Distribution, status, and conservation needs of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in Lampung Province, Sumatra, Indonesia

Hedges, S. Blair; Tyson, Martin; Sitompul, Arnold F.; Kinnaird, Margaret F.; Gunaryadi, Donny; Aslan, Aslan

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2005.01.004

Cited by 106 publications

(114 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Achard et al 2002; Hedges et al 2005;Kinnaird et al 2003;Linkie et al 2004Linkie et al , 2006. Despite such a large body of research, there are very few solutions on how to reverse these deforestation trends and species threats (Gaveau et al 2009;Linkie et al 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modelling the effectiveness of enforcement strategies for avoiding tropical deforestation in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra

Linkie¹,

Rood

Smith

2009

Biodivers Conserv

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As the tropical deforestation crisis continues, innovative schemes are being developed to reduce this loss, such as the sale of forest carbon credit. Nevertheless, to address this ongoing and pervasive loss, governments, protected area managers and donors need to know where to invest their limited conservation resources for greatest success. At the moment this prioritisation is rarely done objectively, so there is a need for new methods that predict the efficacy of different approaches. In this study, we focus on forest loss in and around one of Indonesia's largest protected areas, Kerinci Seblat National Park (KSNP), and evaluate the effectiveness of several forest protection scenarios. First, forest loss patterns from 1985 to 2002 were mapped for the southern end of the KS region and the correlates of deforestation were determined using a logistic regression analysis. This highlighted the critical threat posed to the forest by its proximity to the forest edge and to settlements, as well as its elevation and slope. This regression model was then used to map the predicted risk of remaining forest being cleared and was combined with field data to model the results of three law enforcement scenarios up to the year 2020. This found that a strategy that concentrated patrol effort at the four main access points was found to avoid the most deforestation. These results show that modelling the impact of different protection 123Biodivers Conserv (2010) 19:973-984 DOI 10.1007 strategies can provide important insights and could be used more widely in deforestation mitigation and designing conservation landscapes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modelling the effectiveness of enforcement strategies for avoiding tropical deforestation in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra

Linkie¹,

Rood

Smith

2009

Biodivers Conserv

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“…Total population estimates vary between 30 000 and 50 000, although this is widely believed to be an outdated overestimate (Sukumar 2003, Hedges et al 2005, Dublin et al 2006, Hedges 2006, Choudhury et al 2008. What research has been undertaken has focused mainly on wild elephants and not the sizeable captive population (Lair 1997, Hedges et al 2005, Hedges 2006, Sukumar 2006. The captive elephant population constitutes one-third to one-quarter of all remaining Asian elephants (Sukumar 2003, Leimgruber et al 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Total E. maximus numbers have been reduced by at least 50% in all 13 range nations in the last 3 generations (Bandara & Tisdell 2004, Hedges et al 2005, Choudhury et al 2008) and the species is classified as Endangered by the IUCN (Choudhury et al 2008). Total population estimates vary between 30 000 and 50 000, although this is widely believed to be an outdated overestimate (Sukumar 2003, Hedges et al 2005, Dublin et al 2006, Hedges 2006, Choudhury et al 2008. What research has been undertaken has focused mainly on wild elephants and not the sizeable captive population (Lair 1997, Hedges et al 2005, Hedges 2006, Sukumar 2006.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population viability of captive Asian elephants in the Lao PDR

Suter¹,

Maurer²,

Baxter³

2014

Endang. Species. Res.

