Camera trapping in Southern Vietnam: unveiling relative abundance, activity patterns, and conservation challenges of globally threatened pangolins and small carnivores

The U Minh wetlands of southern Vietnam in Ca Mau and Kieng Giang provinces are a degraded, peat-swamp wetland mosaic known to retain several globally threatened species. We deployed 83 targeted camera-traps across U Minh Thuong National Park and U Minh Ha National Park from December 2019 to May 2020, and from November 2020 to June 2021, respectively. Our aim was to detect threatened otters, wild cats, and pangolins in each protected area, to identify relative abundance, activity patterns, and what potential threats they may face to inform conservation priorities for park managers. Our results showed that both protected areas harbour significant regionally important populations of globally threatened Sunda pangolins (Manis javanica), and Hairy-nosed otters (Lutra sumatrana). However, Fishing cats (Prionailurus viverrinus) and Large-spotted civet (Viverra megaspila) previously recorded from U Minh Thuong National Park, were not observed, emphasising the probability of local extirpation. Other than wide-ranging species that are less sensitive to human disturbance (i.e., Common palm civets and Leopard cats), all small carnivores were most active in Melaleuca and swamp/Melaleuca habitats in U Minh Thuong, and both the wetland plantations and disturbed forests of U Minh Ha according to their photographic rates. Human and domestic dogs’ activity periods in both protected areas overlapped strongly with Hairy-nosed otters, which could influence their dispersal abilities and access to resources. Long-term and short-term threats are discussed with relevance to U Minh ecosystem health and future recommendations.