Nesolagus netscheri — Details

Sumatran Rabbit learn more about names for this taxon

Overview

Brief Summary

Biology

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Incredibly rare, nocturnal and found only in remote forests, it is easy to understand why local people have no name for the Sumatran rabbit and why many are not even aware of its existence (2). It spends daylight hours in dark shelters, such as holes in the base of trees or burrows of its own making (2) (5), and emerges at night to feed on plants in the forest understorey (2).
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Comprehensive Description

Description

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The Sumatran rabbit is thought to be the rarest species of all lagomorphs (rabbits, hares and pikas) (2). Only 15 museum specimens of the Sumatran rabbit exist, collected between 1880 and 1929, and until 1998, when the Sumatran rabbit was captured on camera, it had only been seen alive once since 1916 (3) (4). It has soft, short yellowish-grey fur, turning rusty brown toward the rear, with distinctive wide black or dark brown stripes across its face and back, providing wonderful camouflage in its forest habitat (2). The fur on the underparts is whitish, its ears are black, and its tail is so short it is not normally visible (2).
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Distribution

Range Description

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The species is endemic to the island of Sumatra, Indonesia (Hoffmann and Smith 2005). The majority of records are from west-central and southwest Sumatra, with one record from Gunung Leuser NP (Flux 1990).

N. netscheri occurs at a minimum elevation of 600 m and maximum elevation of 1,600 m (Flux 1990).
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Geographic Range

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This rabbit has been recorded only from the highlands of the Barisan range in southwestern Sumatra.

Biogeographic Regions: oriental (Native )

Other Geographic Terms: island endemic

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Range

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Endemic to Sumatra, where it has been found in the Barisan Mountains, west and southwest Sumatra, and there is one record from Gunung Leuser National Park in north-west Sumatra (2).
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Physical Description

Morphology

Physical Description

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Head and body length ranges from 350 to 400mm. Tail length is approximately 15mm. The background coloration of Nesolagus is a buffy gray. Striking brown stripes, including a mid-dorsal stripe from the shoulders to the rump, pattern the face, legs, and body. The underfur is soft and dense. The rump and tail are bright red, and the undersides white.

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Ecology

Habitat

Habitat and Ecology

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Habitat and Ecology
Most records of Nesolagus netscheri are from land being cleared for coffee or tea plantations, rabbits were noticed as the forest was cleared at elevations between 600 m and 1,600 m (Flux 1990). The preferred habitat of N. netscheri is montane forest with volcanic soil (Flux 1990). This species has low tolerance to human disturbance (Meijaard and Sugardjito 2005).

Its diet consists of understory plants, and it is not seen feeding in clearings (Flux 1990). It is nocturnal, residing during the day in burrows most likely built by other animals (Flux 1990; Schneider 2001). HB length is 36.8-41.7 cm (Flux 1990).

Systems
  • Terrestrial
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Habitat

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The Sumatra short-eared rabbit lives in forests at 600 to 1400m.

Terrestrial Biomes: rainforest

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Habitat

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The Sumatran rabbit is one of the few lagomorphs that inhabits dense rainforest. It has been found between 600 and 1,600 metres above sea level, however, much of its forest habitat has now been cleared for tea and coffee plantations (2).
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Trophic Strategy

Food Habits

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Nesolagus feeds on succulent stalks and leaves of understory plants. Captive rabbits ate rice, corn, bread, bananas, and pineapple.

Primary Diet: herbivore (Folivore , Lignivore)

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Life History and Behavior

Reproduction

Reproduction

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Nothing is known about the reproduction of these rabbits.

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Conservation

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List Assessment

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Red List Category
VU
Vulnerable

Red List Criteria
B1ab(i,ii,iii,iv,v)

Version
3.1

Year Assessed
2008

Assessor/s
Meijaard, E. & Sugardjito, J.

Reviewer/s
Smith, A.T. & Boyer, A.F. (Lagomorph Red List Authority)

Justification
Nesolagus netscheri is a naturally rare species, endemic to Sumatra, and is not well known locally. It is threatened by anthropogenic factors, primarily habitat destruction (Flux 1990). Its population is restricted to elevations above 600 m and it is known from only seven locations (Flux 1990). Based on suitable habitat, elevation, and location records, the species has an extent of occurrence less than 20,000 km².

History
  • 1996
    Critically Endangered
  • 1994
    Endangered
    (Groombridge 1994)
  • 1990
    Indeterminate
    (IUCN 1990)
  • 1988
    Indeterminate
    (IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre 1988)
  • 1986
    Rare
    (IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre 1986)
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Conservation Status

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Nesolagus is listed as IUCN-Indeterminate and is "...apparently the rarest lagomorph. About a dozen museum specimens exist, collected between 1880 and 1916, and there has been only one confirmed sighting sice then, in 1972." The rarity of Nesolagus may be the result of deforestation and habitat loss.

