Dark Clouds Ahead? Anecdotal evidence for an illegal live trade in Sunda Neofelis diardi and Indochinese N. nebulosa Clouded Leopards (Mammalia: Carnivora: Felidae)
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The Sunda Clouded Leopard (Neofelis diardi) and Indochinese Clouded Leopard (N. nebulosa) are medium-sized felids native to tropical south and southeast Asia. In 2019, we began investigating the trade in Clouded Leopards and their parts in Asia. This was partly inspired by social media posts of an apparent pet Sunda Clouded Leopard. Investigations continued with respect to how and where Clouded Leopards are sold on social media and other digital platforms. We discovered several social media posts and local language news articles, that we believe are indicative of an illegal live trade in Sunda Clouded Leopards in Indonesia. While fewer instances of trade in Indochinese Clouded Leopards have been discovered thus far, patterns of trade in other large felids and small carnivores in the region, particularly as influenced by social media, may have implications for future live trade in Indochinese Clouded Leopards and increased trade in Sunda Clouded Leopards. We recommend that additional international attention and investment of resources, including local, national, and international law enforcement activities, focus their efforts on the growing trade in Clouded Leopards.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors own the copyright to the articles published in JoTT. This is indicated explicitly in each publication. The authors grant permission to the publisher Wildlife Information Liaison Development (WILD) Society to publish the article in the Journal of Threatened Taxa. The authors recognize WILD as the original publisher, and to sell hard copies of the Journal and article to any buyer. JoTT is registered under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY), which allows authors to retain copyright ownership. Under this license the authors allow anyone to download, cite, use the data, modify, reprint, copy and distribute provided the authors and source of publication are credited through appropriate citations (e.g., Son et al. (2016). Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) of the southeastern Truong Son Mountains, Quang Ngai Province, Vietnam. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(7): 8953–8969. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2785.8.7.8953-8969). Users of the data do not require specific permission from the authors or the publisher.
References
Bell, D., S. Roberton & P.R. Hunter (2004). Animal origins of SARS coronavirus: possible links with the international trade in small carnivores. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B 359: 1107–1114. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2004.1492
Bouhuys, J.F.B. (2019). First record of Otter Civet Cynogale bennettii (Mammalia: Carnivore: Viverridae) kept as a pet in Indonesia, representing a possible new threat to the species. Journal of Threatened Taxa 11(13): 14764–14766. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.5234.11.13.14764-14766
Brodie, J.F. & A.J. Giordano (2012). Sunda Clouded Leopard (Neofelis diardi) density in a protected area of Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. Oryx 46(3): 427–430.
Brodie, J.F., A.J. Giordano & A.J. Ambu (2015). Differential responses of large mammals to logging and edge effects. Mammalian Biology 80: 7–13.
Buckley-Beason, V.A., W. Johnson, W.G. Nash, R. Stanyonp, J.C. Menninger, C.A. Driscoll, J. Howard, M. Bush, J.E. Page, M.E. Roelke, G. Stone, P.P. Martinelli, C. Wen, L. Ling, R.K. Duraisingham, P.V. Lam & S.J. O’Brien (2006). Molecular evidence for species-level distinctions in N. nebulosa. Current Biology 16: 2371–2376.
D’Cruze, N. & D.W. Macdonald (2015). Clouded in mystery: the global trade in Clouded Leopards. Biodiversity and Conservation 24: 3505–3526.
de Silva, P., W.A. Khan, B. Kanchanasaka, I.R. Lubis, M.M. Feeroz & O.F. Al-Sheikhly (2015). Lutrogale perspicillata. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T12427A21934884. Downloaded on 04 November 2020. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T12427A21934884.en
Giordano, A.J. & Rustam (2016). Dead Muller’s maroon langur: predation or scavenging by Sunda Clouded Leopard? Cat News 63: 34–35.
Giordano, A.J. (2022). Clouded Leopards (Neofelis sp.): Biology and Conservation, pp. 121–136. In: DellaSala, D.A. & M.I. Goldstein (Eds.). Imperiled: The Encyclopedia of Conservation, Vol. 1. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-821139-7.00213-0
Gomenz, L. & J. Bouhuys (2018). Illegal Otter trade in Southeast Asia. TRAFFIC, Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia, 37.
Grassman, L., A. Lynam, S. Mohamad, J.W. Duckworth, J. Bora, D. Wilcox, Y. Ghimirey, A. Reza & H. Rahman (2016). Neofelis nebulosa. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T14519A97215090. Downloaded on 04 November 2020. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T14519A97215090.en
Harrington, L.A., D.W. Macdonald & N. D’Cruze (2019). Popularity of pet otters on YouTube: evidence of an emerging trade threat. Nature Conservation 36: 17–45.
Hearn, A., J. Ross, J. Brodie, S. Cheyne, I.A. Haidir, B. Loken, J. Mathai, A. Wilting & J. McCarthy (2015). Neofelis diardi (errata version published in 2016). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T136603A97212874. Downloaded on 04 November 2020. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T136603A50664601.en
Hubbard, C., V. Naples, E. Ross & B. Carlon (2009). Comparative analysis of paw pad structure in the Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa) and domestic cat (Felis catus). The Anatomical Record (Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology) 292(8): 1213–1228.
