Precise knowledge of a species’ habitat requirements is essential for its conservation. Very little information exists on the habitat requirements of the Malabar slender loris (Loris lydekkerianus malabaricus), a nocturnal primate, making it difficult to formulate conservation action plans. The goal of this study was to evaluate the ecological determinants of t he Malabar slender loris at the Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala, India. We conducted surveys in a 1-km2 area in the southwest end of the sanctuary. We overlaid the study site with 1-ha grids and selected 83 grids for sampling. We surveyed each grid on five consecutive nights for the presence and abundance of lorises. We measured tree species richness, basal area, mean tree height, percentage shrub cover, percentage climber cover, climber species richness, percentage canopy cover, tree felling and branch lopping, paths, and the time taken to walk the trail. We built 19 models for occupancy and 17 models for abundance using PRESENCE 12.9. We detected 69 lorises in total in a 57.05-km walk with an encounter rate of 1.33 ± 0.21 SE individuals/km. The detection probability was 0.25 ± 0.04 SE for occupancy, and 0.13 ± 0.04 SE for abundance. The naive occupancy estimate for loris was 0.48, but the occupancy estimate of the top model with covariates was 0.67 ± 0.12 SE. The estimate of abundance (λ) was 2.40 ± 1.04 SE per grid cell. Basal area, species richness of the trees, and tree felling and branch lopping were the major positive determinants of loris occupancy and abundance. In contrast, the percentage climber cover negatively influenced occupancy and abundance. This suggests that climbers do not provide a complete platform for the lorises to move, while tree species richness and basal area reflect a greater number of trees that provide more connectivity than climbers. Detailed investigations using the methods we employed can be undertaken throughout the range of this species to determine occupancy and formulate conservation and management plans.

中文翻译：

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马拉巴尔细长懒猴（Loris lydekkerianus malabaricus，Cabrera 1908）的生态决定因素在印度西高止山脉阿拉拉姆野生动物保护区的占有率和丰度

准确了解物种的栖息地要求对其保护至关重要。马拉巴尔细长懒猴（Loris lydekkerianus malabaricus）是一种夜间活动的灵长类动物，关于栖息地要求的信息很少，因此很难制定保护行动计划。本研究的目的是评估印度喀拉拉邦阿拉拉姆野生动物保护区马拉巴尔细长懒猴的生态决定因素。我们在保护区西南端的 1 平方公里区域进行了调查。我们用 1 公顷的网格覆盖了研究地点，并选择了 83 个网格进行采样。我们连续五个晚上调查了每个网格，以了解懒猴的存在和数量。我们测量了树种丰富度、基面积、平均树高、灌木覆盖百分比、攀缘植物覆盖百分比、攀缘植物物种丰富度、冠层覆盖百分比、砍伐树木和砍伐树枝、路径以及步行所需的时间。我们使用 PRESENCE 12.9 构建了 19 个占用模型和 17 个丰度模型。我们在 57.05 公里的步行中总共检测到 69 只懒猴，遇到率为 1.33 ± 0.21 SE 个体/公里。占用率的检测概率为 0.25 ± 0.04 SE，丰度的检测概率为 0.13 ± 0.04 SE。loris 的朴素占用估计值为 0.48，但具有协变量的顶级模型的占用估计值为 0.67 ± 0.12 SE。每个网格单元的丰度 (λ) 估计值为 2.40 ± 1.04 SE。基底面积、树木物种丰富度、树木砍伐和树枝砍伐是猴头树占有率和丰度的主要积极决定因素。相比之下，登山者覆盖的百分比对入住率和丰度产生了负面影响。这表明攀爬者并没有为懒猴提供一个完整的移动平台，而树种丰富度和基底面积反映了比攀爬者提供更多连通性的更多树木。可以使用我们采用的方法在该物种的整个范围内进行详细调查，以确定占有率并制定保护和管理计划。