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The Journal of Threatened Taxa (JoTT) is dedicated to building evidence for conservaon globally by publishing peer-reviewed arcles
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Commons Aribuon 4.0 Internaonal License unless otherwise menoned. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproducon, and distribuon
of arcles in any medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publicaon.
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ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
Building evidence for conservaon globally
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Rejoice Gassah & Vijay Anand Ismavel
26 December 2020 | Vol. 12 | No. 17 | Pages: 17383–17384
DOI: 10.11609/jo.6005.12.17.17383-17384
Member
Threatened Taxa
The opinions expressed by the authors do not reect the views of the Journal of Threatened Taxa, Wildlife Informaon Liaison
Development Society, Zoo Outreach Organizaon, or any of the partners. The journal, the publisher, the host, and the part-
ners are not responsible for the accuracy of the polical boundaries shown in the maps by the authors.
17383
Editor: Anwaruddin Choudhury, The Rhino Foundaon for Nature in North East India, Guwaha, India. 26 December 2020 (online & print)
Gassah, R. & V.A. Ismavel (2020). First photographic record of the Asiac Brush-tailed Porcupine Atherurus macrourus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Mammalia: Rodena:
Hystricidae) from the Barak Valley region of Assam, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 12(17): 17383–17384. hps://doi.org/10.11609/jo.6005.12.17.17383-17384
Copyright: © Gassah & Ismavel 2020. Creave Commons Aribuon 4.0 Internaonal License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproducon, and distribuon of this
arcle in any medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publicaon.
The equipment (camera trap) used in this observaon was funded by the Makunda Chrisan Leprosy and General Hospital.
The authors declare no compeng interests.
The authors wish to acknowledge with thanks the ulizaon of camera trap, GPS and other equipment provided by the Makunda Chrisan
Leprosy and General Hospital for this observaon.
Atherurus macrourus
1 & 2
1,2 The Makunda Chrisan Leprosy and General Hospital, Bazaricherra, Karimganj District, Assam 788727, India.
1 joicesasfy@gmail.com, 2 ivijayanand@yahoo.in (corresponding author)
ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
N
#6005 | Received 17 April 2020 | Finally accepted 22 December 2020
DOI: hps://doi.org/10.11609/jo.6005.12.17.17383-17384
An Asiac Brush-tailed Porcupine Atherurus
macrourus (Linnaeus, 1758) was photographed on the
25 February 2019 at 23.49h in semi-evergreen forest,
close to Dosdewa Village in Karimganj District of Assam
(92.4050N & 24.3580E) using a camera trap during
biodiversity documentaon acvies. This is the rst
photographic record of this species from the Barak
Valley region of Assam (Image 1–3). The Asiac Brush-
tailed Porcupine is a species of rodent in the Hystricidae
family and is the smallest and rarest of the three species
of porcupines found in southern Asia (Molur 2020). In
India, this species occurs only in northeastern India
and has been reported from Namdapha Naonal Park
of Arunachal Pradesh, Garampani Wildlife Sanctuary
of Assam, Intanki Naonal Park in Nagaland, Ngengpui
Wildlife Sanctuary of Mizoram, and Khasi Hills of
Meghalaya (Talukdar et al. 2019); there are also records
from the other states (Choudhury 2013). In 2014, the
species was observed from the Gedu Territorial Forest
Division of western Bhutan (Dhendup & Dorji 2017).
Worldwide, it has also been reported from southern
China, northern Myanmar, northern Thailand, Laos,
Vietnam, Malay peninsula, and adjacent islands (Molur
2020).
The species is disnguished by absence of crest,
back covered with rigid spines and tail bearing scales
with short spiny bristles in-between and ending in
a cluster of alternately expanded and contracted
papery hairs 8–10cm long giving a characterisc brush-
like appearance which was clearly captured in the
photographs (Agarwal 2000). Being a shy, nocturnal,
and fossorial animal, it is very dicult to get diagnosc
Atherurus macrourus
Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 December 2020 | 12(17): 17383–17384
Brush-tailed Porcupine in Barak Valley Gassah & Ismavel
J
images of this species, except through camera trapping.
