A Supplemental HCVF Assessment on the Sumatran Tiger ...

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FINAL REPORT Tiger <strong>HCVF</strong> <strong>Supplemental</strong> <strong>Assessment</strong> – Serapung FMU 2.2.1 Study Area The study area was based on recommendations provided by SmartWood as quoted here: • The coastal strip between Tanjung Datuk at the mouth of the Kampar river to the next river channel entering the sea, at Pulau Tadi, extending 10 km inland from the coast. • Contained within this area is a 5,884 ha block of forest within the FMU. Based on STCP’s expertise, the study area was modified slightly to that described above. The study area included the eastern sub-unit of the Serapung FMU (Serapung I; PT Satria Perkasa Agung) and its adjacent forests and surrounding local communities, with particular focus on the indicative <strong>HCVF</strong> area as delineated by SmartWood. The indicative <strong>HCVF</strong> area occupies the northern half of Serapung I. The indicative <strong>HCVF</strong> is 5,884 ha of which 3,267 ha was originally planned for plantation development. The remaining natural forest has been classified by the FMU management under various definitions of set-aside land in fulfilment of Ministry of Forestry regulations (see Figure 2 in the previous section). Forest areas outside the FMU were sampled in recognition of the paucity of regional tiger and landscape data, in accordance with the guidelines and assessment scope provided by SmartWood, and in line with the intrinsic <strong>HCVF</strong> requirement of establishing the contribution of FMU tigers, if present, to the viability of the population in the wider landscape. Sampling of forest habitat outside the FMU was also considered necessary in order to provide a context for comparison of habitat within the indicative <strong>HCVF</strong> area with habitat adjacent and in the wider landscape-level forest block. Sumatran Tiger Conservation Program Pg 12/68
FINAL REPORT Tiger <strong>HCVF</strong> <strong>Supplemental</strong> <strong>Assessment</strong> – Serapung FMU 2.3 Ecology of Peat Swamp Forests around the FMU The SmartWood <strong>HCVF</strong> report describes in detail the ecological characteristics and associated flora and fauna of the major habitat types found in the Siak-Pelalawan block. Five habitats are recognised in this landscape - tall PSF, mixed PSF, short PSF, secondary habitats, and mangrove/coastal habitats. Only short PSF was found to be absent from the FMU. Coastal peat-swamp forest, where peat accumulates on top of marine sediments (Reiley, Ahmad-Shah & Brady 1996), is predominant within the FMU – presenting as Tall PSF across the majority of the FMU area. The FMU PSF abuts tidal rivers and coastline, providing an accumulation of freshwater in the peat soil which maintains sufficient hydrostatic pressure to repel tidal saltwater incursions into the inland soil profile. Relatively little terrestrial wildlife research has been carried out within PSF ecotypes in general, with most previous PSF wildlife studies limited to investigation of arboreal and aquatic animal species. This lack of ecological context has presented a challenge to the interpretation of results obtained during this assessment. Despite this paucity of data regarding terrestrial animals, some inferences can be made from general ecological studies within the PSF ecosystem. Low nutrient levels of soils in mature PSF almost certainly limit primary production. In such a habitat plants are expected to defend their leaves and other edible parts as fiercely as possible against potential herbivores (Whitten et al. 2000). Consistent with low productivity ecosystems, a number of studies have indicated that the density of primates is lower in PSF than in dry lowland systems (Galdikas 1978, Marsh and Wilson 1981, Mackinnon 1983) which decreases further still with increasing distance from rivers (MacKinnon et al. 1996). Many species of mammals and birds inhabiting PSF are the same as those in other lowland tropical rainforest (Medway 1977, Davies and Payne 1982; MacKinnon 1983; Wells 1985) although, for at least terrestrial mammals, these are found to live at much lower densities in PSF (Merton 1962, Janzen 1974). Extrapolated to the typical prey species of the tiger, PSF would be expected to have a lower carrying capacity and hence its habitat potential for tigers would be less optimal when compared to other lowland forest ecotypes. Other research has suggested that PSF has ecological attributes that increase its conservation value. While PSF is generally considered to have a relatively low floristic diversity (MacKinnon et al. 1996), recent studies have shown that tree diversity can be comparable to, and sometimes even greater than, that of forests on mineral soils (Hanum & Leprun 1999). PSF also provides a habitat for a number of endemic and rare tree species (Ibrahim 1997). Similarly, of the 57 mammal and 237 bird species recorded in PSF of peninsular Malaysia, 51% and 27% respectively are listed as globally threatened species (Sebastian 2002). In Sumatra, PSF constitutes the largest remaining area of low-level forest habitat and, as such, now represents a vital refuge for not only peat swamp specialists, but also a wider range of lowland specialist species (Sebastian 2002). 2.3.1 Habitat Modification of Peat Swamp Forest by Logging The Siak-Pelalawan forest block represents a modified PSF ecosystem due to logging activities. The entire forest block has, in the recent past, been managed and exploited under HPH logging concessions (Figure 4). Inspection of satellite imagery (Landsat 2001, 2002 and SPOT 2004) reveals logging rails have been used widely across the forest block, and that severe degradation of forest is associated with the more accessible areas. Sumatran Tiger Conservation Program Pg 13/68
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