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Asian elephants Elephas maximus have been captured and trained by Lao mahouts for centuries. While captive elephants are losing their traditional relevance, they still play a significant role in the Lao logging and tourism industries. However, with only an estimated 480 captive elephants remaining nationally and only ~60 cows under 35 yr of age, the future viability of this population is uncertain. We assessed > 80% of the captive elephant population and used VORTEX software to create 7 population viability analysis scenarios. Our results demonstrate that without changes to conservation management the current population is likely to be extinct in 112 yr (r = −0.099). Reduced mortality rates, increased reproductive rates and population supplementation will give the population an additional 108 yr of longevity, but will not, of themselves, prevent extinction. Management programs should direct efforts towards in situ breeding programs, a cessation in calf exportation, improved veterinary care and population supplementation. Since captive populations are also small and declining in other range nations, there is also a case for managing all Asian elephants as a single management unit. KEY WORDS: Asian elephants · Captive elephants · Elephas maximus · Lao PDR · Population viability · VORTEX Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherEndang Species Res 24: [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] 2014 fragmentation, poaching and human− elephant conflict (Norachack 2002, Sukumar 2006, Khounboline 2011. A lack of capacity and investment in conservation are also recognized as major species management impediments (Norachack 2002, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry 2009).For centuries captive elephants have shaped Lao communities, with only minor deviations from traditional practices occurring. Both elephant acquisition and usage have changed, bringing about a major change in mahout lifestyle. Historically a calf would be captured from the wild as needed by the local mahout community. The viability of the captive elephant population was never considered until the Government of Laos introduced a ban on wild elephant capture in 1989 (Sukumar 2003). This ban had an immediate impact on the captive elephant population, with few calves entering the population since 1989 (Fig. 1). As long as elephants were traditionally captured from wild populations, mahouts never needed any knowledge of elephant reproduction (Lair 1997). As a result, the captive population now confronts a number of demographic challenges such as an aging population, inadequate replacement rate, a declining number of females of reproductive age, a lack of breeding opportunities and, recently, excessive calf exportation (Lair 1997, Sukumar 2003, ElefantAsia 2007, Khounboline 2011. Under CITES rental agreements it is believed that over the past 5 yr the Government of Laos has exported an estimated 10% of the nation's calves (S. Duffillot, pers. comm., 12 September 2012). Rentals or outright gifts are typically granted to countries sy...

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“…Alternative methods such as dung count (Hedges et al, 2005) and noninvasive genetic method (Ahlering et al, 2011;Hedges, Johnson, Ahlering, Tyson, & Eggert, 2013;Gray, Vidya, Potdar, Bharti, & Sovanna, 2014;Moßbrucker et al, 2015) have been applied to obtain data of wild elephant populations in such habitats. One of the advantages of noninvasive genetic method over the dung count method is that the genetic method provides genetic information of the populations that could not be obtained from field data collection alone.…”

Section: Noninvasive Genetic Methods For Wildlife Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic Tools for the Conservation of Wild Asian Elephants

Kongrit

2017

IJB

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The distribution of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) has been limited to the remaining discontinuous forests, mainly in the South and Southeast Asia. A global number of wild Asian elephants have been declining due to habitat loss, forest fragmentation, and anthropogenic disturbance. Acquiring information of wild populations is important for effective conservation and management plan. This article reviews the applications of noninvasive genetic method as a tool for studying wild Asian elephants. Noninvasive genetic method has been introduced to the field of wildlife conservation for more than two decades. The method provides reliable information of a population and facilitates investigation of genetic effects on small and fragmented populations. Various DNA markers for the Asian elephant, those include mitochondrial DNA, microsatellite DNA, and sex determination markers, have been developed and used to study wild elephant populations across the distribution range. Most of the studies revealed the issues of low genetic diversity in the small populations and interruption of gene flow among the fragmented populations. Tracking of ivory poaching has not yet been done in the Asian elephant. It could be carried out if a reference genetic database of the natural populations is available. Noninvasive genetic method has been proved to be a promising tool for conservation of the wild Asian elephants. Transboundary collaboration would give hope for a successful long-term conservation of this charismatic species in their natural habitats.

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Distribution, status, and conservation needs of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in Lampung Province, Sumatra, Indonesia

Cited by 106 publications

References 22 publications

Modelling the effectiveness of enforcement strategies for avoiding tropical deforestation in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra

Modelling the effectiveness of enforcement strategies for avoiding tropical deforestation in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra

Population viability of captive Asian elephants in the Lao PDR

Genetic Tools for the Conservation of Wild Asian Elephants

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