The Owston s palm civet Conservation Program (OCP) Cuc Phuong National Park Vietnam

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1 The Owston s palm civet Conservation Program (OCP) Cuc Phuong National Park Vietnam September 2001 The Species Owston s palm civet (Chrotogale owstoni Thomas 1912) is a range restricted small carnivore (Carnivora: Viverridae) native to the forests of Northern Indochina (northern and central Vietnam, Laos, and southern China). Highly sought for its meat and alleged traditional medicinal properties, Owston s palm civet is threatened by the combined affects of illegal hunting and a significant reduction in natural habitat throughout its range. C. owstoni is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List (2000) and listed under Appendix II of CITES. It is given high conservation priority in all of its known range countries. In Vietnam, it is protected under Decree 18 of Vietnam s wildlife protection laws, prohibiting trade of the species. Background The IUCN Mustelid and Viverrid Action Plan (1989) recorded Cuc Phuong National Park as the only protected area in Vietnam where Owston s palm civet was known to occur. In 1995, Shelagh Rosenthal initiated doctoral research on the ecology and conservation of Cuc Phuong's resident civet species, and began a study on captive Owston's after five young animals were confiscated by wildlife authorities and brought to the park. This marked the beginning of the OCP and with guidance from the IUCN Mustelid, Viverrid and Procynid Specialist group the OCP has become a successful Small Carnivore Conservation Program. Many of the questions and needs outlined in the IUCN s Action Plan for this species have been answered, and the capacity of our Vietnamese counterparts to protect their countries endangered wildlife has increased as a result of our work. Conservation efforts have focused on behavioral research and captive breeding. The Program has received twelve additional animals from provincial forest protection authorities. OCP s captive breeding program has resulted in the first successful births and rearing of this species in captivity. The OCP has established a Conservation Committee comprising of people actively involved in the Program and the Conservation of the species. The committee will work on developing the Action plan for the Species and in coordinating International conservation efforts of Owston s palm civets in captivity and in the wild. OCP OBJECTIVES The rescue and rehabilitation of Owston s palm civets from the illegal wildlife trade. Carry out monitored re -introductions of rehabilitated animals confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade To build and maintain a genetically healthy population through captive breeding. Increase knowledge of the behavior, reproductive cycle, and ecology of captive Owston s palm civets. To build the capacity of national counterparts to carry out basic biological research, maintain, and manage the Owston s Palm Civet Conservation Program through training and involvement in the program s development.

2 To enhance law enforcement and monitoring of small carnivores in the wildlife trade through ranger training and provision of printed resources to regional Forest protection departments. To increase public awareness about the need to protect small carnivores and their habitat through development of an education program and associated printed resources. Carry out field surveys to assess the distribution, status and threats to Owston s palm civets in the wild. Rescue & Rehabilitation Since the program was established, we have assisted the Forestry Protection Department (FPD) in the rescue of 12 Owston's palm civets from the hands of traders and hunters trying to export them to China to be used in the traditional medicine market and as meat. In some areas civet meat is thought to be an aphrodisiac. Animals are caught by a variety of methods. The first five Owston s brought to the Program had been taken from their mother by hand. Unfortunately, one of the most common methods we see used is trapping. Animals often die before we reach them due to the severity of their trap wounds. In three cases where the OCP received animals confiscated from the trade, infection had already set in and we were left with no other option other than to amputate the leg in question. Before the Program was established animals would often be released back into the wild by FPD rangers in the same state as they were confiscated from hunters. No monitoring of success was carried out, and in the state we have received many animals it is unlikely that these would have survived. The Owston's Palm Civet Conservation Program, with support from FPD officials, will continue to rescue Owston s palm civets from the illegal wildlife trade and bring them to the Program for rehabilitation. These animals will be rehabilitated and genetic analysis used to determine any geographic variation for an assessment to be made whether the animal should be released back into a protected area or introduced into the captive breeding population. Rehabilitation consists of veterinary care, endo- and ectoparasite identification and treatment, and serology analysis to determine the presence of any of the diseases possible in a wild population such as canine distemper, feline panleukopenia, or rabies. Research Field research carried out by the OCP will continue to examine the status and distribution of Owston s palm civets in Vietnam and work with counterpart organizations in China to facilitate field surveys in Southern China, thought to be the northern limit of the species range. The Program communicates with other organizations that work in Vietnam to compile records of the species in field surveys, the wildlife trade or interviews that they carry out. The Program intends to carry out a monitored release of an animal confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade. Using radio telemetry, an animal will be tracked during the night, building on ecological knowledge on the species to better understand its niche within its ecosystem and threats to its survival on a broader scale. The information gathered in this release will also assist future field surveys and help refine conditions in captivity. Past captive behavioral studies have focussed on the basic ecology, biology and social behavior of Owston's palm civet. There is a need to expand on this work, with a focus on the issues most critical to the welfare, breeding and conservation of this species in captivity. Dissemination of the information generated from this work will be a central component, aiming to improve husbandry guidelines for institutions that currently hold Owston's Palm Civet and other small carnivores.

