Genus Rusa, belonging to the deer family Cervidae is native to the Indo-Malaya Archipelago (IMA). However, detailed information on the Rusa genus in the IMA is limited. This review provides comprehensive information on the Rusa genus in the IMA including, threats and conservation efforts. There are four species of deer in Rusa genus, which is Sambar deer (Rusa unicolor), Javan deer (Rusa timorensis), Visayan spotted deer (Rusa alfredi) and Philippine deer (Rusa marianna). Despite their wide distribution in the South Asian and Southeast Asian regions, they are under serious threats. Some conservation efforts that are being done to protect and conserve them among others are; (1) facilities protection, (2) habitat enrichment programme, (3) Ex-situ conservation, (4) legislations, and (5) captive breeding. Conservation through genetics is also an important step in conserving these species. Recommendations for conservation of the genus are also discussed; 1. maintenance of ecosystem. 2. more effective monitoring system on the existing protected area. 3. ex-situ conservation, and 4. habitat monitoring.
Mammalian carnivores play a vital role in ecosystem functioning. However, they are prone to extinction because of low population densities and growth rates, and high levels of persecution or exploitation. In tropical biodiversity hotspots such as Peninsular Malaysia, rapid conversion of natural habitats threatens the persistence of this vulnerable group of animals. Here, we carried out the first comprehensive literature review on 31 carnivore species reported to occur in Peninsular Malaysia and updated their probable distribution. We georeferenced 375 observations of 28 species of carnivore from 89 unique geographic locations using records spanning 1948 to 2014. Using the Getis-Ord Gi*statistic and weighted survey records by IUCN Red List status, we identified hotspots of species that were of conservation concern and built regression models to identify environmental and anthropogenic landscape factors associated with Getis-Ord Gi* z scores. Our analyses identified two carnivore hotspots that were spatially concordant with two of the peninsula's largest and most contiguous forest complexes, associated with Taman Negara National Park and Royal Belum State Park. A cold spot overlapped with the southwestern region of the Peninsula, reflecting the disappearance of carnivores with higher conservation rankings from increasingly fragmented natural habitats. Getis-Ord Gi* z scores were negatively associated with elevation, and positively associated with the proportion of natural land cover and distance from the capital city. Malaysia contains some of the world's most diverse carnivore assemblages, but recent rates of forest loss are some of the highest in the world. Reducing poaching and maintaining large, contiguous tracts of lowland forests will be crucial, not only for the persistence of threatened carnivores, but for many mammalian species in general.
Sun bear populations are fragmented and at risk from habitat loss and exploitation for body parts. These threats are made worse by significant gaps in knowledge of sun bear population genetic diversity, population connectivity, and taxonomically significant management units. Using a complete sun bear mitochondrial genome, we developed a set of mitochondrial markers to assess haplotype variation and the evolutionary history of sun bears from Peninsular (West) Malaysia and Sabah (East Malaysia). Genetic samples from 28 sun bears from Peninsular Malaysia, 36 from Sabah, and 18 from Thailand were amplified with primers targeting a 1800 bp region of the mitochondrial genome including the complete mitochondrial control region and adjacent genes. Sequences were analyzed using phylogenetic methods. We identified 51 mitochondrial haplotypes among 82 sun bears. Phylogenetic and network analyses provided strong support for a deep split between Malaysian sun bears and sun bears in East Thailand and Yunnan province in China. The Malaysian lineage was further subdivided into two clades: Peninsular Malaysian and Malaysian Borneo (Sabah). Sun bears from Thailand occurred in both Sabah and Peninsular Malaysian clades. Our study supports recent findings that sun bears from Sundaland form a distinct clade from those in China and Indochina with Thailand possessing lineages from the three clades. Importantly, we demonstrate a more recent and clear genetic delineation between sun bears from the Malay Peninsula and Sabah indicating historical barriers to gene flow within the Sundaic region.
Conservation translocation and reintroduction for the purpose of repopulating and reinforcing extirpated or depleted populations has been recognised as an important conservation tool, particularly for gibbon conservation in the immediate future. Feasibility assessments involving multiple factors, including taxonomic and genetic assessment of rescued and captive gibbons, are imperative prior to translocation and reintroduction programmes. In this study, we attempt to determine the subspecies and origin of captive Hylobateslar, White-handed gibbons, from Peninsular Malaysia to assist in future translocation and reintroduction programmes. A total of 12 captive and rescued H.lar samples were analysed using the control region segment of mitochondrial DNA. Sequence analyses and phylogenetic trees constructed using neighbour-joining, maximum likelihood, Bayesian inference, and network methods congruently differentiate all 12 captive individuals used in this study from other H.lar subspecies suggesting that these individuals belong to the H.larlar subspecies. In addition, two populations of H.l.lar were observed: (1) a southern population consisting of all 12 individuals from Peninsular Malaysia, and (2) a possible northern population represented by three individuals (from previous studies), which might have originated from the region between the Isthmus of Kra, Surat Thani-Krabi depression, and Kangar-Pattani. Our findings suggest that the complete control region segment can be used to determine the subspecies and origin of captive H.lar.