Wilting, Christiansen, Kitchener, Kemp, Ambu and Fickel, 2007
The Bornean clouded leopard (Neofelis diardi borneensis) is a subspecies of the Sunda clouded leopard. It is native to the island of Borneo, and differs from the Batu-Sumatran clouded leopard in the shape and frequency of spots, as well as in cranio-mandibular and dental characters.[1] In 2017, the Cat Classification Taskforce of the Cat Specialist Group recognized the validity of this subspecies.[2]
Results of a camera-trapping survey revealed that it is largely nocturnal. A radio-collared female had a home range of around 23 km2 (8.9 sq mi) in 109 days.[6]
Evolution
The Bornean clouded leopard is estimated to have diverged from the Sumatran clouded leopard in the Late Pleistocene, between 400 and 120 thousand years ago. Land bridges that were created due to low sea levels in the Late Pleistocene were submerged by rising sea levels, resulting in the Bornean clouded leopard becoming separated from the mainland population at this time.[7] It was recognized as its own subspecies in 2007 following an analysis of the genetic substructure of the Bornean and Sumatran clouded leopards, which concluded that there was enough genetic variation to recognize the Sumatran Neofelis diardi diardi and the Bornean Neofelis diardi borneensis as two different subspecies.[8]
Threats
The Bornean clouded leopard is considered vulnerable, similar to other Neofelis species, due to anthropogenic disturbances such as deforestation, illegal poaching, and hunting pressure.[9]
In Sabah, habitat loss is primarily driven by the development of oil palm plantations, which inhibits connectivity of the Bornean clouded leopard population.[10]
Deforestation in Borneo caused substantial reduction of habitat connectivity and population size of the Bornean clouded leopard.[11]
^Kitchener, A. C.; Breitenmoser-Würsten, C.; Eizirik, E.; Gentry, A.; Werdelin, L.; Wilting, A.; Yamaguchi, N.; Abramov, A. V.; Christiansen, P.; Driscoll, C.; Duckworth, J. W.; Johnson, W.; Luo, S.-J.; Meijaard, E.; O'Donoghue, P.; Sanderson, J.; Seymour, K.; Bruford, M.; Groves, C.; Hoffmann, M.; Nowell, K.; Timmons, Z. & Tobe, S. (2017). "A revised taxonomy of the Felidae: The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group"(PDF). Cat News (Special Issue 11): 1–80 [65].
^Mathai, J.; Buckingham L. & Ong N. (2014). "Borneo bay cat and other felids in a logging concession in Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo". Cat News. 60: 34–35.
^Ross, J.; Hearn, A.J.; Johnson, P.J. & Macdonald, D.W. (2013). "Activity patterns and temporal avoidance by prey in response to Sunda clouded leopard predation risk". Journal of Zoology. 290 (2): 96–106. doi:10.1111/jzo.12018.
^Hearn, A.J.; Ross, J.; Pamin, D.; Bernard, H.; Hunter, L. & Macdonald, D.W. (2013). "Insights into the spatial and temporal ecology of the Sunda clouded leopard Neofelis diardi". Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. 61 (2): 871–875.