西双版纳国家级自然保护区勐腊子保护区亚洲象种群和栖息地评价

通过社区村寨访问、监测网络、痕迹追踪和生态位因子分析(ENFA)等方法对西双版纳国家级自然保护区勐腊子保护区内亚洲象的种群和栖息地状况进行研究。结果显示:2007年勐腊子保护区的亚洲象种群数量约为25—32头,2009年其数量增至35—42头;2006—2007年期间,亚洲象的分布区包含保护区东南部和东部的两片区域,面积共221 km2,占保护区总面积的19.2%;象群在分布区内开辟了固定的活动路线,总长约65 km,它们利用这些路线巡回取食天然植物和农作物并导致严重的人象冲突;栖息地评价研究表明亚洲象对栖息地具有一定的选择偏好性,保护区内亚洲象喜好的栖息地面积为328.5 km2,仅占保护区总面积的28.5%,且主要被分为两大斑块1和2,分别位于保护区的东南部和西北部。

Population and habitat status of Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) in Mengla Sub-reserve of Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve, Yunnan of China

This study focused primarily on the population and habitat status of Asian elephants in Mengla Sub-reserve of Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve in the Yunnan Province of China. Data was collected on the number of elephants, their range and human-elephant conflict through local interviews, community monitoring network and field survey during two time periods-the first period was from July 2006 to October 2007 and the second period was from August 2008 to August 2009. Trace-tracking was also used to collect data on major elephant moving lines during the first period. Ecological Niche Factor Analysis (ENFA) with 3S technique was the method used to evaluate habitat quality and predict suitable habitat for Asian elephants.Results showed that 25-32 wild elephants inhabited the Mengla sub-reserve in 2007, with that number increasing to 35-42 in 2009. Their range included the southeastern and eastern parts of the reserve covering an area of 221 km² during 2006-2007, representing 19.2% of the total reserve. Wild elephants developed fixed moving routes to facilitate foraging of natural plants and cultivated crops. The total length of moving lines was 65 km, and resulted in human-elephant conflict in 14 villages. This included economic loss due to crop-raiding and accidental deaths by trampling.Based on ENFA, elephants in Mengla showed preference for lower elevations (<999 m) and milder gradients (<8°), including tropical bamboo forest and scrub-grassland, as well as areas with lower human disturbance. The preferred habitat for Asian elephants, including marginal, suitable and optimal habitat, covered a total area of 328.5 km², representing 28.5% of the total reserve and was mainly divided into two patches-patch one in the southeast and patch two in the northwest part of Mengla sub-reserve covering an area of 150.5 km² and 178 km² respectively. However, elephants were found only in a portion of patch one during the first study period. In the elephant range, the preferred habitat represented 52.9% of the range, while the remainder consisted of farmland, rubber & tea plantations and steep mountains. The findings of the study urge conservation measures including anti-deforestation, anti-poaching, ecological corridor building, human-elephant conflict mitigation and trans-boundary cooperation to protect the Asian elephants.