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Range extension of the Melogale personata I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1831 (Mustelidae) in Nepal

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  • Central Department of Environment Science - Tribhuvan University

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Melogale personata I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1831, Large-toothed Ferret Badger (Mustelidae), is distributed from Nepal to Vietnam with very few records. It historically is known by only one recent sighting record from an unspeci-fied area of Nepal. The IUCN species distribution map shows this species in the Okhaldhunga District. We confirm the presence of M. personata in Nepal based on a sighting of a juvenile individual. This is the first record of this species from Syangja District, Nepal. The geographical range of this species is extended farther west in Nepal.
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Range extension of the Melogale personata I. Georoy Saint-
Hilaire, 1831 (Mustelidae) in Nepal
Sijar Bhatta1,2, Dipak Khadka1,3,4*, Gobinda Prasad Pokharel1, Komal Raj Kae5,
Man Kumar Dhamala6, Badri Bahadur Khawas7, Ramesh Prasad Sapkota6, Jerrold L. Belant8
1 GoldenGate International College, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal • SB: sijar.bhatta1@gmail.com https://orcid.org/0000-0 003-
3168-1171 • DK: d.khadka@goldengate.edu.np https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0472-3535 • GPP: govindapokhrel90@gmail.com
2 Amrit Campus, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
3 Guangdong Key Laboratory for Innovative Development and Utilization of Forest Plant Germplasm, College of Forestry and Landscape
Architecture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
4 Environment Protection and Study Center (ENPROSC), Kathmandu, Nepal
5 Division Forest Oce, Syanga, Nepal • KRK: kaekomal@gmail.com
6 Central Department of Environmental Science, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal • MKD: mkdhamala@cdes.edu.np • RPS: rsapkota@
cdes.edu.np
7 Waling Municipality, Syajnga District, Nepal • BBK: khawasbdr201@gmail.com
8 Global Wildlife Conservation Center, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, New York, USA
• JLB: jbelant@esf.edu
* Corresponding author
Abstract
Melogale personata I. Georoy Saint-Hilaire, 1831, Large-toothed Ferret Badger (Mustelidae), is distributed from
Nepal to Vietnam with very few records. It historically is known by only one recent sighting record from an unspeci-
ed area of Nepal. The IUCN species distribution map shows this species in the Okhaldhunga District. We conrm the
presence of M. personata in Nepal based on a sighting of a juvenile individual. This is the rst record of this species
from Syangja District, Nepal. The geographical range of this species is extended farther west in Nepal.
Keywords
Distribution, rst record, mammalian carnivore
Academic editor: Krizler Tanalgo | Received 20 May 2021 | Accepted 28 September 2021 | Published 2 November 2021
Citation: Bhatta S, Khadka D, Pokharel GP, Kae KR, Dhamala MK, Khawas BB, Sapkota RP, Belant JL (2021) Range extension of the Melogale
personata I. Georoy Saint-Hilaire, 1831 (Mustelidae) in Nepal. Check List 17 (6): 1451–1454. https://doi.org/10.15560/17.6.1451
Introduction
Melogale personata I. Georoy Saint-Hilaire, 1831
(Large-toothed Ferret-Badger or Burmese Ferret Badger)
is a carnivore from the family Mustelidae. It has been
recorded in India, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos,
Vietnam, Bangladesh, China, and Malaysia (O’Donel
1917; Hinton and Fry 1923; Osgood 1932; Pocock 1941;
Hussain 1999; Wozencraft 2005; Islam et al. 2008).
According to the IUCN Red List, M. personata is
Check List 17 (6): 1451–1454
https://doi.org/10.15560/17.6.1451
6
17
© The authors. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use,
distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
NOTES ON GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION
1452 Check List 17 (6)
classied as Least Concern in 1996, Data Decient in
2008, and again Least Concern in 2015. The popula-
tion size and trend is unknown (Duckworth et al. 2016).
Recent records from Bangladesh, Cambodia, and India
(Islam et al. 2008; Schank et al. 2009; Kakati et al. 2014)
are from elevations below 550 m (Peenen et al. 1971) to
1520 m a.m.s.l. (Pocock 1941).
