Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Human-macaque conflict
Crop raiding by macaques has not become a serious problem across Myanmar,
although in some regions it presents a significant challenge for farmers. Conflict
has been reported with long-tailed macaque populations living close to or inside
human settlements in other Southeast Asian countries (Aggimarangsee,
1992
;
Wheatley,
1999
; Cortes and Shaw,
2006
; Zhao,
2005
; Fuentes
et al
.,
2008
; Sha
et al
.,
2009
), and macaques are commonly found inhabiting temples or city
parks where they are provisioned and protected from hunting and predators
(Aggimarangsee and Brockelman,
2005
; Malaivijitnond
et al
.,
2005
). Because
of human land development, long-tailed macaques have been forced to live in
increasing proximity to human settlements in Java (Iskandar
et al
.,
2008
). In
Thailand, Indonesia, Gibraltar, China, and Singapore macaque populations can
easily increase in size (see Box 6.1), and in Thailand have been reported to reach
group sizes of over 200 animals (Malaivijitnond and Hamada,
2008
). In contrast,
long-tailed macaque troops inhabiting temples in Myanmar tend to be smaller than
they are in Thailand, and maybe this is because long-tailed macaques inhabiting
temples in Myanmar suffer more from human activity (see Gumert, Chapter 1).
Conclusions
M. fascicularis aurea
is distributed from the southern to northwestern bor-
ders in Myanmar along the coastal regions. Habitat loss and degradation, hunt-
ing, and the wildlife trade may be having negative impacts on the long-tailed
macaque, and future work will need to monitor the effect of human activities
on long-tailed macaques in this region. Human land-use is causing forest habi-
tats to shrink, and there are, therefore, fewer habitats for long-tailed macaques
and their populations appear to be becoming isolated from each other. We will
need more extensive surveys of Myanmar long-tailed macaques in the future to
fully assess their population and the effects of human activity on them. In par-
ticular, surveys will need to be conducted throughout the Myeik Archipelago to
determine the extent of Myanmar's island populations of long-tailed macaques.
This chapter presents the first census showing the population of long-tailed
macaques on mainland Myanmar and thus we provide the first set of data on
the conservation status of a data deficient sub-species (
M. fascicularis aurea
)
(Ong and Richardson,
2008
). We provide evidence that this subspecies may be
facing several threats from habitat conversion, habitat fragmentation, hunting
pressure, and international trade. The future effects of human activity on their
population remain uncertain and needs to be closely monitored.
