Spatial and Temporal Use of Oil Palm Plantations by Wild Macaca nemestrina and its Implication for Mitigating Human-Wildlife Conflicts

11 Feb 2015 Segari Melintang Forest Reserve, Malaysia, Asia Conflict | People | Primates

Nadine Ruppert


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Wildlife on the Edge: Effects of Oil Palm Agriculture on Health of Forest-Dependent Primates in Malaysia

This project is aimed at studying the impact of wild pig-tailed macaques on the monthly oil palm harvest and at raising awareness amongst farmers to avoid human-wildlife conflicts.

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All Malaysian primates face severe threats by deforestation of which the most imminent one is the loss of habitat itself. Secondary threats arise when wildlife “invades” close by agricultural lands in search of food and conflicts between farmers and wildlife have become frequent. In rural areas, primates can frequently be observed feeding on oil palm fruits and are hunted by plantation owners, including the use of rifles, air-guns, fire-crackers or live-traps. When farmers approach a group of macaques that forages in their plantation the animals would usually allow little time for observation but flee very quickly back into the forest. Thus, farmers are left with the impression that macaques raided their crops. By studying a habituated group of free-ranging southern pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina), the spatial and temporal use of plantation vs. forest shall be assessed. The group inhabits a primary forest reserve adjacent to oil palm plantations and can be observed foraging in the plantation on a daily basis.

A detailed survey on the utilization mode and amount of ingested oil palm fruit shall allow the assessment of the actual negative impact of these primate species on the total monthly harvest. Preliminary studies showed that, although pig-tailed macaques frequently use plantations to forage, they only handle a small amount of ripe, and therefore valuable, oil palm fruits. During their daily plantation visits, some group members feed on oil palm fruits, while others pick through soil matters in search for arthropods or chew on other plant material, or simply sit around and follow social activities. The impression by farmers that macaques “raid” their crops might thus be subjective and to certain extend exaggerated. Small overabundant rodents that usually eat away at oil palm fruits might have a considerably higher impact. As I predict a relatively minor impact of pig-tailed macaques on the monetary loss of the monthly oil palm harvest, the results of this study shall be used to raise awareness amongst local farmers and plantation owners not to harm the macaques.

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