Hinton and Fry (1923) reported M. nepalensis (Ho dg-
son, 1836) from Nepal, but this taxon is now considered
a valid subspecies of M. personata in South Asia (Srini-
vasulu and Srinivasulu 2012; Srinivasulu 2018). Thapa
(2014) opined that M. personata may be extirpated from
Nepal. However, Duckworth et al. (2016) conrmed the
presence of this species based on photographic evidence,
which lacks a details of location, elevation, and habitat.
Here, we report the rst conrmed observation of M.
personata in Syangja District of Nepal.
Methods
A young Melogale personata was recorded on 9 June
2020 in Waling Municipality-11, Tallo Pekhu Orale,
Sy angja District, Nepal (Fig. 1). A photograph of this
individual was taken, along with a morphological ex-
amination including body weight, and tail and body
length. The individual was observed for six hours. We
veried this record through iNaturalist (2021) and online
searches using Google Scholar, ResearchGate, and the
IUCN database. Identication of the species was veried
through consultation with an expert, Prof. Karan Baha-
dur Shah. We used ArcGIS v. 10.4.1, and the IUCN data-
base to map our new record.
Results
Melogale personata I. Georoy Saint-Hilaire, 1831
Figure 2
New record. N EPA L Ga nda ki Pr ovince • Syangja Dis-
trict, Waling Municipality-11, near Sanu Pekhu Com-
munity Forest and Tallo Pekhu Orale village; 83°45′
42.33″E, 027°59′48.76″N; 975 m a.m.s.l.; 9.VI.2020;
Badri Khawas; collected near a Ficus semicordata Buch.-
Ham. ex Sm. tree with grasses and shr ubs, adjacent to a
corn eld and forested area dominated by Schima wal-
lichii (DC.) Korth. and Castanopsis indica (J. Roxb. ex
Lindl.) A. DC.
Identication. The estimated weight of this juvenile
was 1 kg and the total length was 45 cm (body length
= 30 cm; tail length = 15 cm). Sex was not determined.
The pelage was dominated by black, with a white dorsal
stripe on body and white spots on the face, ear, and foot.
We conrmed this species through the pattern of dorsal
pelage and facial markings (Islam et al. 2008; Kakati et
al. 2014; Duckworth et al. 2016).
Figure 1. Location of Melogale personata in Waling, Syangja District, Nepal (black star), and current global distribution of the species:
yellow = previous range; orange = new range (modied from Duckworth et al. 2016).
Bhatta et al. 2021 | Melogale personata in Nepal 1453
Discussion
This is the rst known record of Melogale personata in
Sayngja District, and it represents a range extension of
296 km west of the species’ current known distribution
as given by Duckworth et al. (2016). The recorded habitat
of grass and bushes was similar to the habitat described
by Peenen et al. (1971).
The weight and length of our recorded individual
were less than an animal from Bangladesh, where the
weight was about 2 kg and the total length was 51 cm
(body length = 33 cm; tail length = 18 cm) (Islam et al.
2008), and animals from India, which were reported to
be 1.7 kg and 55–63 cm in total length (Pocock 1941).
There is currently no action plan for M. personata
in Nepal, where it is considered Data Decient (Amin
et al. 2018). Globally it is Least Concern (Duckworth et
al. 2016). India has maintained M. personata on Sched-
ule II (I) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 (Kakati
et al. 2014); however, due to a lack of information on the
ecology and distribution of this species, it has been clas-
sied as Data Decient in India (Sharma et al 2014). Our
new data represents a geographic range extension of M.
personata to Nepal, furthers our understanding of this
species’ distribution, and adds to the mammalian diver-
sity of Nepal.
As there are no previous records of M. personata
from the Syanjga District, our new record supports a
substantial range extension of this species in Nepal. We
recommend additional eld surveys to better understand
the distribution of this species and further rene its con-
servation status in Nepal.
Acknowledgements
We thank the Syanjga District Forest Oce, Annapurna
Conservation Area Project, Rishi Baral, Jhalnath Pou-
del, Karan Bahadur Shah, and Devi Kala Khawas for
their support with this observation. We also thank sub-
ject editor Krizler Tanalgo and reviewers for their com-
ments which improved the manuscript.
