Fishing cats in an anthropogenic landscape: A multi-method assessment of local population status and threats

Phosri, Kitipat; Tantipisanuh, Naruemon; Chutipong, Wanlop; Gore, Meredith L.; Giordano, Anthony J.; Ngoprasert, Dusit

doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01615

Cited by 7 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…In addition, given the substantial overlap with human dominated-landscapes, including urban centers and agriculture, and given the long history of settlement in several of these areas, the rapid land-use change over the past century, and the high potential for killing by humans (Cutter, 2015), it is unlikely that fishing cats remain extant in all areas highlighted. Nonetheless, our results do A. Kamjing, personal communication; Phosri et al, 2021). Third, the relationship found between fishing cats and conditions typical of wide and flat alluvial and coastal plains and the presence of both recent and historical inland records in areas predicted to be suitable by our model, including in northern Myanmar (Morris, 1936), north-central Thailand (Chutipong et al, 2019), northern Cambodia (Rainey & Kong, 2010), the Terai Arc landscape of India and Nepal (e.g., Dahal & Dahal, 2011;Palei et al, 2018;Yadav et al, 2018), and Indus River valley of central and northern Pakistan (Appel, 2011;Blanford, 1888;Roberts, 1977;WWF Pakistan, 2007), may imply a need to rethink some known habitat associations.…”

Section: Conservation Implicationscontrasting

confidence: 52%

“…In India, for example, fishing cats have been repeatedly detected along the emergent Eastern Coastal Plains but have yet to be verifiably detected on the submergent Western Coastal Plains (Janardhanan et al, 2014). Similarly, camera‐trap surveys targeting coastal wetland habitats in southern Thailand have not yet detected fishing cats on the submergent Andaman Coast but have detected individuals on the emergent Gulf of Thailand coast (Chutipong et al, 2019; A. Kamjing, personal communication; Phosri et al, 2021). Third, the relationship found between fishing cats and conditions typical of wide and flat alluvial and coastal plains and the presence of both recent and historical inland records in areas predicted to be suitable by our model, including in northern Myanmar (Morris, 1936), north‐central Thailand (Chutipong et al, 2019), northern Cambodia (Rainey & Kong, 2010), the Terai Arc landscape of India and Nepal (e.g., Dahal & Dahal, 2011; Palei et al, 2018; Yadav et al, 2018), and Indus River valley of central and northern Pakistan (Appel, 2011; Blanford, 1888; Roberts, 1977; WWF Pakistan, 2007), may imply a need to rethink some known habitat associations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We generated this mask (5 × 5 km resolution) by buffering the occurrence records of all species by 8 km to ensure that environmental values used to contrast presence and background points were representative of actual sampling efforts. This distance corresponded approximately to the radius of the smallest convex polygon with a 99.99% probability of containing a fishing cat's home‐range center, if present, based on the movement parameter estimated for male fishing cats in a recent spatial capture‐recapture study (Phosri et al, 2021). Background points ( n = 10,550; i.e., 1 point/mask pixel) were generated using the randomPoints function in R package ‘dismo’ (v1.3‐3; Hijmans et al, 2020).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Expanding on this study with finer-scale species distribution models that focus on the areas highlighted here may be one approach to further refine future search efforts that is proactive, quick, and cost-effective. However, such studies will need to account for the highly localized, dynamic, and sometimes random nature of threats facing fishing cats in anthropogenic landscapes (Phosri et al, 2021).…”

Section: Conservation Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predicted Pleistocene–Holocene range and connectivity declines of the vulnerable fishing cat and insights for current conservation

Petersen

Savini

Chutipong

et al. 2022

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim Identifying appropriate conservation measures requires a reasonable understanding of a species' population status, distribution and vulnerability. However, for many species, these variables may not be understood under the context of current conditions alone. Here, we assess the potential role historical changes in climate, sea level and anthropogenic activity may have had on the distribution of one of the world's least‐understood wild cats and identify broader implications for conservation efforts that may not be apparent from just an examination of the species' current distribution. Location Tropical Asia. Taxon Fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus). Methods We used a presence‐only ecological niche model and a least‐cost graph‐based connectivity model to characterize the species' bio‐climatic niche and predict changes in suitability and connectivity under current and paleoenvironmental conditions. Results Fishing cat occurrence was associated with landscapes that were low in elevation and high in topographic wetness and climates that were warm with moderate annual precipitation and moderate seasonal variation in both temperature and precipitation. Since the Last Interglacial, the area predicted to be climatically suitable has ranged from 5.9 million km2 during the Last Glacial Maximum to 2.2 million km2 during the Current Era. Changes in regional connectivity correlated with changes in suitable area for all periods except the Current Era. Relative connectivity of areas affected by past sea level rise was highest in areas with large alluvial plains, emergent coastal areas and deltas. Main conclusions Our findings suggest that the fishing cat's current distribution and vulnerability can be explained by a synergistic combination of historical climate change, sea level rise, and anthropogenic land‐use change. Changes in suitability and connectivity over time highlight potential core areas that are underrepresented by historical survey efforts. Future survey efforts should include these areas, with an emphasis on quantifying tolerances to anthropogenic disturbances.

