Ours Malais

Sun Bears are threatened primarily by deforestation and commercial hunting, which occurs to varying degrees throughout the range (Duckworth et al. 2012, Stibig et al. 2014). Killing due to human-bear conflicts is an additional threat, although less obvious in its impact.

Active trade in wild Sun Bears and their parts (Foley et al. 2011, Burgess et al. 2014) is one of the two most serious threats to Sun Bear populations. Commercial poaching of Sun Bears was reported by regional experts in the Bear Specialist Group to be a moderate to major threat in all range countries except Brunei, for which there are no data (see also Meijaard 1999, Nea and Nong 2006, Nguyen 2006, Htun 2006, Tumbelaka and Fredriksson 2006, Wong 2006, Krishnasamy and Shepherd 2014). In Thailand, local hunters in one area estimated that commercial poaching reduced the abundance of Sun Bears by more than 40% in 20 years (Steinmetz et al. 2006). Poaching pressure is increasing within some Thai Protected Areas, based on encounter rates of poaching signs and poachers (Steinmetz and Ngoprasert, unpubl. data), though bears are not usually targeted as much as other species. In northeastern India, where Sun Bear populations occur naturally at low densities, bears are still caught and poaching is said to have reached "critical" levels (Chauhan and Singh 2006, Sethy and Chauhan 2012). In southern Lao PDR, sign surveys indicate that Sun Bear populations have been reduced to extremely low levels relative to other sites in Southeast Asia, with declines attributed to historically high poaching levels (Scotson 2012).

Of major concern is a widespread trend of wildlife snaring throughout much of the Sun Bear range. In northeastern Lao PDR, hunters use a snaring method that specifically targets bears and threatens to wipe out local populations (Scotson and Hunt 2012). Large and small mammal snares were detected in numerous protected areas throughout the county. Although not always specifically targeting bears this represents a major ongoing threat (Scotson and Brocklehurst 2013). Farmers affected by wildlife crop damage frequently set snares around the perimeter of crop fields (Fredriksson 2005), and in some instances catch bears (Hunt and Scotson 2011, Scotson et al. 2014). In Peninsular Malaysia and Indonesia camera traps increasingly record bears with missing paws (apparent snare injuries) and in a radio collaring study in Peninsular Malaysia, three out of five captured Sun Bears had missing paws (Cheah 2013), indicating high snaring pressure using cable snares.

Enforcement of domestic and international wildlife laws is severely lacking in most cases and is failing to deter illegal bear trade (Shepherd and Nijman 2008, Foley et al. 2011, Burgess et al. 2014). Low risk of being prosecuted and high potential profits mean that the incentive to poach bears is very high. The value of bear parts on the illegal wildlife market has increased notably over the past two decades (Livingstone and Shepherd 2014).

Other motivations for killing bears include preventing damage to crops and livestock (Fredriksson 2005, Scotson et al. 2014, Wong et al. 2014), subsistence use such as wild meat consumption (Krishnasamy and Shepherd 2014), and fear of bears near villages. The rapid loss and fragmentation of forests across the Sun Bear range may bring bears closer to humans and thus increase the likelihood of human-bear interactions (Fredriksson 2005). In Lao PDR, where bear crop raiding occurs annually in many parts of the country, farmers showed a general reluctance to report crop raiding events to management authorities and may be more inclined to hunt bears that enter fields instead of seeking non-lethal mitigation methods (Scotson et al. 2014). Incidences of sun bears attacking humans are rare and usually result as an act of self defence—under normal circumstances, Sun Bears avoid humans.

As Sun Bears are a forest dependent species, population declines are likely to be associated with deforestation rates. Deforestation increased dramatically during 1990-2005 and in recent times Southeast Asia has experienced the highest annual rate of forest cover change in the world  (Sodhi et al. 2004, 2010; Miettinen et al. 2011; Margono et al. 2012, 2014; Dong et al. 2014). Some estimates project extremely high loss of natural forests and of biodiversity of up to 75% and 85% respectively by 2100 (Sodhi et al. 2004, 2010). Rate of forest loss is not uniform throughout the range, however, with some discrepancies among published estimates of forest lost due to varying analytical techniques (Dong et al. 2014).