3 In 2001/2002 the following studies are planned: 1) Captive behavior and enrichment 2) Diet preferences and food conversion ratios 3) Acoustic Communication 4) Olfactory Communication 5) Reproductive Biology 6) Coat markings 7) Zoo protocol on the captive care of Owston s palm civets Additionally, working with the Paris Museum of Natural History the program provides genetic samples for analysis to determine the presence of multiple subspecies or genetic clades within the species, which has been a contentious issue for some time. Captive Breeding Few centers hold Owston s palm civet and with its successful breeding record, the results of the OCP are important. A total of 20 successful births have given valuable insight into the breeding behavior of this species. There are currently four second-generation animals on the father s side and nine animals that have reached sexual maturity. Research next year on the breeding behavior will incorporate an analysis of sexual hormones which will examine triggers and signs of es trus and correlate behavior to the different stages (e.g. estrus, pregnancy, imminent birth). This will allow the OCP and other institutions holding Owston's palm civet to identify reproductive state. This study will also confirm the breeding season of the species, which before the births in July this year was thought to restricted to the last weeks of January and the first weeks of February. Ranger Training Provincial FPD units posted along Highway 1, the country s principal road transportation link, routinely seizes shipments of wildlife heading north towards the Chinese border. In most cases, these rangers lack the training and skills to identify or deal with the animals they seize. While national efforts to address training continue to bring about slow improvements in capacity, urgent action is needed to address the issue of trade in small carnivores. Vietnam is an important country to monitor the wildlife trade as much of the trade from Cambodia and Laos goes through Vietnam to arrive at Chinese markets. There is very little monitoring of small carnivores in the wildlife trade in Vietnam and the Program aims to fill this niche. By working alongside the Forestry Protection Department, the Program will not only to monitor numbers of small carnivores confiscated by Provincial Ranger Departments in Vietnam, but also conduct regular sweeps of restaurants/markets and known traders in Hanoi. It is hoped that an FPD Ranger will carry out this monitoring. Initial efforts will focus on developing a booklet that may be used by rangers to identify small carnivores confiscated from the wildlife trade. The booklet will also include important information about their ecology, range, habitat, and guidelines on how to deal with animals confiscated from the trade. This booklet will be introduced to provincial departments in the form of a workshop carried out by OCP staff and the FPD trade ranger before joining the monitoring database network. Graduate Training Young Vietnamese biologists of today will become the decision-makers of tomorrow. These people have the key to successful conservation in Vietnam in their hands. With the right guidance and training they can fulfil their potential. It is the responsibility of successful conservation programs such as the OCP to build the capacity of our counterparts, and make conservation in Vietnam more effective.

4 Training is a central component to all the OCP s work and we believe that only through the empowerment of our Vietnamese counterparts will conservation be successful. The Program aims to work with Vietnamese biology graduates in all components. We are currently interviewing for a member of staff to become a captive management trainee. Not only will this role ultimately hand over much of the responsibility of captive management but it will also include captive research training. The international zoo community has responded positively to this concept and the trainee will have the opportunity to train in Zoos overseas and work with visiting zookeepers. Status and distribution surveys are being carried out this year by Le Trong Dat, a National Park biologist who has worked with the OCP since it was established and has assisted in other FFI Field surveys in Vietnam. In the future the Program plans to carry out more comprehensive small carnivore surveys throughout Vietnam. These surveys are currently in planning but it is anticipated that an International team of trained biologists including Vietnamese graduates and biologists will carry these surveys out. Furthermore, the monitored release of an animal confiscated from the wildlife trade planned for 2002, will be carried out by Vietnamese graduates Welfare Training The Owston s Palm Civet Conservation Program is currently developing a zoo protocol for the captive care of the species and this document will be used as a base to guide zoos holding Owston s in husbandry techniques. The OCP already has a good working relationship with Hanoi zoo and later this year a welfaretraining workshop will be carried out at the OCP in the form of lectures and practical activities for the keepers. It is intended that personnel from the Zoo and the Program will work together to develop the workshop that will go on to other Zoos in the region. It is hoped that International Zoos will become involved in this component by offering experience at Zoos overseas as this has proved to be very successful in the past With assistance from the Conservation Committee the OCP will coordinate the national breeding program for the species providing more animals to establish an international breeding loan program and assure higher levels of welfare for the animals held in captivity. The Caudien Wildlife Breeding Center (CWBC) is a component of Hanoi Zoo located outside of Hanoi and has no visitors. The OCP is working with CWBC management to develop an Owston s area at the Center and move the Owston s from the zoo to allow the renovation of the enclosures for future use. Community Education The Education component of the OCP is carried out in cooperation with Education for Nature- Vietnam (ENV). ENV is a Vietnamese NGO tasked with carrying out training and education programs aimed at raising the level of awareness and understanding about nature and the environment, and the need to protect nature and wildlife in Vietnam. The program will continue to use their experience to develop materials suitable for children and adults about small carnivores of Vietnam. At present a children s booklet called The Small Carnivores of Vietnam is being prepared that will be distributed to children around Vietnam. The booklet contains information, puzzles and games on small carnivores of Vietnam and is introduced by a character called Uncle Owston s. It is intended that in the future Uncle Owston s will be used more and a short story has already been written called Uncle Owston s Great Adventure in which, alongside his over excited niece and nephew, they learn about hunters, rangers and meet other small carnivores along their journey. The Conservation Awareness Program part of the FFI Cuc Phuong Conservation Project, has developed a Newsletter for Children which is published quarterly. The OCP has already made