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Section: Conservation Implicationscontrasting

confidence: 52%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Conservation Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predicted Pleistocene–Holocene range and connectivity declines of the vulnerable fishing cat and insights for current conservation

Petersen

Savini

Chutipong

et al. 2022

Journal of Biogeography

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“…Finally, we found that for many endangered carnivores, although the loss of wetlands and forest habitat continues to play a role in their decline (e.g. Phosri et al, 2021), illegal trafficking and unsustainable trade in parts and live individuals are important threats to small carnivores that have increased exponentially in recent years. This is particularly true for otters and other small carnivores native to Southeast Asia (Gomenz & Bouhuys, 2018;Nijman et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 87%

Impact of the Anthropocene on the status of the world's small carnivores: A global macroecological perspective

Torres‐Romero

Giordano

2022

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim The continued erosion of global biodiversity resulting from Earth's sixth mass extinction event has been particularly pronounced on mammalian carnivores. Here, we evaluated the status of the world's small carnivore species (SCS) (<15 kg), examined their trending status and assessed the threats they face globally and regionally. Location Worldwide. Taxon Small carnivore species. Methods Using a global 100 km2 grid, we analysed the impact of 12 variables (anthropogenic and landscape) on general small carnivore richness (SCR), threatened species richness and the number of declining SCS. We applied simple, multiple and simultaneous regression models to explore the associations between landscape conditions and human impacts on SCR. Results Approximately 22% (n = 49) of SCS are classified as threatened (vulnerable, endangered and critically endangered), with the largest number occurring in the Indo‐Malayan, followed by the Afrotropical regions. The family Mustelidae had the greatest number of threatened species, followed by the Felidae, Viverridae and Eupleridae. Euplerids, however, had the highest proportion of threatened species (90%). Human accessibility had the strongest negative impact on global species richness, whereas landscape modification gradient, indigenous lands and intact forest structure, all predicted higher levels of overall and threatened SCR. Approximately 84% of SCS are threatened by illegal wildlife trafficking, with greatest proportion hailing from the Indo‐Malayan region, followed by the Afrotropical region. Conclusions Landscape conditions play a leading role in the conservation of SCS. However, the impact of humans has dramatically modified the spatial patterns of small carnivores across the globe. We believe new incentives promoting more sustainable landscapes could facilitate coexistence between carnivores and human communities. We advocate for new policies promoting sustainable practices, which are needed to help mitigate extinction risk and facilitate coexistence with small carnivores across the planet's human‐dominated landscapes.

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Functional insights on chemical communication of fishing cats: a strategic mechanism for adaptation in semi-aquatic habitat

Das,

Manna

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Chemical communication system of fishing cats, focusing on volatile organic compounds present in their urine (UR) and marking fluid (MF) has been explored. Using solid-phase microextraction guided gas chromatography mass spectrometry analysis, a diverse range of functional groups from UR and MF were detected, including ketones, aldehydes, sulfur- and nitrogen-containing compounds, among which 3-Mercapto-3-methylbutanol (3MMB) and its related sulfur compounds were found to be sex-specific, predominantly present in males. The unique behavior of fishing cats to urinate frequently in water when experimentally tested with synthetic 3MMB, was aligned for its retention in aqueous medium upto 21 days. This suggests that fishing cats may employ an energy-efficient scent-marking strategy by leveraging aquatic environments for prolonging chemical signalling process. The analysis of less-volatile compounds, such as triglycerides and fatty acids, suggests that these compounds could be acted as fixatives, helping to stabilize and prolong the intensity of chemical messages coded to highly volatile molecules. The combination of highly volatile, less volatile compounds and lipids may create complex synergy to facilitate interindividual communication, potentially serving as pheromones. This research enhances our understanding of the fishing cats adaptation to semi-aquatic environments and its unique behavioural pattern in marshy landforms, thus concentrated with high population density in deltaic South Bengal.

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Fishing cats in an anthropogenic landscape: A multi-method assessment of local population status and threats

Cited by 7 publications

References 30 publications

Predicted Pleistocene–Holocene range and connectivity declines of the vulnerable fishing cat and insights for current conservation

Predicted Pleistocene–Holocene range and connectivity declines of the vulnerable fishing cat and insights for current conservation

Impact of the Anthropocene on the status of the world's small carnivores: A global macroecological perspective

Functional insights on chemical communication of fishing cats: a strategic mechanism for adaptation in semi-aquatic habitat

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