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Ethnoprimatology can be defined as the interaction between human and nonhuman primates that share integrated social and ecological spaces through cultural, religious, and customary contexts. Orang Asli community is highly dependent on natural resources around them and utilise animals in their daily life, including primates, for many purposes such as food, medicine, and pets. However, indiscriminate hunting practice and overhunting have caused a major decline in the primate population, including the species with high conservation importance, which may lead to extinction. Hence, this study aims to document the information on primate utilisation by Temuan in Gunung Ledang, Johor, Malaysia, using an ethnoprimatological approach through a semistructured interview with the aid of a questionnaire. The results indicate that Temuan in Gunung Ledang mainly used five species of primates (Macaca fascicularis, M. nemestrina, Presbytis sp., Hylobates lar, and Trachypithecus obscurus) that comprised two families, namely, Cercopithecidae and Hylobatidae, as entertainment and pets. However, respondents acknowledged that these cultural practices rapidly eroded because of the decline in the primate population in their ranging area, thus making it harder for them to spot and hunt the primates. Findings from this study can be used for developing a sustainable action plan that involves Orang Asli toward conservation of primates and preservation of traditional knowledge of Temuan in Peninsular Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnoprimatology is the study of interaction between human and non-human primates that share integrated social and ecological spaces. Orang Asli depends on the forest product as they are known to consume and utilize the forest products in their daily life, including wildlife such as primates as pets and in food, pets, medicine, belief, and other applications. Owing to increases in anthropogenic activities, wildlife, specifically primate populations, is decreasing alongside abandonment of traditional knowledge among the Orang Asli in Malaysia. Therefore, the aim of this study is to document the primate species consumed and utilized by the Semoq Beri community in Pahang using a semi-structured interview with the aid of questionnaires. The result indicates that Semoq Beri has consumed and utilised five species of primates (Macaca fascicularis, Macaca nemestrina, Trachypithecus obscurus, Presbytis sp., and Hylobates lar) for foods and as pets. The hunting method is similar to that of other Orang Asli tribes, who use blowpipe (sumpit) with a poisonous dart. The hunting of primates in the Semoq Beri community is less nowadays as the community has assimilated with the Malay community, and they claim that the population of primates around them is decreasing tremendously. Findings from this study can be used for a sustainable action plan that involves Orang Asli toward conservation of primate and preservation of traditional knowledge of Semoq Beri people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dusky leaf monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus obscurus), are widely distributed in Peninsular Malaysia. The shortage of studies on phylogeographic structure of T. obscurus, at subspecies and population level, as well as the absence of study for the population in Gunung Ledang National Park, Johor, Malaysia, it may adversely affect their conservation management. This study aims to determine the phylogenetic position of T. obscurus at subspecies and population level, as well as the absence of study for the population in Gunung Ledang National Park, Johor, Malaysia, it may adversely affect their conservation management. This study aims to determine the phylogenetic position of T. obscurus in Gunung Ledang and compare it to those of other Malaysian populations using the D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA. Faecal samples were collected from the wild population in Gunung Ledang and sequenced, and used in phylogenetic analysis with six additional genetic samples of T.obscurus from other regions in Peninsular Malaysia, and one sequence of Presbytis melalophos from GenBank. Both neighbor-joining and maximum parsimony trees indicate that populations from Gunung Ledang should beclassified as T. o. obscurues and are monophyletic with thea populations from Endau-Rompin, Johor, and Selangor. This study provides a new insight and contributes to the conservation management strategies of T. obscurus in Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visitors presence in primate ecotourism areas could provide variety in primate dietary intake. For this reason, we recorded a list of plants and anthropogenic foods that are consumed by habituated silvered langurs (Trachypithecus cristatus) of Bukit Melawati, Kuala Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 24 plant species was identified as the primary natural food resources. Langurs were also exposed to anthropogenic foods brought by visitors. Interestingly, langurs become more selective with anthropogenic foods when they are full. They were also observed rejecting all types of sweets. As feeding primates with anthropogenic food can be harmful, visitors should be educated and provided appropriate information to prevent feeding langurs inappropriate foods. We also suggest that the effects of these foods on langurs should be examined in future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taxonomic confusion among island flying foxes (Pteropus hypomelanus) still in debate as in the lack of further genetic studies that describe subspecies validity