5 contributions in this about Small Carnivores and will continue to do so. The enthusiasm and commitment already seen in the Conservation Awareness Program, which reaches 15,000 school children in National Park buffer-zone communities, is a positive signal that a long term change in attitudes is possible. Community-based conservation projects in Yen Bai, Lao Cai, Tuyen Quang, Bac Kan and Quang Binh provinces with support from OCP personnel include Owston s palm civets in their education programs, as all these provinces lie within the known range of the species International Awareness International awareness of the plight of small carnivores in Vietnam and the Indochina region is restricted to a small group of interested people, but there is a need to create greater awareness of this group of animals. July 2001 saw the first edition of The OCP Review distributed to 75 people around the world, a figure that has now grown to over a 100 for the next edition. The OCP Review not only gives program news but it aims to publish Small Carnivore information from all over Indochina. Furthermore, it is translated into Vietnamese and distributed to Provincial Forestry Protection departments and all Protected areas within the known range of Owston s palm civets in Vietnam; acting as an awareness tool in country. An adoption program that allows individuals, schools and companies to become involved in our work has recently been established that not only aims to raise much needed funds for our work to continue but that also creates awareness of the species on an International level. This will be achieved not only through personal contacts but also with the assistance from zoos around the world in advertising or integrating the adoption program into their own. International zoos have proved invaluable to our continued operation and in raising awareness of our work. The Program is planning to establish an international breeding loan program for Owston s palm civets that will create more viable populations of the species in captivity as well as raising awareness around the world Additionally, the Owston s palm civet Conservat ion Program continues to write press releases on developments and program happenings to the international and national media. References Heard-Rosenthal, S (1999) Owston s Palm Civet Conservation Breeding Project, Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam, Small Carnivore Conservation Heard-Rosenthal, S & Long, B (2000) Standard Operating Procedures for the Captive care of Owston s Palm Civet. Long, B (2001) Status Review of Owston s Palm Civet (in prep) Roberton, S (2001a) Owston's Palm Civet Conservation Program (OCP). Program Summary. Small Carnivore Conservation. 24:15-17 Roberton, S (2001b) Methods used to record Growth and Health in Captive Owston's Palm Civets (Chrotogale owstoni) at Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam. Small Carnivore Conservation 24:20-21 Streicher, U (2001) The use of Xylazine and Ketamine in Owston s Palm Civets Chrotogale owstoni. Small Carnivore Conservation 24:18-19 Streicher, U. (2000). Manual on the veterinary care of Owston s palm civets; some notes on basic veterinary care of Chrotogale owstoni. Endangered Primate Rescue Centre, Cuc Phuong National Park. PhD thesis by Shelagh Heard-Rosenthal expected this 2002 on the results of early research by the Program. MSc thesis to be published 2004

6 Updated Standard operating Procedures published for dissemination to all zoos holding Owston s Palm civet (in prep) The OCP Review (English & Vietnamese). June Vol.1 Iss.1 Cuc Phuong National Park Fauna & Flora International Indochina Program National Partners Advising Organizations Endangered Primate Rescue Center (EPRC) IUCN Mustelid, Viverrid and Procynid Specialist Group Paris Natural History Museum Alexander Koenig Research Institute and Museum of Zoology University Of Veterinary Science, Austria University Of East Anglia Shaldon Wildlife Trust Conservation Committee: Scott Roberton Owston s Palm Civet Conservation Program Officer Shelagh Rosenthal Owston s Palm Civet Conservation Program Senior Adviser Douglas Hendrie Cuc Phuong Conservation Project Manager Truong Quang Bich Cuc Phuong Conservation Project Co-Director Barney Long FFI Indochina Program, Conservation Biologist Le Trong Dat Cuc Phuong National Park Biologist Roland Wirth IUCN Mustelid, Viverrid and Procynid Specialist Group Paul Robinson IUCN Mustelid, Viverrid and Procynid Specialist Group Dusty Lombardi Chair AZA Small Carnivore Taxon Advisory Group Angela Glaston Chair EAZA Small Carnivore Taxon Advisory Group Donors Melbourne Zoo Lynx Keeper Initiative Thrigby Hall Wildlife Gardens Shaldon W ildlife Trust Singapore Zoological Gardens Columbus Zoo BP Statoil Alliance Zoological Society for the Conservation of Species and Populations Church Burgesses Educational Foundation Sheffield Grammar School Exhibition Fund Education for Nature -Vietnam (ENV) Pittsburgh Zoo Scott Roberton Scott Roberton Program Officer c/o Education for Nature - Vietnam PO BOX 222 Hanoi Vietnam owstons@fpt.vn Program Contact