Authors’ Contributions
Conceptualization: SB, DK, GP, MKD, KRK, RPS,
JLB. Data curation: SB, DK, GP, MKD, JLB. Formal
analysis: SB, DK, JLB. Visualization: BBK, KRK. Writ-
ing original draft: SB, DK. Writing review and editing:
JLB, DK, SB, RPS.
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... It is one of the rarely recorded and studied mammalian species. Its occurrence has been documented from northeast India, Bangladesh, Nepal, southeast China, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam (Pocock, 1941;Van Peenen et al., 1971;Islam et al., 2008;Schank et al., 2009;Robichaud, 2010;Kakati et al., 2014;Duckworth et al., 2016;Li et al., 2019;Bhatta et al., 2021). It is an elusive mammal identified by a dorsal streak that runs to its tail and a white stripe across the eyes and face, black around the nose, and black spots on cheeks (Baral & Shah, 2008;Jnawali et al., 2011;Duckworth et al., 2016;Bhatta et al., 2021). ...
... Its occurrence has been documented from northeast India, Bangladesh, Nepal, southeast China, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam (Pocock, 1941;Van Peenen et al., 1971;Islam et al., 2008;Schank et al., 2009;Robichaud, 2010;Kakati et al., 2014;Duckworth et al., 2016;Li et al., 2019;Bhatta et al., 2021). It is an elusive mammal identified by a dorsal streak that runs to its tail and a white stripe across the eyes and face, black around the nose, and black spots on cheeks (Baral & Shah, 2008;Jnawali et al., 2011;Duckworth et al., 2016;Bhatta et al., 2021). The population size and trend of Burmese ferret badger are unknown (Duckworth et al., 2016) but it has been recorded from the lowlands at 15 m (Schank et al., 2009) up to 1,520 m (Pocock, 1941). ...
... Eventhough Kakati et al. (2014) suggested that need be confirmed only by indentification based on the large P4 has an outer concave edge and is one-third in length to the upper cheek teeth similarly the upper P1 is excessively small incomparision to upper P2 This diagnosis is important for confirmation between Large-toothed Ferret Badger and Smalltoothed Ferret Badger Melogale moschata only because of their gross external similarity. But In Nepal presence of M. personata Its was indicated by Suwal and Verheugt (1995) in far eastern Nepal: Ilam and Jhapa, Okhaldhunga (Duckworth et al., 2016) and Syangja by Bhatta et al. (2021). The species in Nepal was first time described for science by Hodgson (1836) from Rapti River bank probably near Hetauda, Makawanpur district as M. nepalensis (Hinton & Fry, 1923), but this taxon is now considered a valid subspecies of M. personata (Srinivasulu & Srinivasulu, 2012;Srinivasulu, 2018). ...
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Burmese Ferret Badger (Melogale personata) was recorded by camera trapping for the first time in Nepal's Nagarjun forest of Shivapui Nagarjun National Park. According to IUCN, it was expected to inhabit only the eastern part of Nepal but recently the species has been recorded from central and western parts of the country. A globally rarely studied species was only observed during daylight in Nepal but this time it is photographed during the night. A Burmese Ferret Badger was captured for one event with three photographs with PCRI 0.085 in the dense mixed forest of Schima wallichii, Castanopsis indica. A more comprehensive study on its ecology is necessary to implement suitable conservation measures.
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Mustelids, viverrids and herpestids of India: species profile and conservation status
  • S A Hussain
Hussain SA (1999) Mustelids, viverrids and herpestids of India: species profile and conservation status. ENVIS Bulletin 2: 1-38.
Notes on the Burmese Ferret-Badger (Helictis personata)
  • H V O'donel
O'Donel HV (1917) Notes on the Burmese Ferret-Badger (Helictis personata). Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 24: 819.
  • W H Osgood
Osgood WH (1932) Mammals of the Kelley-Roosevelts and Delacour Asiatic expeditions. Publications (Field Museum, Natural History), Zoological Series 18: 193-339. https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.2798