needs verification. On the basis of morphological variants, 17 subspecies of P. hypomelanus are currently recognized. A previous study showed the distribution of two subspecies of P. hypomelanus in Malaysia: P. hypomelanus robinsoni in Pangkor Island, west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and P. hypomelanus lepidus from Perhentian Island, Kapas Island, and Tioman Island, east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Herein, using the displacement loop (D-loop) region of mitochondrial DNA sequences, phylogenetic and haplotype network was conducted on their population structure in Peninsular Malaysia upon 42 genetic samples from Dangli Island (Langkawi), Pangkor Island (Perak), Redang Island (Terengganu), and Tinggi Island (Johor). Phylogenetically, two main clades separating northwest and southeast populations emerged. No haplotype was shared between the populations. The results from genetic differentiation (estimate of population subdivision (FST) and nucleotide subdivision (Nst)) yielded a gene flow that was nearly cut-off because of the central mountain that forms as an effective barrier between islands of the east and west coasts of Peninsular Malaysia. Although the above finding genetically confirms their subspecies designation, examination using a nuclear marker is needed in future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been utilized in molecular studies to amplify DNA fragments even from small amounts of genetic material. A good PCR product is based on good amplification of DNA segments in condition optimisation. We conducted a molecular study to optimize the annealing temperature and concentration of primers to find the optimal condition of PCR for Malaysian mousedeer species. DNA samples from six Tragulus kanchil and Tragulus napu species of Malaysian mousedeer were extracted for PCR amplification. Several ranges of annealing temperatures and concentrations were tested using the increment and decrement method. Results indicated that the optimal annealing temperatures for T. kanchil and T. napu were 56.0°C and 47.2°C, respectively. For primer concentration, 10 to 20 µM is best to produce good PCR amplification. All six samples for the D-loop region had good DNA chromatograms and scores between 90% and 100% in BLAST. Based on the high scores, all mousedeer samples were considered to be highly purified DNA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pig-tailed macaques were preferred by handlers and trainers for traditional coconut picking. In May-August 2011, the training phases for coconut-picking macaques were observed in Bachok, Kelantan, Malaysia. The training phases were distinguished, and new teaching methods of different trainers were noted. The mode of training involved two stages: first, at the base of the coconut tree and second, on the coconut tree. For stage one, the first step was to keep macaques interested in coconuts, which was the most difficult part of the training process. Macaques were encouraged to play with coconuts to instill interest in the fruit before learning to twist it from the infructescence. At the second stage, the training in climbing the tree and choosing targeted fruits was conducted using vocal commands. There were approximately 30 types of vocal commands in the dialect spoken by the handlers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wolbachia endosymbiont is a maternally inherited bacteria that infects a wide range of hosts, including parasitoids and their respective hosts. In this study, a total of 171 individuals of braconid endoparasitoids, consisting of Fopius arisanus, F. vandenboschi, Diachasmimorpha longicaudata, Psyttalia sp.1, Psyttalia sp.2, P. fletcheri and P. incisi, and their host tephritid fruit flies of Bactrocera dorsalis, B. papayae and B. carambolae infesting carambola were screened molecularly by the Wolbachia surface protein (wsp) gene. Interestingly, 21 (24.14%) wsp gene sequences were successfully isolated from 87 braconid samples tested, showing a low infection rate of Wolbachia. However, despite the close ecological contact between parasitoids and their hosts, none of the tephritid individuals were infected by Wolbachia. A comparison of wsp and host mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences found that braconids did not cluster in connection with Wolbachia infection, suggesting that selective sweep has not yet occurred becauseWolbachia may have recently infected the braconid populations in Peninsular Malaysia (≈0.1MYA). Despite of relatively recent infections of Wolbachia, the history of Wolbachia infection into F. arisanus populations of Peninsular Malaysia is complex, involving at least two independent occasions of infection and two secondary losses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The gaur (Bos gaurus) is one of the two extant wild cattle species that can be found in several Asian countries. This species is threatened by extinction due to declining wild populations. Selembu is the name of the Malayan gaur ? domestic cattle hybrid. We planned this study to determine the position of the Malayan gaur and its hybrid, the selembu, in the phylogenetics of the genus Bos (Bos gaurus, Bos javanicus, Bos indicus, and Bos taurus). The mitochondrial 12S rRNA gene and the control region (D-loop) were sequenced in 29 Bos samples. Sequences from one water buffalo (Bubalus) were used as an outgroup. Phylogenetic trees were reconstructed using neighbor-joining and maximum parsimony in PAUP 4.0b10 and Bayesian inference in MrBayes 3.1. All tree topologies indicated that the Malayan gaur belongs to its own monophyletic clade that is distinct from other species of the genus Bos. Selembu samples were grouped in zebu and/or taurine cattle clades. The results also indicated that there are significant embranchment differences in the tree topologies between wild (Malayan gaur and banteng/Bali cattle) and domestic (taurine cattle, zebu cattle, and selembu) cattle. The results showed the complete maternal inheritance situation among the studied samples of all cattle species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

