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. 2020 Mar 17;10(10):4303-4313.
doi: 10.1002/ece3.6198. eCollection 2020 May.

Estimating occupancy of Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) in a protected and non-protected area of Nepal

Sandhya Sharma  1 , Hari P Sharma  2 , Chanda Chaulagain  3 , Hem B Katuwal  4   5 , Jerrold L Belant  6
Affiliations

Estimating occupancy of Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) in a protected and non-protected area of Nepal

Sandhya Sharma et al. Ecol Evol. .

Abstract

Chinese pangolin is the world's most heavily trafficked small mammal for luxury food and traditional medicine. Although their populations are declining worldwide, it is difficult to monitor their population status because of its rarity and nocturnal behavior. We used site occupancy (presence/absence) sampling of pangolin sign (i.e., active burrows) in a protected (Gaurishankar Conservation Area) and non-protected area (Ramechhap District) of central Nepal with multiple environmental covariates to understand factors that may influence occupancy of Chinese pangolin. The average Chinese pangolin occupancy and detection probabilities were Ψ ^ ± SE = 0.77 ± 0.08; p ^ ± SE = 0.27 ± 0.05, respectively. The detection probabilities of Chinese pangolin were higher in PA ( p ^ ± SE = 0.33 ± 0.03) than compared to non-PA ( p ^ ± SE = 0.25 ± 0.04). The most important covariates for Chinese pangolin detectability were red soil (97%), food source (97.6%), distance to road (97.9%), and protected area (97%) and with respect to occupancy was elevation (97.9%). We recommended use of remote cameras and potentially GPS collar surveys to further investigate habitat use and site occupancy at regular intervals to provide more reliable conservation assessments.

Keywords: Chinese pangolin; farmland; food; habitat suitability; occupancy; red soil.

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Conflict of interest statement

None.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) study areas with 1 km2 grid in central Nepal
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Detection of Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) during five survey days in a protected and non‐protected area of central Nepal
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Detection probabilities and proportion of sites occupied by Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) in a protected and non‐protected area of central Nepal
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
(a) Detection probabilities of Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) by habitat type in a protected and non‐protected area; (b) detection probabilities of Chinese pangolin with soil types in Protected and non‐protected area; (c) detection probabilities of Chinese pangolin with cover in Protected and non‐protected area; and (d) detection probabilities of Chinese pangolin with DW, food source, and slope in protected and non‐protected area
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