The large-spotted civet is an endangered small carnivore found in pockets of forest across Southeast Asia. Now, a new study suggests the nocturnal mammals are heading toward local extinction in Cambodia’s Srepok Wildlife Sanctuary (SWS), once considered a global stronghold for the species.
The study, published in Pacific Conservation Biology, analyzed a decade of camera-trap data from the sanctuary and found a 75-95% decline in the large-spotted civet’s (Viverra megaspila) population density between 2009 and 2019. Over the 10-year period, estimated densities plummeted from approximately 9 individuals per 100 square kilometers (23 per 100 square miles) to fewer than 1 per 100 km2 (3 per 100 mi2). Population models now project the species could be extirpated from the sanctuary by 2034.
However, in the same sanctuary over same study period, the closely related large Indian civet (Viverra zibetha) population flourished. Its population density tripled from 2 to 7 individuals per 100 km² (5 to 18 per 100 mi2).
Researchers point to several factors driving these divergent fates.
The large-spotted civet is believed to reproduce slowly, producing only two offspring per year during a strict breeding season, which the study suggests occurs between November and April. In contrast, the large Indian civet breeds year-round with larger litters, allowing it to better withstand high mortality rates from hunting and snaring.
While there’s no direct evidence of hunting of large-spotted civets in the area, the study authors say indiscriminate snaring increased significantly over the study period, becoming the main driver of wildlife decline there. Both civet species face the same threat, they add, but the large-spotted civet’s slow rate of reproduction makes it far more vulnerable.
Moreover, the researchers suggest the loss of top predators including leopards (Panthera pardus) and dholes (Cuon alpinus) from Srepok appears to have triggered a “mesopredator release.” That’s when populations of smaller carnivores increase to fill the ecological gap left when apex predator populations decline or disappear. According to the study, this release benefitted the large Indian civet, a generalist predator, but not the large-spotted civet, a specialist of lowland dry forests, which failed to capitalize on the opportunity, likely due to increased pressure from domestic dogs and habitat degradation.
The findings suggest the sanctuary’s core population of large-spotted civets may have dropped from 166 individuals in 2009 to as few as nine by 2019. Without intervention, Srepok may lose one of its most unique inhabitants, following the similar local extinctions of leopards and tigers (Panthera tigris), the study notes.
“Immediate conservation actions are crucial,” the authors write, calling for strengthened law enforcement, community-based snare removal, and “wildlife-friendly” incentive programs for local residents.
They also emphasize the need for urgent research into the species’ reproductive ecology to determine if captive breeding or intensive management might help save the civets from completely disappearing from the sanctuary.
Banner image: An 1884 illustration of Viverra megaspila. Image by R.A. Sterndale via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain).
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