Analyses by Stibig et al. (2014) indicated that Southeast Asia lost 11.9% of its forest cover during 1990-2000. The Sundaic region (Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei) experienced the highest rate of loss (Miettinen et al. 2011; Margono 2012, 2014; Sodhi et al. 2014); Stibig et al. (2014) calculated 13% of forest was lost during 1990-2000, and Miettinen et al. 2011 estimated a further 9.9% lost during 2000-2010. By 2012, primary forest loss in Indonesia was estimated to be double that in Brazil (Margono 2014). Hansen et al. (2009) estimated that in Sumatra and Kalimantan combined, 23.5% of total forest was lost from 1990-2005, with loss of lowland forest alone more than 40%. Brunei seems to be impacted the least, although deforestation and forest degradation are still evident (Bryan et al. 2013).

Deforestation in the Sundaic region is largely attributed to extensive clear-cutting for plantations (i.e., oil palm, rubber), unsustainable logging practices (Brown et al. 2005), legal and illegal logging, and forest fires (Meijaard et al. 2005, Tumbelaka and Fredriksson 2006, Wong 2006, Wong and Linkie 2012). Conversion of natural habitat to oil palm plantations is most extensive on Borneo and Sumatra (Miettinen et al. 2011; Wicke et al. 2011; Margono et al. 2012, 2014). Protected areas are not exempt from deforestation; 40% of the forest lost in Indonesia during 2000-2012 was lost in areas where logging is restricted (i.e. national parks and protected forests, Margano et al. 2014), and in Kalimantan alone, 56% of protected lowland forests were cleared from 1985-2001 (Curran et al. 2004).

Human-caused fires throughout the Sundaic region are also diminishing habitat quality and quantity for sun bears, especially in Malaysia and Indonesia. These fires are more extensive during El Niño-related droughts. Between 1997-2006 a total of 16.2 million ha of Borneo’s landmass (21% of total land surface area) were affected by fires (Langner and Siegert 2009). On Borneo, periods of prolonged drought have disrupted fruiting patterns (e.g., Harrison 2000), which in combination with reduced habitat availability due to clearing for agriculture, logging and fires, resulted in starvation among sun bears, even in protected primary forest areas (Wong et al. 2005, Fredriksson et al. 2007).

Given the Sun Bear’s affinity for primary and relatively mature, heterogeneously structured forests, along with its strongly frugivorous diet, such forest loss and fragmentation will exert significant effects on the bear’s regional and global populations along with its genetic and demographic structure and viability (Augeri 2005). Based on deforestation rates and increasingly fragmented range, and evidence of increasing trade of bears and their parts, it is likely that many isolated populations face a real threat of extirpation.

Measures to reduce habitat loss and poaching throughout the entire Sun Bear range are key actions needed to conserve Sun Bears. In areas with the highest deforestation rates, such as Indonesia and Malaysia (two globally leading oil palm producers), immediate action should be taken to protect remaining high conservation value forests from conversion to other land-uses, eliminate unsustainable logging, and effectively manage forest fires. Additionally, new protected areas should be established and effectively managed in order to preempt land conversion (Augeri 2005, Tumbelaka and Fredriksson 2006, Wong 2006) and protect critical Sun Bear habitat. For example, in Peninsular Malaysia, Nazeri et al. (2012), using MaxEnt modelling, reported that Sun Bears favour dense tropical evergreen forest over cultivated landscapes and areas in close proximity to roads. Of habitat deemed ‘highly suitable’ only 22% is contained within protected areas. These findings suggest that the present geographical extent of protected areas in Peninsular Malaysia provide insufficient coverage of habitat crucial for conserving Sun Bears.

In conjunction with primary forest protection, degraded habitats and forest remnants in human-modified landscapes should be enhanced, through reforestation programs, corridor planning and elevated protected status. Additionally, there is the need to establish buffer zones and prevent further agricultural expansion surrounding protected areas. Achieving these measures requires increased levels of resources, the support of conservation constituencies in civil society, and strengthened government commitments to conservation. In Malaysia and Indonesia, the two main producers of palm oil, it will be difficult to stop forest conversion, given the impacts of their economies in the world markets. Furthermore, in present conditions the effective management of already established protected areas, let alone addition of new protected areas and land management outside of protected areas, has proven a highly challenging task.

Sun Bears are legally protected domestically and internationally from hunting and trade throughout most of their range. However, deficiencies in law enforcement are recognized as major ongoing weaknesses (Burgess et al. 2014). Some successes are evident where dedicated agencies operate with steady technical and funding support. For example, in Cambodia, a dedicated Wildlife Protection Mobile Unit, run by Forestry Officials and Military and funded by international NGOs, has confiscated more than 100 Sun Bears and Asiatic Black Bears since 1998 (Broadis 2011). Similar initiatives exist in parts of Malaysia and Indonesia but action is limited. Establishment of more focused wildlife protection/crime units is recommended for other range countries, where possible funded by local authorities responsible for wildlife law enforcement.

