Rimba

Publication update 4: What will it take to save the Sumatran Rhino?

Now Or Never — click image to download paper. Copyright notice: Cambridge University Press

We’re sure many of you know that one of the world’s most magnificent and docile creatures, the Sumatran Rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis), is in deep trouble.

But just how bad is it? From a population of around 320 estimated in 1995, experts now say it could be down to as low as 216 individuals.

One of Rimba’s researchers, Reuben, was involved in a review published recently in the international journal Oryx. This paper was led by Ahmad Zafir Abdul Wahab (currently doing his PhD based at Universiti Sains Malaysia; ahmad.zafir@gmail.com) to find out what needs to be done to save this species from extinction. The consensus is that: Continue reading →

May 9, 2011March 12, 2013 by Rimba Categories: Home, PublicationsTags: Ahmad Zafir Abdul Wahab, Bukit Barisan Selatan, conservation, Danum, Gunung Leuser, International Rhino Foundation, James Cook University, Junaidi Payne, Malaysia, Oryx, Reuben Clements, rhino, SAFE index, Sumatra, Sumatran rhinoceros, Tabin, Taman Negara, Universiti Malaya, Way Kambas, WWF, WWF-Malaysia 1 Comment

Toolbox update 2: Creating bias grids for MaxEnt modelling

Let’s say you’ve been travelling across Peninsular Malaysia looking for a particular animal or plant over the years and you’ve marked the GPS coordinates of its presence through an indirect sign (e.g., tracks or vocalizations) or an actual sighting. And one day, you decide to make a map of its distribution, but of course, you do not have the time and effort to look in every nook and cranny of the peninsula to make an accurate map. So wouldn’t you like to know potential places where your species might be found? Over the years, scientists have developed a range of species distribution models (SDMs) to help you do just that. SDMs try to establish a relationship between your species records and the environmental or spatial characteristics (e.g., rainfall, temperature, forest cover, land use types, distance to water sources) of your sampling area (Franklin 2009). In other words, SDMs help to predict where you might find other suitable habitats for your species – you don’t always have to depend on luck to go find them! One of the more popular types of SDMs is Maximum Entropy Modelling Continue reading →

April 18, 2011February 13, 2019 by Rimba Categories: Biologist's Toolbox, Home, Project UpdatesTags: ArcGIS, Asian tapir, bias grid, Dudík, Elith, Franklin, Maxent, Maximum Entropy, Peninsular Malaysia, Phillips, Reid Tingley, Reuben Clements, Sheema Abdul Aziz, Species Distribution Model, SPSS 7 Comments

Publication update 3: The SAFE Index – what it is and what it isn’t

A conservationist’s work is all about saving endangered species. We all know that. Most of us in the business are also familiar with the IUCN Red List, which categorises species according to how threatened they are.

But have you ever wondered just how close a species really is to extinction? What does it mean exactly, when a species is endangered? And are all endangered species equally endangered? What if you had a limited amount of resources – a bit of funding here, a few members of staff there, and a whole bunch of species that need saving.

Or perhaps it all comes down to a choice between two different species. They’re both endangered. But you can’t save them both, because the resources you have simply aren’t enough. You have to choose. How do you choose? Wouldn’t you want some method to help you decide which species you should invest your resources and effort in?

This is what the SAFE Index is all about.

Continue reading →

April 12, 2011March 12, 2013 by Rimba Categories: Home, PublicationsTags: Barry Brook, conservation triage, Corey Bradshaw, endangered, extinction, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, IUCN Red List, mammal, minimum viable population, MVP, Reuben Clements, SAFE index, Species ability to forestall extinction, William Laurance 1 Comment