Ecology of an endemic primate species (Macaca siberu) on Siberut Island, Indonesia

Abstract

Logging and forest loss continues to be a major problem within Southeast Asia and as a result, many species are becoming threatened or extinct. The present study provides the first detailed and comprehensive ecological data on the Siberut macaque (Macaca siberu), a primate species living exclusively on the island of Siberut off the west coast of Sumatra. Our results show that M. siberu is ecologically similar to its closest relative M. nemestrina occurring on the mainland, both species being semi-terrestrial, mainly frugivorous (75-76%), exhibit a large daily travel distance for their group size and spend more time on traveling than any other macaque species. The habitat of Siberut macaques was floristically very diverse (Simpson’s index D=0.97), although somewhat impoverished in tree species richness, and had a lower tree basal area and a lower rattan density compared to other forests in Malesia (both rattan and palm tree fruit being an important food resource for Macaca siberu due to their long fruiting periods). These factors may lead to a lower diversity and abundance of fruit resources, and coupled with a high degree of frugivory of Siberut macaques, may explain the large amount of traveling observed in this species. The large home range requirements and strong dependence on fruit are important factors that need to be considered when developing conservation measures for this IUCN-listed (Category Vulnerable) species.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/2193-1801-2-137) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Ranging and site fidelity in northern pigtailed macaques (Macaca leonina) over different temporal scales

“…Caldecott [1986] reported macaque troops (30-55 individuals, 9% terrestriality, 74% of frugivory) with HRs of 62 to 70 ha, based on grid cell analysis. Richter et al [2013] found that a Siberut macaque troop of 29 individuals (25% of terrestriality and 76% of frugivory) had a HR and CA (MCP) several times smaller than those of our study troop. These differences may be a consequence of the highly productive habitats of the Sundaic forest where the troops of M. nemestrina and M. siberu live [Corlett & Primak, 2011] and thus macaques could meet their energy requirements by using a small but high-quality range [e.g., Li & Rogers, 2005;McLoughlinet al, 2000;Potts et al, 2011].…”

“…The phylogenetically closest species to the northern pigtailed macaque is the southern pigtailed macaque (M. nemestrina), whereas the Siberut macaque (M. siberu) is the most similar species in terms of lifestyle and ecology [Richter et al, 2013]. Overall, both species show smaller ranges than our study troop of northern pigtailed macaques Am.…”

“…J. Primatol. [Caldecott, 1986Richter et al, 2013. Caldecott [1986] reported macaque troops (30-55 individuals, 9% terrestriality, 74% of frugivory) with HRs of 62 to 70 ha, based on grid cell analysis.…”

Intra‐ and interspecific variation in macaque molar enamel thickness

“…Dietary studies of M. fascicularis, M. fuscata, and M. sylvanus are more common in the literature than are such studies for M. nemestrina, M. mulatta, and M. arctoides (Suzuki, 1965;Clutton-Brock and Harvey, 1977;Rodman, 1978;Ojha, 1980;Wheatley, 1980;Khan and Wahab, 1983;Goldstein, 1984;M enard, 1985;Caldecott, 1986aCaldecott, , 1986bM enard and Vallet, 1986;Aggimarangsee, 1992;Ungar, 1992;Ahsan, 1994;Agetsuma, 1995;Yeager, 1996;Hill, 1997;Agetsuma and Nakagawa, 1998;M enard and Qarro, 1999;Hanya, 2003Hanya, , 2004Tsuji and Takatsuki, 2004;Tsuji et al, 2006;Richter et al, 2013;M enard et al, 2014). For M. arctoides we could locate only one short-term survey of provisioned groups near human habitations (Aggimarangsee, 1992).…”

Komodo Dragon Predation on Crab-Eating Macaques at the Rinca Island’s Visitor Centre, Indonesia

“…We explore the relative proportion of M. fascicularis in the diet of dragons. Secondly, since the macaques are semi-terrestrial on other islands [Richter et al, 2013], we aim to find the degree of terrestrial overlap between the macaques and dragons to quantify Komodo dragon-macaque predation opportunity. We further investigate whether spatial segregation and arboreal strata preference among macaque sex and age classes [Girard-Buttoz et al, 2014] are present in the M. fascicularis in Loh Buaya valley as a potential predation risk variable that may influence population dynamics.…”