CITES: no special status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: vulnerable

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Status

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Classified as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List 2007 (1).
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Population

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Population
Population size and density are unknown for this species, though density is suspected to be naturally low (Flux 1990). It is a rarely seen species, that has likely never been common in its range as there is little local knowledge of the species (Flux 1990). It is known from only seven locations (Flux 1990).

A sighting in January 2007 with a camera trap was the most recent since 2000, and the previous record was from 1972 (BBC News 2007).

Population Trend
Unknown
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Threats

Threats

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Major Threats
The main threat to Nesolagus netscheri is the clearing of mountain forest for agriculture, primarily coffee, tea and cocoa plantations (Flux 1990). It is not apparently hunted routinely, probably due to its natural rarity (Flux 1990).
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Threats

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The forests of the Barisan Mountains are being rapidly cleared for timber, tea and coffee plantations and human settlements. An influx of immigrants from Java through a transmigration program has only increased the rate at which the rabbit's habitat is disappearing (2).
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Management

Conservation Actions

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Conservation Actions
A conservation plan for Nesolagus netscheri had been proposed in the past, but was never funded (Flux 1990). The discovery and protection of a population of rabbits is necessary for conservation, and surveys of the distribution of the rabbit and its presence in reserves and private land (Flux 1990).

N. netscheri had been locally reported as fairly common, by locals, in the protected area Gumai Pasemah Wildlife Reserve in Sumatra Selatan (Flux 1990). However, a return trip to the area discovered that a feral colony of Oryctolagus cuniculus was mistakenly identified as N. netscheri by the locals on the northern side of the reserve (Flux 1990). It has been caught by camera traps in Kerinci Seblat National Park (Fauna and Flora News 1998) and Bukit Barisan National Park (BBC News 2007).
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Conservation

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While the Sumatran rabbit is very poorly known, it is clear that its continued survival relies on the existence of its montane forest habitat (2) (4). It is important to locate a viable population of the rabbit, and then implement protective measures for both the rabbit and its habitat. If a population is located, it may also be necessary to initiate a captive breeding program, to create a population of rabbits for reintroduction should this rare and intriguing rabbit disappear from its natural habitat (2).
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Wikipedia

Sumatran Striped Rabbit

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The Sumatran Striped Rabbit (Nesolagus netscheri), also known as the Sumatra Short-eared Rabbit or Sumatran Rabbit, is a rabbit found only in forest in the Barisan Mountains in western Sumatra, Indonesia. It is threatened due to habitat loss, leading the IUCN to rate it as Vulnerable.[2]

The Sumatran Striped Rabbit is usually about 40 cm (1 ft, 4 in) long, with tails 17mm long[3] . It is gray with brown stripes, with a red tail and rump, and the underside is white. It lives in forests at altitudes of 600-1400 metres. It is nocturnal, resting in the burrows of other animals. It usually eats the stalk and leaves of understory plants, but captive rabbits ate grain, and tropical fruits.[4]

Following a sighting in 1972, the Sumatran Striped Rabbit went unreported until an individual was photographed in 2000.[2] Since then there have been three reports of this species, all from the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park: In January 2007 one was photographed with a camera trap,[5] in September 2008 one was photographed by a WWF scientist,[6] and in June 2009 one was observed.[7]

Related species

This rabbit was the sole representative of the genus Nesolagus until the Annamite Striped Rabbit was discovered in the Annamite Mountains between Laos and Vietnam.

References

  1. ^ Hoffman, Robert S.; Smith, Andrew T. (16 November 2005). "Order Lagomorpha (pp. 185-211". In Wilson, Don E., and Reeder, DeeAnn M., eds. Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2 vols. (2142 pp.). pp. 205. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494. http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3/browse.asp?id=13500251. 
  2. ^ a b c Meijaard E & Sugardjito J (2008). Nesolagus netscheri. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 2009-01-22. Listed as Vulnerable B1ab(i,ii,iii,iv,v) ver 3.1
  3. ^ Macdonald, Dr. David (1993) (in English). The Encyclopedia of Mammals. Fact on File, Inc.. ISBN 0-87196-871-1. 
  4. ^ Gorog, Antonia. "Animal Diversity Web: Nesolagus netscheri". University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Nesolagus_netscheri.html. Retrieved 2007-04-05. 
  5. ^ "Striped rabbit spotted in Sumatra". BBC News. 2007-04-05. http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/6530365.stm. Retrieved 2007-04-05. 
  6. ^ WWF Save Sumatra (2009) Rare rabbit species directly photographed. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
  7. ^ Dinets, V.L. (2010). "Observation of Sumatran striped rabbit (Nesolagus nescheri) in the wild". Mammalia 74 pp.: 1. 
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