can reduce genetic diversity and increase the extinction risk of island endemic mammals, especially those with low dispersal ability. However, the intra‐island genetic structure and demographic history of mammals have not yet been well evaluated, especially on small geographic scales. We performed a genetic analysis of isolated island populations of the Amami rabbit (Pentalagus furnessi) on Tokunoshima Island using mitochondrial D‐loop region sequences and 8 nuclear microsatellite markers. Using data from fecal samples, we detected 2 genetic groups that corresponded with the northern and southern forested areas of the island based on the mitochondrial and nuclear genomes. We detected some admixture between the 2 groups in the nuclear genomes but did not detect gene flow between the 2 groups in the mitochondrial genomes. Although genetic diversity was higher in the southern population than in the northern population, the fixation index showed higher levels of inbreeding in the southern area with a signal of a recent bottleneck. We inferred the divergence time between the northern and southern groups (∼4,320 years ago) using approximate Bayesian computations. These genetic structure patterns may have been generated by a combination of the demographic history of the species in relation to the geology of the island, human activities in the stone age, deforestation due to sugar plantations (beginning approximately 300 years ago), and recent human activities. This study highlights the importance of considering genetic structure in relation to complex factors within a single‐island habitat for appropriate genetic management of endemic mammals on islands. © 2018 The Wildlife Society.

show abstract

Distribution and abundance of the Amami rabbit Pentalagus furnessi in the Amami and Tokuno Islands, Japan

Cited by 19 publications

References 10 publications

The ecology and agronomy of Miscanthus sinensis, a species important to bioenergy crop development, in its native range in Japan: a review

The ecology and agronomy of Miscanthus sinensis, a species important to bioenergy crop development, in its native range in Japan: a review

Monitoring the effects of forest clear-cutting and mongoose Herpestes auropunctatus invasion on wildlife diversity on Amami Island, Japan

Historical and recent impacts on genetic structure of an island rabbit

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About