The Malayan porcupine or Himalayan porcupine (Hystrix brachyura) is a species of rodent in the family Hystricidae.[4] Three subspecies are extant in South and Southeast Asia.
Characteristics
The Maylayan porcupine is a large and stout-bodied rodent covered with quills, which are sharp, rigid structures. The quills are modified hairs.[5] Those on their upper body parts are rough with black with white or yellow stripes. The young's soft quills become hard as they enter adulthood. The porcupine has short, stocky legs covered in brown hairs; there are four claws on the front and five on the hind legs. Both front and hind paws have smooth soles.[citation needed] The head and body are around 56–74cm long and the tail is about 6–11cm. The animal weighs around 10–18kg.[6]
The Malayan porcupine ranges from Nepal through north-east India (Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, West Bengal, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Nagaland), to Bangladesh, central and southern China (Xizang, Hainan, Yunnan, Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Hunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Hong Kong, Fujian, Jianxi, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Shaanxi, Gansu), throughout Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, through Peninsular Malaysia, to Singapore, Sumatra (Indonesia) and throughout Borneo (Indonesia, Malaysia, Sarawak[7] and Brunei). It is also present on the island of Penang, Malaysia. It can be found from sea level to at least 1,300 m above sea level.[1] It inhabits various types of forests and open areas near forests; as well as straying into nearby agricultural areas.[citation needed]
Behaviour and ecology
The Malayan porcupine is terrestrial and usually lives in small groups. They often inhabit dens they have found near rocky areas or in the holes of trees or root systems. They may also dig out and live in burrows, from which a network of trails penetrate into surrounding habitat. They can be found in all forest types up to 1500 m altitude.[5]
The Malayan porcupine forages at night and rests during the day. It may live singly or in pairs. It can swim and gnaw. The sow usually delivers a single pup at a time, but delivering two pups has also been recorded. The gestation period is about 90 to 112 days. Their maximum longevity is about 27 years.[1]
Diet
They normally feed on roots, tubers, bark and fallen fruits. They also eat carrion, insects, and large tropical seeds such as those of Chisocheton cumingianus.
↑ Weers, D.J. van. (2003) The porcupine Hystrix (Acanthion) brachyura punungensis subsp. nov. from Late Pleistocene fissure deposits near Punung, Java. Scripta Geologica, 126: 217-225 PDF
1 2 Parr, J. W.K. (2003). East Asian Porcupine Hystrix brachyura: From Systematic, A Guide to the Large Mammals of Thailand (144). Bangkok: Sarakadee Press
↑ Smith, Andrew; Xie, Yan (2010). A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press. p.165.
↑ Azlan J, M & Engkamat, L (2006) Camera trapping and conservation in Lambir Hills National Park, Sarawak. The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology54(2) pp. 469-475 PDFArchived 2008-07-24 at the Wayback Machine
Sources
I Dahlan, AA Salam,BS Amin, A Osman. (1995). Preference and Intake of Feedstuff by Crested Porcupines(Hystrix Brachyura) in Captivity. Ann Zootech 44, 271.
Vaughan, T. A. (1985). Family Hystricidae. In T. A. Vaughan, Mammalogy Third Edition (pp.266–267). Arizona: Saunders College Publishing.
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