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Waterbird populations are rapidly declining worldwide, including in many countries in Southeast Asia. Massive land use changes in Peninsular Malaysia are a major threat to biodiversity due to habitat loss and alteration, affecting the populations of many waterbird species. This study was conducted to determine the spatial distribution of three stork species, the Asian Openbill Anastomus oscitans, Painted Stork Mycteria leucocephala and Milky Stork Mycteria cinerea, in Peninsular Malaysia using the citizen science database, eBird. About 86,881 occurrences of the Asian Openbill, 2,391 occurrences of the Painted Stork and 242 occurrences of the Milky Stork were identified in the eBird database throughout Peninsular Malaysia between 2019 and 2021, suggesting major differences in occurrence size between the three species. Map generated from ArcGIS and a statistically significant difference in the population distribution of the three stork species across Peninsular Malaysia indicate habitat segregation. The populations of these stork species should be carefully monitored and managed to avoid imbalance with other waterbird populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rise of global surface temperature due to warming climate is expected to increase the intensity and occurrence of extreme precipitation events. Previous studies in Southeast Asia revealed complex variations in changes of precipitation extremes. This study presents a spatial–temporal analysis on changes of precipitation extremes in Peninsular Malaysia by utilizing long‐term daily rainfall records at 64 observed stations during 1989–2018. The modified Mann–Kendall and Sen's slope tests were performed to detect the significance and magnitude of trends in eight extreme precipitation indices recommended by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices. Statistically significant increasing trends are observed for four of these extreme indices in the annual assessment. Spatial analysis demonstrates an obvious contrast between wet and dry regions in patterns of precipitation extremes. Seasonal analysis reveals the intensity and frequency of wet extremes are enhanced significantly during the northeast monsoon season. Significant correlations are found between precipitation extremes and El Niño–Southern Oscillation, particularly in the northern, eastern and southwest regions. Collectively, the evidence presented suggests that the occurrence of precipitation extremes in Peninsular Malaysia tends to be more frequent and intense over the year and is closely associated with the combined effects of tropical monsoon cycles and El Niño–Southern Oscillation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses the reliability of regional climate downscaling products from the Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment-Southeast Asia (CORDEX-SEA) in reproducing the present-day wind at the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia (ECPM). A total of five CORDEX-SEA products, namely CNRM-CM5(RegCM4), CSIRO-Mk3-6-0(RegCM4), EC-EARTH(RegCM4), HadGEM2-ES(RegCM4) and MPI-ESM-MR(RegCM4), with a resolution of 25 km, were compared to reference data from the European Centre Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) fifth generation atmospheric reanalysis ERA5 spanning 1980–2005. This study focused on the period of the southwest monsoon, specifically the months of June, July and August (JJA), as wind during this season is known to play an important role in generating upwelling at the ECPM. The results obtained show that only three of the CORDEX-SEA products, CSIRO-Mk3-6-0(RegCM4), HadGEM2-ES(RegCM4) and MPI-ESM-MR(RegCM4), were able to reproduce the wind in terms of wind speed, wind stress curl and wind pattern as effectively as ERA5. An ensemble was made from these three CORDEX-SEA products, and it was found that the ensemble was able to reproduce a value of the Upwelling Index (UI) that was similar to the reference data, albeit with some bias. Hence, only the three stated CORDEX-SEA products and their ensemble are suitable to be used for future climate change studies within the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses archaeological research of shipwrecks as a form of underwater cultural heritage with special reference to ancient shipwrecks and their cargoes discovered in Peninsular Malaysia from 1907 to 2019. The discussion will include the formation process of underwater cultural heritage, especially the discoveries of shipwreck sites and cargoes which have connections as well as trade, cultural and political relationships with early maritime kingdoms in Southeast Asia. The significance of shipwreck sites in the development of archaeological shipwrecks in Peninsular Malaysia will also be discussed in the contexts of research and education of our national history. This is important for the early development of maritime archaeology's potential, particularly on shipwrecks from the 1990s to the early first decade of the 21st