The loss of natural habitat in recent decades has seen the sad disappearances of countless species. Some, thought to be extinct, we have the pleasure of sighting still present, though in small numbers. Such was the case of the elusive “mouse-deer” of Vietnam.
A team of researchers working in wildlife conservation in Vietnam has used remotely activated cameras in the Southern Annamite mountains near Nha Trang to get high-quality color images of the animals, called chevrotains (from the French meaning “small goat”). Some of the tiniest hoofed mammals in the world, these rare creatures were repeatedly caught on camera, giving hope to conservationists.
In order to find out about the possible existence of the species, scientists took a dramatically different approach to past efforts by interviewing over 35 locals from 13 villages in the dry lowland forest near Nha Trang. Previous efforts had focused on upland rainforest areas, where other rare species such as the saola, or Asian unicorn, have been spotted by camera traps.
Selected for their knowledge of the dry forest, researchers asked villagers a series of questions, including “How many types of chevrotain occur in the forest? If more than one type of chevrotain occurs, how are they distinguished? When and where was the last time that chevrotain was caught? How abundant are chevrotain now compared to in the past?”
Interested in the general trend of “empty forests” seen across the country, due to illegal poaching with wire snares, which indiscriminately capture animals in the wild, the scientists also asked about other species that indicate the health of the area’s habitat, such as the deer-like red muntjac and wild pigs.
The information they gathered from locals helped them set up cameras from 2017 to 2018 whose shutters were triggered by motion sensors that picked up the presence of animals. What they found was nothing less than a revelation. “From 2,643 camera-trap nights, we obtained 1,881 photographs of silver-backed chevrotain, comprising 208 independent events,” the group noted.
GWC describes them as “shy and solitary, appear[ing] to walk on the tips of their hooves and hav[ing] two tiny fangs [and] typically weighing less than 10 pounds.” Now that the species has been found, the question of how to protect it is first and foremost. Indeed, researchers were worried that simply by carrying out the study they might make the species more vulnerable to hunters in search of increasingly rare and valuable game.
“In publicizing our findings on the continued existence of the silver-backed chevrotain, we carefully weighed the risk of increased hunting owing to an increase in attention to the species versus gaining support for further surveys and protection measure,” the team of researchers wrote in their findings published in Nature. They maintain that wire snares are the greatest threat to the chevrotain and other species in Vietnam.
The group plans to further document the chevrotain’s presence so they can better protect them. “Now we need to identify not just a few individuals on camera trap, but one or two sites with sizable populations so that we can actually protect and restore the species,” said GWC’s senior director of species conservation, Barney Long.
While much remains to be done to protect this unique creature, finding so many specimens in the wild raises hopes for local and international conservationists.
