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Habitat selection and the change in distribution of asian elephants in Mengyang Protected Area, Yunnan, China

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Abstract

Elephants were confined to Mengyang Protected Area in China and their distribution range had reduced greatly compared to past records. A preliminary study of habitat selection by Asian elephantsElephas maximus Linnaeus, 1758 and their distribution was conducted in Mengyang Protected Area and its surrounds using site visits and transect surveys from July 2003 to December 2006. Although no variable significantly influenced their habitat selection, elephants still showed preference for altitudes between 900 and 1200 m, gradients <30°, and orientations to the south-east, south and south-west. Human activities, including habitat transformation and degradation, disturbance by large infrastructure and poaching were considered to be the main factors inducing elephant distribution changes.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Ministry of Education, College of Life Science, Beijing Normal University, 100875, Beijing, China

    Liu Lin, Limin Feng, Wenjing Pan & Li Zhang

  2. Xishuangbanna National Nature Reserve Bureaus, 666100, Jinghong, Yunnan, China

    Xianming Guo, Jianwei Zhao & Aidong Luo

Authors
  1. Liu Lin
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  2. Limin Feng
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  3. Wenjing Pan
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  4. Xianming Guo
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  5. Jianwei Zhao
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  6. Aidong Luo
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  7. Li Zhang
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Correspondence to Li Zhang.

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Associate editor was Matt Hayward.

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Lin, L., Feng, L., Pan, W. et al. Habitat selection and the change in distribution of asian elephants in Mengyang Protected Area, Yunnan, China. Acta Theriol 53, 365–374 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03195197

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03195197

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