century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deforestation is a major threat to terrestrial tropical ecosystems, particularly in Southeast Asia where human activities have dramatic consequences for the survival of many species. However, responses of species to anthropogenic impact are highly variable. In order to establish effective conservation strategies, it is critical to determine a species' ability to persist in degraded habitats. Here, we used camera trapping data to provide the first insights into the temporal and spatial distribution of southern pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina, listed as 'Vulnerable' by the IUCN) across intact and degraded forest habitats in Peninsular Malaysia, with a particular focus on the effects of clear-cutting and selective logging on macaque occupancy. Specifically, we found a 10% decline in macaque site occupancy in the highly degraded Pasoh Forest Reserve from 2013 to 2017. This may be strongly linked to the macaques' sensitivity to intensive disturbance through clear-cutting, which significantly increased the probability that M. nemestrina became locally extinct at a previously occupied site. However, we found no clear relationship between moderate disturbance, i.e., selective logging, and the macaques' local extinction probability or site occupancy in the Pasoh Forest Reserve and Belum-Temengor Forest Complex. Further, an identical age and sex structure of macaques in selectively logged and completely undisturbed habitat types within the Belum-Temengor Forest Complex indicated that the macaques did not show increased mortality or declining birth rates when exposed to selective logging. Overall, this suggests that low to moderately disturbed forests may still constitute valuable habitats that support viable populations of M. nemestrina, and thus need to be protected against further degradation. Our results emphasize the significance of population monitoring through camera trapping for understanding the ability of threatened species to cope with anthropogenic disturbance. This can inform species management plans and facilitate the development of effective conservation measures to protect biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The combination of geochemistry and petrography analysis is useful in describing the source, evolution, type, and tectonic of granitoids. The closure of Palaeo-Tethys and the collision between Sibumasu and East Malaya are related to granitic magmatism in Southeast Asia which is classified into East Province, Main Range, and West Province with different characteristics. This study tries to characterize the magmatic differentiation, alphabetic classification, and tectonic history of Lagoi granite which is situated on the Eastern Granite Province in Southeast Asia based on the petrography and geochemistry analysis. Eight granitoid samples have been collected from Lagoi area and analyzed for both petrology and geochemistry using a polarized microscope, XRF, and ICP-MS. Petrographically, the granite consists of quartz, alkali feldspar, biotite, hornblende, and plagioclase. The pinkish Lagoi granite ranges from granodiorite to granite and shows metaluminous character. Seven of the samples are classified in high-K calc-alkaline series, whereas the other one is shoshonitic. The SiO2 content of high-K calc-alkaline group depicts very good negative correlation to TiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3T, MnO, CaO, MgO, and P2O5 whilst positive one to K2O. Plagioclase reduction during magmatic differentiation is evidenced by Ba and Sr contents, Rb/Sr and CaO/Y ratios, and Eu negative anomaly. The rocks are categorized into I-type in relation to the location relative to Southeast Asia granitic belt, mineral content, and geochemistry composition. The pluton shows syn-collision affinity which formed at the time of Sibumasu and East Malaya collision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cheleion watanabei sp. n. is described from Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia and represents the third species of the genus Cheleion Vårdal & Forshage, 2010 (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae, Aphodiinae, Stereomerini). A description of the previously unknown male of C. jendeki Král & Hájek, 2015, and a key to the species of the genus Cheleion are also provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oil palm is the most efficient oil-producing crop but its extension leads to increased deforestation in Southeast Asia. Oil palm height enables the quantitative estimation for carbon stock or palm oil yield. Nevertheless, there are still no accurate characterization of oil palm height providing information for the tradeoff between forest damage and carbon stock of oil palm in Southeast Asia. The new generation of spaceborne LiDAR provides large-extent canopy height samples, offering an opportunity for mapping the oil palm height at the regional scale yet with challenge to extrapolate the footprint heights to spatially coherent maps. Here, we