By Leilani Chavez
Knowledge of the Philippine pangolin, the only pangolin species in the country, is scarce. Animal observations are even rarer. But unlike other pangolin species around the world that are on the verge of extinction, a new study suggests that, with proper conservation measures, the Philippine pangolin endemic still has a rebound.
In a study published last December in the journal Global Ecology and Conservation, researchers conducting a comprehensive survey found that Filipino pangolins (Dolç culionensis) have been seen in 17 of the 24 municipalities of Palawan, the island province which is the only place on Earth where this species is found.
“This is promising for the Philippine pangolin and suggests that it is not too late to establish conservation efforts throughout the species’ range, ”lead author Lucy Archer of the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) told Mongabay. ).
An enigmatic species
So little is known about the Philippine pangolin that, even as IUCN considers the species to be critically endangered, there is no accepted estimate of its basal population. The scientific literature suggests that the species was never common and interviews conducted in 2018 with indigenous communities suggest that it has experienced a sharp decline since the 1980s, IUCN notes.
However, the recently published survey gives reason for optimism.
Similar comprehensive surveys assessing the knowledge of local pangolins, conducted in West Africa for the giant pangolin (Smut gegant) and China and Vietnam for the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla), show that locals firmly believe that their pangolin species are extinct: observations are rare or non-existent. This is not the case with Filipino pangolins: locals still see them, though very rarely, and the number of areas where they can be found is high.
“Compared with similar studies on pangolin species elsewhere, these results suggest that Philippine pangolin populations may not have reached the critical levels shown by Chinese pangolins in China and Vietnam, or giant pangolins in Benin,” says Archer. “This provides some hope to the species.”
The survey was conducted from January to June 2019 and helps establish the area of distribution of the species based on residents ’observations. The locals call it the animal balintong, which means “puzzle,” in reference to his habit of fleeing to hide from danger.
The Filipino Pangolin until 1998 was thought to be a separate population from the Sunda Pangolin (Manis javanica), which occurs in much of Southeast Asia, but not in the Philippines. Their recognition as a native species coincided with a local poaching boom: high demand for pangolin flakes in China and Vietnam, combined with increased application of known Sunda pangolin trafficking routes, saw that the traffickers turned their attention to the Philippine pangolin.
Range of the four species of Asian pangolins: Chinese, Indian, Sundanese and Filipino pangolins. A mixture of colors on the maps indicates an overlap in the distributions of the different species. Species distribution areas are based on IUCN Red List assessments (IUCN 2014). Note: Distribution maps are currently being updated by the IUCN Group of Pangolin Specialists. Image courtesy of the University of Adelaide / TRAFFIC. Image courtesy of the University of Adelaide / TRAFFIC
Local conservationists also relate an increase in Chinese projects in the Philippines to the growing demand for pangolin meat in Manila restaurants catering to the influx of Chinese workers and visitors. Within two years, the Philippine pangolins became one of the most trafficked species in the country, leading them to a critically endangered state in both the IUCN and the national red lists.
Initial traffic seizures often resulted in shipments carrying both pangolins and various species of turtles. But since 2018, the Philippine authorities have been intercepting shipments that consist exclusively of pangolin pieces. In September 2019, authorities in the city of Puerto Princesa, the capital of Palawan, made the largest seizure of pangolin scales in the Philippines: 1,154 kilograms (2,545 pounds), for which at least 3,900 pangolins were reportedly killed.
From 2018 to 2019, local authorities confiscated 6,894 Philippine pangolins, according to a recent report released by the wildlife trade monitoring group TRAFFIC. The figure is alarming, environmentalists say, because there are no clear estimates of how many animals are left.
But while researchers compete against time to save the local pangolin population, studies are limited by the peculiar and cryptic habits of the pangolin. Pangolins are solitary, nocturnal, non-vocal, and semi-arboreal. While these traits have not been enough to protect them from poachers, they make it very difficult to study species in the wild, Archer says.
“Imagine walking through a forest at night and trying to find something that makes little noise and can be found alone on top of a tree,” he says. “It would take a lot of time and effort!”
These cryptic behaviors result in low detection probabilities, meaning the chances of detecting one, even if close, are “very small,” Archer adds.
“General biodiversity surveys rarely record pangolins, and therefore specific control methods are needed,” he says. “However, these methods are still in development for pangolins, so we do not yet have accepted or standardized control methods … in part because they are so difficult to find, making it difficult to develop these methods.”
The premises offer slopes
This is where the study of Archer and his team comes into play. It is added to the existing knowledge base from what is known as local ecological knowledge (LEK), a type of data that is based on first-hand observations or interactions of local people in an area. where a species can be found.
“LEK is based on the premise that local people can often contain more information and provide important information and knowledge about rare species that use the same environments as them,” says Archer. “It is clear from this result that local people have a great deal of important knowledge about wildlife in their local areas: they are the real experts.”
But, although it has been used in conservation, particularly in community-led conservation efforts, the knowledge of the premises about their surroundings remains a little-used data source. “Its benefits lie in being able to gather a lot of information over wide geographic areas in a relatively short period of time and at low cost: this study was conducted over 6 months,” says Archer.
“Hopefully, studies like this will help develop these methods, as new control methods can be tested in areas where we at least know the species exists. We can also use local knowledge to target specific habitats and places. where people have seen the species recently, ”says Archer.
Eighty-seven percent of respondents to the Palawan survey could identify and provide information on the Philippine pangolin, but said the observations are rare or very rare, even compared to other threatened species. This points to the urgent need to establish localized conservation initiatives, according to the study. And the survey points to a high overall level of local support for wildlife protection, especially pangolin.
“With a high level of knowledge and a great willingness to participate in the conservation efforts reported by respondents in this study, I think local people are very well placed to help guide and develop conservation efforts,” Archer says.
The study forms the basis of ZSL’s conservation action and community engagement in Taytay Municipality, north of Palawan, one of the identified priority conservation areas. Archer says a second phase is to use camera traps to control the species, which hopefully will help create a community conservation area.
“We hope this will provide useful information that local governments and conservation organizations can use to report on conservation efforts and with which future research can be compared to track trends in the state and threats to conservation. the species, ”he says.
Republished with permission from Mongabay.
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