èPhylogenetic relationships among Malaysia's long-tailed macaques have yet to be established, despite abundant genetic studies of the species worldwide. The aims of this study are to examine the phylogenetic relationships of Macaca fascicularis in Malaysia and to test its classification as a morphological subspecies. A total of 25 genetic samples of M. fascicularis yielding 383 bp of Cytochrome b (Cyt b) sequences were used in phylogenetic analysis along with one sample each of M. nemestrina and M. arctoides used as outgroups. Sequence character analysis reveals that Cyt b locus is a highly conserved region with only 23% parsimony informative character detected among ingroups. Further analysis indicates a clear separation between populations originating from different regions; the Malay Peninsula versus Borneo Insular, the East Coast versus West Coast of the Malay Peninsula, and the island versus mainland Malay Peninsula populations. Phylogenetic trees (NJ, MP and Bayesian) portray a consistent clustering paradigm as Borneo's population was distinguished from Peninsula's population (99% and 100% bootstrap value in NJ and MP respectively and 1.00 posterior probability in Bayesian trees). The East coast population was separated from other Peninsula populations (64% in NJ, 66% in MP and 0.53 posterior probability in Bayesian). West coast populations were divided into 2 clades: the North-South in MP and 1.00/0.80 posterior probability in Bayesian) and Island-Mainland (93% in NJ, 90% in MP and 1.00 posterior probability in Bayesian). The results confirm the previous morphological assignment of 2 subspecies, M. f. fascicularis and M. f. argentimembris, in the Malay Peninsula. These populations should be treated as separate genetic entities in order to conserve the genetic diversity of Malaysia's M. fascicularis. These findings are crucial in aiding the conservation management and translocation process of M. fascicularis populations in Malaysia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses a study which investigated the genetic structure and evolutionary relationships among populations of Hylarana erythraea or ranidae in Sarawak, Malaysia. The study used the partial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (CO1) gene of mitochondrial (mt) DNA. It showed high numbers of migrants per generation and panmictic populations of the species. It revealed the relationship of different species of the animal in Borneo and implied a greater barrier created by a feature in the landscape.

The phylogenetic relationships of long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis fascicularis) populations distributed in Peninsular Malaysia in relation to other regions remain unknown. The aim of this study was to reveal the phylogeography and population genetics of Peninsular Malaysia's M. f. fascicularis based on the D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA. Sixty-five haplotypes were detected in all populations, with only Vietnam and Cambodia sharing four haplotypes. The minimum-spanning network projected a distant relationship between Peninsular Malaysian and insular populations. Genetic differentiation (F(ST), Nst) results suggested that the gene flow among Peninsular Malaysian and the other populations is very low. Phylogenetic tree reconstructions indicated a monophyletic clade of Malaysia's population with continental populations (NJ = 97%, MP = 76%, and Bayesian = 1.00 posterior probabilities). The results demonstrate that Peninsular Malaysia's M. f. fascicularis belonged to Indochinese populations as opposed to the previously claimed Sundaic populations. M. f. fascicularis groups are estimated to have colonized Peninsular Malaysia ~0.47 million years ago (MYA) directly from Indochina through seaways, by means of natural sea rafting, or through terrestrial radiation during continental shelf emersion. Here, the Isthmus of Kra played a central part as biogeographical barriers that then separated it from the remaining continental populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The gut microbiota plays an important role in primates, which may be associated with their habitat. In Malaysia, pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) live in different habitat environments and have traditionally been used for coconut plucking for more than a century. There is currently no information regarding the gut microbiota of this macaque in Malaysia. To address this oversight, this study employed a fecal metabarcoding approach to determine the gut microbiota composition of pig-tailed macaques and establish how these microbial communities correspond with the macaque external environments of residential area, forest edge, and fragmented forest., Methods: To determine this connection, 300 paired-end sequences of 16S rRNA were amplified and sequenced using the MiSeq platform., Results: In the pig-tailed macaque fecal samples, we identified 17 phyla, 40 orders, 52 families, 101 genera, and 139 species of bacteria. The most prevalent bacterial families in the gut of pig-tailed macaques were Firmicutes (6.31%) and Proteobacteria (0.69%). Our analysis did not identify a significant difference between