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Human activities associated with reduced Komodo dragon habitat use and range loss on Flores

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Abstract

Species restricted to archipelagos are often range-restricted, dispersal limited, and persist as disjunct populations. These attributes can make island populations especially vulnerable to extinction from natural or anthropogenic processes. Ascertaining causes of habitat use, population impact, and range loss is fundamental to guiding effective conservation actions. The Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis) is an endangered, island-endemic species with a highly restricted range distribution limited to a small number of islands in Eastern Indonesia. Flores Island is the largest island (13,540 km2) within the species distribution. However, with relatively few and small-protected areas, alongside a much higher incidence of human-related habitat use, Komodo dragon habitat occupancy is suspected to decrease on Flores. Here over five years, we conducted systematic surveys to evaluate Komodo dragon habitat occupancy at 346 camera monitoring stations (CMS) distributed along the Flores coastline. We successfully detected Komodo dragons at 85 of the 346 CMS on Flores. The pattern of Komodo dragon site presence indicated their distribution was confined to three isolated and highly restricted habitat areas on the west, northwestern, and northern coastal regions of Flores. Ranking of competing models indicated that proximity to farms and villages had the strongest negative effects on Komodo dragon habitat occupancy. The current predicted Komodo dragon range distribution appeared to have undergone significant range area contraction (~ 44%) at multiple coastal areas known to be occupied by the Komodo dragon detected in previous decades (i.e., 1970–2000). We attribute decreased Komodo dragon habitat use and range loss to multiple and cascading human activities. To address these threats, we advocate a range of land use planning and community conservation actions to avoid a potential Komodo dragon extirpation on the largest island habitat within their distribution.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the Directorate General of Conservation of Natural Resources and Ecosystem (DITJEN KSDAE) and Eastern Lesser Sunda Central Bureau for Conservation of Natural Resources (BBKSDA NTT) for issuing research permits and the BBKSDA NTT authority and members of staff and local community volunteers for support and their enthusiastic involvement in the project. Funding for fieldwork (2014-2019) was provided through members of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, Chester Zoo, and the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong.

Funding

Funding for fieldwork (2014–2019) was provided through members of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria, Chester Zoo, and the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation Hong Kong.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Komodo Survival Program, Jl. Karang Sari I, Blok G. No. 10 Denpasar, Bali, 80117, Indonesia

    Achmad Ariefiandy, Deni Purwandana, Muhammad Azmi, Sanggar Abdil Nasu, Claudio Ciofi & Tim S. Jessop

  2. Eastern Lesser Sunda Central Bureau for Conservation of Natural Resources (BBKSDA), Nusa Tengara Timor, Kupang, Indonesia

    Juna Mardani

  3. Department of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino, FI, Italy

    Claudio Ciofi

  4. Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC, 3216, Australia

    Tim S. Jessop

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  1. Achmad Ariefiandy
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  2. Deni Purwandana
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  3. Muhammad Azmi
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  4. Sanggar Abdil Nasu
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  5. Juna Mardani
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  6. Claudio Ciofi
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  7. Tim S. Jessop
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Contributions

AA, DP, CC, and TSJ concivied the study. AA, DP, MA, SAN, and JM provided field data. TSJ, analysed the data. TSJ wrote the manuscript. All authors commented on drafts of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Achmad Ariefiandy.

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There are no conflicts or competing interests.

Ethics approval

This study was approved under a cooperative research agreement between the Komodo Survival Program, Eastern Lesser Sunda Central Bureau for Conservation of Natural Resources (BBKSDA NTT), and the Directorate General of Conservation of Natural Resources and Ecosystem (DITJEN KSDAE) Indonesian Ministry of Environtment and Forestry under permits (PKS.49/K.5/TU/KSA/8/2017 and PKS.06/KSP/2017). These permits approve animal ethics and welfare to research Komodo dragons, alongside permission to conduct research on Flores.

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Ariefiandy, A., Purwandana, D., Azmi, M. et al. Human activities associated with reduced Komodo dragon habitat use and range loss on Flores. Biodivers Conserv 30, 461–479 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-020-02100-8

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