Camera traps reveal use of caves by Asiatic black bears in southeastern Iran

Hadi Fahimi, Gholam Hosein Yusefi, Seyed Massoud Madjdzadeh, Abbas Ali Damangir, Mohammad Ebrahim Sehhatisabet & Leili Khalatbari

The Asiatic black bear Ursus thibetanus Cuvier, 1823 is a threatened species – assessed as “vulnerable” – according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. However, the so-called Baluchistan bear, a subspecies (Ursus thibetanus gedrosianus Blanford, 1877) living in the arid semi-forests in the Baluchistan region of southern Pakistan and Iran, was listed as Critically Endangered (B1 + 2abc, C2a) in the 1996 IUCN Red List (Garshelis and Steinmetz 2008). The Asiatic black bear is also listed in Appendix I of CITES (2009). The Baluchistan black bear is considered one of the most threatened Asiatic black bear populations in Asia (Servheen et al. 1998). Once considered extinct in Iran, but rediscovered in the 1970s (Joslin and Meydani 1973), this subspecies is now known to be distributed from Sistan and Baluchistan Province near the Pakistan border to the mountainous areas of Kerman and Hormuzgan Provinces in Iran (Etemad 1985; Gutleb and Ziaie 1999; Gutleb et al. 2005). Although several studies have been conducted on populations of Asiatic black bears in the eastern parts of their range, e.g.

Japan, Russia, China and India (Hwang et al. 2002), little is known about the western populations in Pakistan and Iran. Notably, Iran was not even included in the range map of this species published by the IUCN in 1998 (Servheen et al. 1998).

The Baluchistan bear is one of the least known large mammals in Iran. Consequently, efficient conservation measures have not been put in place for this species by the Department of Environment (Fahimi and Yusefi 2010). The distribution range in Iran is small and declining. The species has not been recorded from Khabr National Park in Kerman Province, southeastern Iran since 1966 (Joslin et al. 1974). Ahmadzadeh et al. (2008) considered Asiatic black bears to be present within Poozak Protected Area (Nikshahr County in Sistan and Baluchistan Province), but this information was based on unreliable interviews (i.e. people with no knowledge of the exact location of this protected area, personal observation). They presented no records of bears in this protected area in the final report of the project that they conducted in this area (Ahmadzedeh et al. 2007). The last formal record of this species from Poozak Protected Area dates back more than 25 years (Ziaei et al. 1983). So, it seems that in the 1960–70s this species was extirpated from at least two protected areas, and probably many areas outside the protected areas. In addition, as a result of road expansions and village developments in recent years, habitat fragmentation has caused insularization of the small remnant populations (Ahmadzadeh et al. 2008). Although the Asiatic black bear is listed under the law for protection of endangered wild animals by the Department of Environment in Iran, it is still hunted illegally; notably, no part of this bear’s range in Iran is provided any special protection.

There is little information on den selection and ecology of the Asiatic black bear and not surprisingly such data come from the eastern part of the species’ distribution. The den types of the species vary from hollow trees, cavities that formed between the roots of trees, ground nests, rock outcropping, caves and old excavated brown bear dens (Hazumi and Maruyama 1986; Reid et al. 1991; Xu et al. 1994; Huygens et al. 2001; Seryokdin et al. 2003; Koike and Hazumi 2008). Interestingly, den types of the Asiatic black bear appear to vary more widely than those of the brown bear (Seryokdin et al. 2003). As a consequence of the vast distribution of the Asiatic black bear, which ranges from tropical forests to cold and high mountainous areas of the Himalaya, den selection probably varies considerably. Vroom et al. (1980) showed that den site selection in brown bears varies among different regions. The types of structures that Asiatic black bears use for denning are dictated, to a large degree, by environmental conditions, topography and structures on the landscape. The habitat of the black bear in Baluchistan differs from other areas of its range so it is not unexpected that den sites are also different from elsewhere. Anecdotal evidence suggests that black bears in the Bahr-e Asman Mountains rely upon rock caves. Understanding cave use in the Baluchistan black bear may provide insight into the habitat requirements of this subspecies and can assist in conservation and management efforts.

As a contribution to the understanding of the ecology and threats to this species in the southeast region of Iran, we undertook a study of caves use using camera traps. Our aims were to obtain the most recent and accurate information concerning the use of caves by bears and to assess the overall status of this species in a non-protected area. With this information we hoped to be able to propose to the Department of Environment provincial office at Kerman an area that could be designated for protection to help save this valuable species.