IUCN SSC Cat Specialist Group (1987). Chinese restaurant fined for trading in Clouded Leopards. Cat News 7: 25.
Johnson, W.E., E. Eizirik, J. Pecon-Slattery, W.J. Murphy, A. Antunes, E. Teeling & S.J. O’Brien (2006). The late Miocene radiation of modern Felidae: a genetic assessment. Science 311(5757): 73–77.
Kitchener, A.C., M.A. Beaumont & D. Richardson (2006). Geographical variation in the Clouded Leopard, Neofelis nebulosa, reveals two species. Current Biology 16: 2377–2383.
Matsuda, I., A. Tuuga & S. Higashi (2008). Clouded Leopard (Neofelis diardi) predation on proboscis monkeys (Nasalis larvatus) in Sabah, Malaysia. Primates 49(3): 227–231.
McEvoy, J.F., G. Connette, Q. Huang, P. Soe, K.H.H. Pyone, M. Valitutto, Y.L. Htun, A.N. Lin, A.L. Thant, W.Y. Htun, K.H. Paing, K.K. Swe, M. Aung, S. Min, M. Songer & P. Leimgruber (2019). Two sides of the same coin – wildmeat consumption and illegal wildlife trade at the crossroads of Asia. Biological Conservation 238: 108197.
Min, S. (2020). Wild animal consumption and conservation awareness in Myanmar. TRAFFIC Bulletin 32(2): 61–67.
Mohd-Azlan, J. & E. Lading (2006). Camera trapping and conservation in Lambir Hills National Park, Sarawak. The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 54(2): 469–475.
Mohd-Azlan, J., M.C.K. Yi, J. Liam, L. Engkamat & O.B. Tisen (2017). Incidental killing of Sunda Clouded Leopard in Sarawak, Malaysia. Cat News 65: 42–45.
Moloney, G., J. Tuke, E.D. Grande, T. Nielsen & A.-L. Chaber (2020). Is YouTube ® promoting the exotic pet trade? Analysis of the global public perception of popular YouTube ® videos featuring threatened exotic animals. PLoS ONE 16(4): e0235451. https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.06.17.156661
Masseti, M. (2009). Pictorial evidence from medieval Italy of Cheetahs and caracals, and their use in hunting. Archives of Natural History 36(1): 37–47.
Morino, L. (2010). Clouded Leopard predation on a wild juvenile siamang. Folia Primatologica 81(6): 362–368.
Nijman, V., D. Spann, E.J. Rode-Margono, P.D. Roberts, P.D. Wirdateti & K.A.I. Nekaris (2014). Trade in common palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus) in Javan and Balinese markets, Indonesia. Small Carnivore Conservation 51: 11–17.
Nijman, V., D. Spaan, E.J. Rode-Margono, P.D. Wirdateti & K.A.I. Nekaris (2015). Changes in the primate trade in Indonesian wildlife markets over a 25-year period: Fewer apes and langur, more macaques, and slow lorises. American Journal of Primatology 79(11): e22517. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.22517
Rabinowitz, A.R. (1988). The Clouded Leopard in Taiwan. Oryx 22: 46–47.
Rabinowitz, A.R., P. Andau & P.P.K. Chai (1987). The Clouded Leopard in Malaysian Borneo. Oryx 22: 107–111.
Rabinowitz, A.R. & S.R. Walker (1991). The carnivore community in a dry tropical forest mosaic in Huai Khe Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, Thailand. Journal of Tropical Ecology 7: 37–47.
Ross, J., A. Wilting, D. Ngoprasert, B. Loken, L. Hedges, J.W. Duckworth, S. Cheyne, J. Brodie, W. Chutipong, A. Hearn, M. Linkie, J. McCarthy, N. Tantipisanuh & I.A. Haidir (2015). Cynogale bennettii. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T6082A45197343. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T6082A45197343.en
Shepherd, C.R. (2012). Observations of small carnivores in Jakarta wildlife markets, Indonesia, with notes on trade in Javan Ferret Badger Melogale orientalis and on the increasing demand for Common Palm Civet Paradoxurus hermaphroditus for civet coffee production. Small Carnivore Conservation 47: 38–41.
Spee, L.B., S.J. Hazel, E.D. Grande, W.S.J. Boardman & A.-L. Chaber (2019). Endangered exotic pets on social media in the Middle East: presence and impact. Animals 9: 480. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9080480
Tricorache, P., K. Nowell, G. Wirth & N. Mitchell (2018). Pets and pelts: Understanding and combating poaching and tracking in Cheetahs, pp. 191–205. In: Marker, L., L.K. Boast & A. Schmidt-Kuntzel (eds.). Cheetahs: Biology and Conservation. Elsevier Publishing, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Vank Valkenburgh, B. (1987). Skeletal indicators of locomotor behavior in living and extinct carnivores. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 7(2): 162–182.
Wright, L., P. de Silva, B. Chan & I.R. Lubis (2015). Aonyx cinereus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T44166A21939068. Downloaded on 04 November 2020. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-2.RLTS.T44166A21939068.en