Latest news with #Asiatic
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Science
- Miami Herald
Rare carnivore seen ‘ambush hunting' at Nepal park in first-of-its-kind sighting
Thousands of feet up in the Himalayas, a 'rare' carnivore searched for its next meal, stalking its prey through the trees. Its remote home and 'elusive' lifestyle largely kept it hidden — but not this time. A nearby trail camera snapped a photo of the spotted animal. It turned out to be a first-of-its-kind sighting. A team of researchers set up a series of trail cameras throughout Makalu Barun National Park in Nepal 'as part of a pilot project,' according to a study published July 26 in the peer-reviewed Journal of Threatened Taxa. The park was 'renowned' for its 'ecological diversity' but hadn't been extensively surveyed. In hopes of changing that, researchers placed 10 trail cameras near 'wildlife trails or corridors.' The cameras were placed in April 2019, 'checked every three months' and finally collected in March 2024, the study said. The 5-year-long effort paid off, 'resulting in 38,075 photographs' of '30 mammal species.' But a few of the trail camera photos stood out from the rest as the region's 'first photographic evidence' of 'two elusive carnivores,' the study said. Researchers identified 12 sightings of a nocturnal, tree-dwelling civet known as the spotted linsang, the study said. Spotted linsangs, or Prionodon pardicolor, are 'one of Asia's least studied species,' researchers said. They likely feed on smaller prey such as rodents, squirrels and shrews. In Nepal, the species is considered 'endangered due to a small population of approximately 100 individuals.' Trail camera photos from Makalu Barun National Park showed spotted linsangs 'stalking' and 'ambush hunting.' In several photos, the animals' eyes appear to shine. Researchers also identified three sightings of a dhole, or Asiatic wild dog, the study said. Dholes are 'one of Asia's most widely distributed carnivores' and an endangered species threatened by 'habitat destruction, and persecution,' researchers said. In Nepal, there are 'estimated to be fewer than 500' dholes. Trail cameras recorded the dholes 'trotting' past, their golden coats naturally blending in with the foliage. Researchers concluded that Makalu Barun National Park is 'a significant habitat for rare mammals' and recommended 'more focused, extensive surveys, and the need for targeted conservation efforts to protect these two species and their fragile alpine habitats.' Makalu Barun National Park is in northeastern Nepal, a landlocked country bordering China and India. The research team included Hari Basnet, Nawang Sing Gurung, Shyam Kumar Shah, Dukpa Thikepa Bhote, Khagendra Sangam, Naomi Bates and Daniel Carl Taylor.
Deccan Herald
2 days ago
- Deccan Herald
Kumbhalgarh to Barda Wildlife Sanctuary: National parks in India to spot Asiatic Lions
From Gir and Kumbhalgarh to Barda Wildlife Sanctuary, here are five national parks in India where you can witness the majestic Asiatic lions in their natural habitat. Credit: Instagram/@asiaticlionlodge
Japan Forward
3 days ago
- General
- Japan Forward
How to Reduce Bear Attacks? First, Know the Numbers
このページを 日本語 で読む Bear sightings and attacks on people have been occurring one after another from Hokkaido to Hiroshima Prefecture. Moreover, many have resulted in serious injuries in 2025. From April to the end of June alone, there were 37 victims. This figure is comparable to the same period in Fiscal Year 2023, when there were 219 bear attack victims. It was the highest number of victims for any single year since statistics first became available in FY2006. In 2025, severe beech nut crop failure is predicted for the mountainous areas of the Tohoku region. Beech nuts ( buna no mi ) are a primary food source for Asiatic black bears. This, too, is similar to 2023, which also had an extremely poor harvest. Consequently, humans need to be on high alert everywhere for the appearance of bears as we head into the autumn. In the fall of 2023, a shortage of beech nuts led to mass hunger among bear populations, resulting in a series of human injuries caused by "urban bears" invading densely populated areas. Although