Porcupines are seen as a pest by farmers and are also
trapped and consumed as meat. Although this species is
classied as Least Concern (LC) in the IUCN Red List it is
protected in India under Schedule II – Part I of the Indian
Wildlife Protecon Act. The presence of this species in
the Barak Valley of Assam is signicant as it indicates
that good mammalian diversity occurs in this region,
inspite of rapid degradaon of the forests.
Taxonomic Studies of Indian Muridae and
Hystricidae Mammalia: Rodena). Records of the Zoological Survey
of India Occassional Paper No. 180, 177pp.
The Mammals of North East India. Gibbon
Books and The Rhino Foundaon for Nature in NE India. 432pp.
First record of the Asiac Brush-
tailed Porcupine Atherurus macrourus Linnaeus 1758 (Mammalia:
Rodena: Hystricidae) from western Bhutan. Journal of
Threatened Taxa 9(11): 10959–10960. hp://doi.org/10.11609/
jo.3791.9.11.10959-10960
Atherurus macrourus. (amended version of 2016
assessment) The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020:
e.T2354A166518819. Downloaded on 16 April 2020. hps://doi.
org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-1.RLTS.T2354A166518819.en
Current Records of
porcupine in northeast India: distribuon, habitat preference and
conservaon. Tropical Ecology 60: 41–51. hps://doi.org/10.1007/
s42965-019-00005-4
Atherurus macrourus
www.threatenedtaxa.org
The Journal of Threatened Taxa (JoTT) is dedicated to building evidence for conservaon globally by
publishing peer-reviewed arcles online every month at a reasonably rapid rate at www.threatenedtaxa.org.
All arcles published in JoTT are registered under Creave Commons Aribuon 4.0 Internaonal License
unless otherwise menoned. JoTT allows allows unrestricted use, reproducon, and distribuon of arcles
in any medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publicaon.
Member
Threatened Taxa
– Masaya Yamamoto, Honami Sugawara, Kazuhiro Fukushima,
Hiroaki Setoguchi & Kaoruko Kurata, Pp. 17263–17275
– Arumugam Kumaraguru, Rosee Celsiya Mary & Vijayaraghavalu
Saisaraswathi, Pp. 17276–17286
– Sachin M. Pal & Kishore Rajput, Pp. 17287–17298
– Momang Taram, Dipankar Borah, Hui Tag & Ritesh Kumar
Choudhary, Pp. 17299–17322
– Amruta Dhamorikar, Dhanusha Kawalkar, Prathamesh Gurjarpadhye
& Shirish Manchi, Pp. 17323–17329
– J.H. Zothanpuii, Sushanto Gouda, Abinash Parida & G.S. Solanki,
Pp. 17330–17339
– V.B. Sreekumar, K.A. Sreejith, M.S. Sanil, M.K. Harinarayanan,
M.P. Prejith & R.V. Varma, Pp. 17340–17346
– Anirban Mahata, Niladri Prasad Mishra & Sharat Kumar Palita,
Pp. 17347–17360
Occurrence of
– Kante Krishna Prasad, Mohammad Younus & Chelmala Srinivasulu,
Pp. 17361–17365
Notes
– Sanjeet Kumar & Rajkumari Supriya Devi, Pp. 17366–17369
– Zaheer Ahmed, Ahmad Samiuddin, Altaf Hussain Mir &
Mohammad Shamim, Pp. 17370–17373
– W.G.D. Chathuranga, K. Kariyawasam, Anslem de Silva &
W.A. Priyanka P. de Silva, Pp. 17374–17379
for
– Arun Pratap Singh, Pp. 17380–17382
– Rejoice Gassah & Vijay Anand Ismavel, Pp. 17383–17384
– S. Suresh Ramanan, Pp. 17385–17386