proposed a new method by combining Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) footprint data with stand age that is closely related to tree height. We first developed a semi-automatic filtering algorithm to filter the low-quality ICESat-2 data, and used a change detection algorithm to optimize the planting year map of oil palm. Then, an empirical age-height model was derived by linking ICESat-2 footprint canopy height with oil palm age that was used to estimate spatially and temporally oil palm height for the whole Peninsular Malaysia. A validation with independent ICESat-2 footprint data suggests a high agreement for the height estimates in 2020 from the age-height model (R2 = 0.63; RMSE = 1.64 m) with a bias within ±3 m for >90% of the height estimates. Using the age-height model and planting year map of oil palm, we produced the first comprehensive wall-to-wall maps of long-term yearly oil palm height at a spatial resolution of 30 m in Peninsular Malaysia during 2001 through 2020. Our results suggest that the mean height of oil palm in all and regionally-disturbed areas have increased by 10.82 m and 9.29 m respectively during the last two decades in Peninsular Malaysia. Our results indicate that combining stand age and ICESat-2 footprint data has great potential in spatially-explicit mapping regional oil palm height that contributes to a better quantification for regional plantation carbon stock. • We proposed a method to map oil palm height combining ICESat-2 and stand-age data. • An age-height model was developed to estimate oil palm height from ICESat-2 data. • Height growth dynamics of oil palm in Peninsular Malaysia were analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intensive land use plays a major role in tropical peat swamp deforestation in Southeast Asia. In Peninsular Malaysia, the North Selangor Peat Swamp Forest (NSPSF) is the second largest remaining peatland ecosystem. Although the NSPSF is recognized as a biodiversity hotspot area in the region, this peat swamp forest is rapidly shrinking because of the expansion of commercial oil palm agriculture. More than 87% of the NSPSF has been designated as reserves, but in reality, this is not comparable to protected area status. The NSPSF is under constant threats from forest conversions, forest fires, and road constructions. Faunal biodiversity loss is likely to occur in the NSPSF unless immediate action is taken by stakeholders. To determine the habitat occupancy and activity rate of native mammals, we conducted camera-trap survey at 45 sites located within the NSPSF. From a total survey effort of 2565 trap nights in an area of 778 km 2 , 16 mammal species were recorded. Our data provide vital information on the occupancy of high conservation value species in the NSPSF. However, we did not record Sumatran rhinoceros ( Dicerorhinus sumatrensis ) and Malayan tiger ( Panthera tigris ), nor did we find any indirect evidence such as footprints, indicating that these species are extirpated from this region. We found that mammal activity rate responded differently to in situ habitat quality and landscape factors according to feeding guild. Government stakeholders should focus on prohibiting further forest conversion and prioritize the upgrading NSPSF’s conservation status from reserve to protected area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A total of 271 Southeast Asia Indians from Peninsular Malaysia were genotyped for HLA-A, -B, -C, -DRB1, and -DQB1 loci using polymerase chain reaction sequence-specific oligonucleotide probe hybridization methods. In this report, HLA-B and HLA-DQB1 was in Hardy-Weinberg proportions (HWEP) (p > 0.05). We observed significant deviation from the HWEP for HLA-A (p < 0.05), HLA-C (p < 0.01) and HLA-DRB1 (p < 0.01) loci. This genotype data is available in Allele Frequencies Network Database (AFND) Dos Santos et al. (2016). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Florida State University (FSU) multimodel superensemble forecast is evaluated against several other operational weather models for the Southeast Asia region. The superensemble technique has demonstrated its exceptional skills in forecasting precipitation, motion and mass fields compared to either individual global operational or ensemble mean forecasts. The motion field investigation for the season of 2001 reveals that the superensemble forecasts are closer to the observed data compared to the other global member operational models through its low systematic errors at the 850 hPa level. The FSU multimodel superensemble forecasts exhibit the lowest root mean square errors (RSMEs), the highest correlation against the best observed data and the lowest systematic errors compared to the other operational model members. These forecasts have the potential to provide better daily weather predictions over the Southeast Asia region, particularly during the early northeast monsoon that often causes heavy rainfall in the equatorial part of the Southeast Asia region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]