it would be best to avoid a repeat of this situation, the circumstances are extremely difficult to manage. Beech nuts were plentiful in Tohoku region forests in 2024, so there should be even more bear cubs in 2025. That could further exacerbate the expected food shortage, making it more likely for bears to come down from the mountains. Police officers patrol the golf course at the Meiji Yasuda Ladies Golf Tournament, where a bear was spotted, on July 16. Tomiya, Miyagi Prefecture (©Getty via Kyodo) In the past, farming and mountain villages located in the satoyama, the area between mountains and urban areas, helped bears distinguish the extent of their habitat. However, due to the aging of society, population decline, and the abandonment of farmland, the functionality of the satoyama is declining. Now, once a bear leaves the mountains, it must be bewildered to find itself almost immediately in an urban setting. To stem the increase in injuries from bear attacks, the Ministry of the Environment designated bears as a managed category of wildlife in early 2025. As a result, the national government will now cover the costs for hunting or capturing bears for the prefectures. Furthermore, starting from September, the revised Wildlife Protection, Control, and Hunting Management Act will permit the use of hunting rifles in urban areas at the discretion of city and town mayors. However, these measures are merely responses to problems bears are causing in human habitats. They are unlikely to provide fundamental solutions. To implement scientific management, it is essential to know the number of bears living throughout Japan. That is data on which we currently have no firm grasp. An Asiatic black bear spotted in Nara Prefecture. (Photo provided by Nara Prefecture) The Ministry of the Environment roughly estimates the present Asiatic black bear population at 42,000. However, that estimate lacks precision. Indeed, estimates range from 22,000 to 55,000. In FY2023 alone, approximately 7,700 bears were captured or killed. Without better data, there is a constant risk of over-culling that could lead to extinction. As a first step to address the problem, funds should be allocated for an accurate survey of Japan's bear populations. That would provide the foundation for other measures. After all, due to excessive hunting pressure, bears have become extinct in Kyushu and are on the verge of extinction in Shikoku. We must not repeat past mistakes. Bears living in the deep mountains play a key role in preserving a healthy ecosystem. Author: Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun このページを 日本語 で読む
Time of India
6 days ago
- Time of India
This is what a jumbo jet really is
BENGALURU: Elephants never forget - and these trunks in the sky will never forget their first flight. Four Asiatic elephants from Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) in south Bengaluru were airlifted to Osaka in Japan late Thursday aboard a chartered Boeing 777-200F cargo flight. The shipment - three females and one male - broke new ground in wildlife exchange. Their 12-hour airborne journey will be followed by a 20-hour road transfer Saturday to their new home: Himeji Central Safari Park in Hyogo prefecture. A team of veterinarians, biologists, and mahouts from India and Japan are accompanying them. The move is the culmination of a six-month operation involving over 25 BBP staff. Teams worked on designing custom crates for the first international air transfer of elephants from BBP. They prepared the elephants for long-duration flight - training them daily to enter and stay inside crates for up to four hours. "This was indeed a first experience for all of us. While the entire process itself was thrilling, it was filled with a lot of lessons," said BBP executive director AV Surya Sen. The aircraft was selected on the basis of the animals' combined weight - Asian male elephants weigh up to 6,800kg and females 4,000kg. All costs are being borne by the Japanese zoo authorities. Loaded onto a special truck using a hydraulic crane, the elephants left BBP Thursday and were secured in individual crates before boarding the flight. "They were fed well before crate entry," said one vet.