Reduction of mortality by clearing of snares from bear habitat is urgently needed throughout much of the range, and long term measures are needed to prevent the problem reoccurring. Efforts to do so are underway in several protected areas throughout the region, by park authorities often in collaboration with foreign NGOs. However, these projects usually do not extend throughout a protected area and can face difficulties in maintaining long-term funding and political support.

To combat the growing impacts of human-bear conflict, funding and technical support is needed to promote non-lethal mitigation, especially in low-income regions where the incentive to hunt bears may outweigh incentives to stop conflict from occurring.

Non-government organizations (NGO’s) have established bear dedicated rescue centres in Cambodia, Vietnam, Lao, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia with the primary aim of providing sanctuary to bears confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade. Bear rescue centres can play a key role in raising local awareness on the threats to sun bears and the conservation value of ecological services provided by bear habitat. Some centres operate dedicated outreach teams, providing structured learning programs that can reach tens of thousands of people each year. Likewise, centres support capacity building of local conservationists, and facilitate in-situ and ex-situ research and conservation. Rehabilitation of ex-captive Sun Bears is another potential role. However this is rare and fraught with challenges, as most potential release sites are still threatened by forest loss and poaching. For example, in Cambodia, a pilot project to rehabilitate two Sun Bears that had been confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade ended after both bears were trapped in snares within two months, despite over two years of intensive snare-patrolling in the area prior to the release (M. Hunt, Free the Bears, pers. comm).

Ultimately, reducing the trade in bear parts would be one of the most highly beneficial steps for the persistence and recovery of Sun Bears throughout their range, especially as trade is increasingly moving towards the last strongholds for Sun Bears in Malaysia and Indonesia (Shepherd and Shepherd 2010, Krishnasamy and Shepherd 2014). Understanding consumer motivation, and educating and changing the behaviour of potential consumers of bear products, could be an incredibly effective tool. This is especially important given that law enforcement is generally underfunded and unfocused.

Increasing our scientific knowledge of Sun Bear ecology, population distribution, status and effects of threats is also needed. Aside from a now outdated global Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan for this species (Servheen et al. 1999), only one range country (India) has developed a National Conservation Action Plan for Sun Bears (Sathyakumar et al. 2012). Range mapping efforts, ongoing since 2006, have suffered from lack of presence data. But in 2014, the Bear Specialist Group mapped the current range-wide distribution of Sun Bears based on collation of more than 2000 presence points from throughout the range and with input from numerous experts. This has resulted in the most up to date range map for the species. The veracity of Probable range depicted by experts remains unclear. Habitat modelling approaches (e.g., Maxent; Nazeri et al. 2012) generate maps of potential distribution and may thereby help direct field surveys to promising locations to ascertain bear status; however such models are often generated with bear presence data from a small area and extrapolated broadly, and should thus be treated with caution. There remain large areas for which sun bear status is uncertain, most noticeably in Myanmar, where further research is needed.

Furthermore, it is important to establish the geographic distribution of Sun Bears at finer scales, taking into consideration habitat and fragmentation within and between countries, in order to better direct conservation actions and monitor habitat changes accurately (i.e., forest loss and fragmentation).

In 2006 The Bear Specialist Group mapped important habitat blocks for long-term survival of Sun Bears (Bear Conservation Units-BCUs). Anti-poaching efforts and forest boundary protection efforts within BCUs should be a high priority. Presently no BCUs receive support just for bears, but BCUs in some countries coincide with protected areas that receive substantial conservation support for other species (such as tigers), and bears benefit as a result (Steinmetz and Garshelis 2014). The possibilities to link bear conservation with that of other species should be explored and promoted more widely.

Efforts are currently underway to develop a standard methodology with which to monitor occurrence, relative abundance and trends of Asian bear populations through repeat sign transects. To this end, methodologies to distinguish Sun Bear claw marks from Asiatic Black Bear claw marks and to age claw marks have been developed (Steinmetz and Garshelis 2008, 2010). Surveys using this technique have been completed in Lao PDR and are planned for Vietnam and Cambodia. Trends in bear occurrence and relative abundance within the aforementioned BCUs should be monitored using standardized sign surveys and camera trapping by local government, communities, and NGOs. Results of such monitoring could indicate which management or ecological conditions promote successful bear conservation, and which do not, and provide a means to assess the results of conservation efforts (e.g., future range expansion and/or increased bear density being indicative of effective conservation efforts). Additional field studies would also be helpful in this regard, as few intensive studies have been conducted on Sun Bears.