the type of environmental habitat and the gut microbiota composition of these macaques., Conclusions: There was great variation in the population richness and bacterial community structure. The abundance of Firmicutes and Proteobacteria helps this macaque digest food more easily while maintaining a healthy gut microbiota diversity. Exploring the gut microbiota provides an initial effort to support pig-tailed macaque conservation in the future., (© 2024 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background: The gut morphology of Symphalangus syndactylus exhibits an intermediate structure that aligns with its consumption of fruit and ability to supplement its diet with leaves. The Siamang relies on its gut microbiome for energy extraction, immune system development, and the synthesis of micronutrients. Gut microbiome composition may be structured based on several factors such as age, sex, and habitat. No study has yet been carried out on the gut microbiota of the Hylobatidae members in Malaysia especially S. syndactylus., Methods: This study aims to resolve the gut microbiome composition of S. syndactylus by using a fecal sample as DNA source, adapting high-throughput sequencing, and 16S rRNA as the targeted region., Results: A total of 1 272 903 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) reads were assigned to 22 phyla, 139 families, and 210 genera of microbes. The {Unknown Phylum} Bacteria-2 is the dominant phyla found across all samples. Meanwhile, {Unknown Phylum} Bacteria-2 and Firmicutes are genera that have the highest relative abundance found in the Siamang gut., Conclusions: This study yields nonsignificance relationship between Siamang gut microbiome composition with these three factors: group, sex, and age., (© 2024 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Importance: Recent developments in genetic analytical techniques have enabled the comprehensive analysis of gastrointestinal symbiotic bacteria as a screening tool for animal health conditions, especially the endangered gibbons at the National Wildlife Rescue Centre (NWRC)., Objective: High-throughput sequencing based on 16S ribosomal RNA genes was used to determine the baseline gut bacterial composition and identify potential pathogenic bacteria among three endangered gibbons housed in the NWRC., Methods: Feces were collected from 14 individuals ( Hylobates lar , n = 9; Hylobates agilis , n = 4; and Symphalangus syndactylus , n = 1) from March to November 2022. Amplicon sequencing were conducted by targeting V3-V4 region., Results: The fecal microbial community of the study gibbons was dominated by Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes (phylum level), Prevotellaceae and Lachnospiraceae/Muribaculaceae (family level), and Prevotella (and its subgroups) (genera level). This trend suggests that the microbial community composition of the study gibbons differed insignificantly from previously reported conspecific or closely related gibbon species., Conclusions and Relevance: This study showed no serious health problems that require immediate attention. However, relatively low alpha diversity and few potential bacteria related to gastrointestinal diseases and streptococcal infections were detected. Information on microbial composition is essential as a guideline to sustain a healthy gut condition of captive gibbons in NWRC, especially before releasing this primate back into the wild or semi-wild environment. Further enhanced husbandry environments in the NWRC are expected through continuous health monitoring and increase diversity of the gut microbiota through diet diversification., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (© 2024 The Korean Society of Veterinary Science.)

The banded langur (Presbytis femoralis) is a critically endangered primate, which within Malaysia has not been known to extend significantly outside the state of Johor. Traditionally, distribution studies on this highly threatened primate have relied on conventional methods such as DNA identification, live counting, and camera trapping. However, ethnoprimatology offers an alternative approach to data collection, involving the active participation of indigenous and local communities possessing valuable knowledge and experience with local primate species. This study employed an integrated approach incorporating ethnoprimatology by utilizing pooled local expert opinion, local surveys, interviews, and fecal DNA analysis, resulting in a novel distribution range for the banded langur. The combination of expert opinions revealed this species' most optimistic distribution scenario across Johor and Pahang, inhabiting various ecosystems, including lowland forests, peat swamps, and human-modified landscapes. Further interviews and surveys conducted within the Orang Asli community in Tasik Chini and Tasek Bera have provided additional support for the revised distribution, documenting occurrences of banded langur utilization in indigenous practices, such as food consumption, cultural beliefs, medicinal applications, and craftsmanship. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrated genetic differentiation between populations in Johor and Pahang, with the populations in the southern part of Peninsular Malaysia likely serving as ancestral sources for other populations. Consequently, this study not only elucidated the updated distribution of banded langur through DNA records and direct observations but also established the efficacy of ethnoprimatology as a precursory tool for uncovering the present distribution patterns of other primate species in Malaysia., (© 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)