Scroll.in
6 days ago
- General
- Scroll.in
Two rare wildcat species caught on camera-traps in Pakistan
Conservationists snapped images of two small wildcat species in Pakistan earlier this year: an Asiatic caracal (Caracal caracal schimitzi) and a sand cat (Felis margarita) – both which are incredibly rare in the country. Information on both cats in Pakistan is limited, with the sand cat presumed possibly extinct there, according to the IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority. The camera-trap image of the caracal is 'very rare visual evidence of the once widespread but now rapidly declining species', says Zafeer Ahmed Shaikh, director of the Indus Fishing Cat Project. That image – the first camera-trap record of a caracal in Pakistan, according to Shaikh – came from Kirthar National Park, where the Indus Fishing Cat Project, a nonprofit, has had cameras set for around four years. The team decided to extend its camera trapping after earlier reports of a caracal crossing a road in broad daylight in the area in January this year. The nonprofit's local partners, Qalandar Burfat, Zohaib Ahmed and Ramzan Burfat, set up the trap near a watering hole inside the national park. 'There was only one singular video of this male cat from about 400 videos at this particular camera station across a two-week-long period,' Shaikh says. Unfortunately, another sighting included one juvenile cat killed in the national park by local people. These images offer firm evidence that caracals are still present in Pakistan, says Jim Sanderson, founder and director of the Small Wild Cat Conservation Foundation. 'But, as with most places, we have no idea if a self-sustaining population exists.' The sightings 'give us better insight into species distribution and habitat preferences in the country', Ricky Reino, an Asiatic caracal species monitor and studbook keeper for the European Zoo population, told Mongabay by email. 'We know that caracal numbers are considerably less in Asia, especially in India, than they are in Africa,' he adds. Though the caracal is listed by the IUCN as a species of least concern globally, within Pakistan it's considered critically endangered, with an estimated population of approximately 100 individuals. A 2023 paper noted there's 'no comprehensive information on the distribution or abundance of the caracal in Pakistan'. With the species deemed widespread and a low priority across much of its range, few 'conservation-based threat-reduction projects are taking place' anywhere, including in Pakistan, Sanderson adds. The species' status is currently under review by the IUCN. In another rare feat, Shaikh's organisation snapped a picture of a sand cat – a species listed as possibly extinct in Pakistan, according to the IUCN. 'The sighting of the sand cat in Pakistan is highly significant from both ecological and conservation perspectives since the species was practically unknown this far east of its range,' Shaikh says. Other sporadic sightings have been recorded in other parts of the country. 'These confirmed photographic records are extremely valuable, as the species is poorly documented in South Asia,' he says. 'And Pakistan lacks comprehensive data on its distribution or population status.' Little known, highly endangered Kirthar National Park, where both cat species were spotted, sits on the border of Karachi, a city that's home to some 20 million people. Despite the preserve's protected status, it is beset by sand mining activities, says Shaikh. Karachi, the capital city of Pakistan's Sindh province and the 12th-largest city in the world, is undergoing massive development with ongoing conversion of its green belt to residential and commercial areas. 'Such projects require sand and gravel to construct and build, and as such, they extract these natural resources from within the national park itself,' Shaikh says. 'It is happening at multiple sites. But two locations – Pachhran and Khar Centre – are notorious.' Khar Centre is where the caracal was photographed, with sand and gravel mining activity there likely impacting the small cats and a host of other species – disrupting habitat, threatening water sources, and creating noise and other pollution. For small cats in Pakistan, in general, retaliatory killings pose another major threat. That's the current focus of conservation work by Shaikh's organisation. The group says it hopes to capture more images of caracals and sand cats to deepen knowledge of the country's populations. But with stretched resources, the NGO's focus is on direct conservation action. 'Our goal is to expand on existing awareness programmes as well as to create a solid foundation for a compensation scheme in the region,' Shaikh says. Similarly, the sand cat sighting may help build a case for a national conservation strategy, targeting threats such as habitat degradation due to overgrazing and retaliatory killings. 'Every verified sighting is contributing to baseline data, and solidifying the mapping of its current range, and supports its inclusion in national conservation strategies,' Shaikh says. 'These sightings are important, as it shows the need for dedicated research and conservation initiatives focussing on caracals and other small cats,' Reino says. Conservation of small wildcats is severely underfunded worldwide, though research and conservation financing has increased in recent years. Only around 3% of global felid funding is currently directed at the more than 36 species of small cats, with the lion's share going to the charismatic big cats, according to Sanderson. '[S]mall wildcats are far from the priority species or wildlife groups of most wildlife conservation bodies in Pakistan,' Shaikh says. 'These species go by unnoticed very easily, and thus, this creates huge research gaps and conservation issues that must be addressed soon.' Shaikh says he hopes the new photo records for both small cats will 'stimulate scientific interest and raise awareness among local communities and authorities,' ultimately building a case for conserving Pakistan's elusive small cats, rare as they may be.
