Philippine pangolin

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Philippine pangolin
Philippine Pangolins by Gregg Yan.jpg
An adult Philippine Pangolin and her pup photographed in the forests of Palawan
CITES Appendix I (CITES) [2]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Pholidota
Family: Manidae
Genus: Manis
Subgenus: Paramanis
Species:
M. culionensis
Binomial name
Manis culionensis
(de Elera, 1895)
Philippine Pangolin area.png
Philippine pangolin range
Philippine pangolin on a 2015 stamp of the Philippines Philippine pangolin 2015 stamp of the Philippines.jpg
Philippine pangolin on a 2015 stamp of the Philippines

The Philippine pangolin or Palawan pangolin (Manis culionensis), also locally known as balintong, is a pangolin species endemic to the Palawan province of the Philippines. Its habitat includes primary and secondary forests, as well as surrounding grasslands. This species is moderately common within its limited range, but is at risk due to heavy hunting because of its valued scales and meat. [3] This species is distinguished from the closely related Sunda pangolin by its smaller body-to-tail ratio, smaller scales, and a shorter head. It is listed as Critically Endangered by the IUCN, and Critically Endangered by the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD). [4]

Contents

Taxonomy

Taxidermied Philippine Pangolin displayed at Philippine National Museum. Taxidermied Philippine Pangolin displayed at Philippine National Museum.jpg
Taxidermied Philippine Pangolin displayed at Philippine National Museum.

The species was first described by Casto de Elera in 1885; it was also mentioned by de Elera in an 1895 work. [5] [6] In the past, this species has been included with the Sunda pangolin, Manis javanica, but has been considered a distinct species since 1998. [7] Five distinct morphological characteristics involving the skull and the scales have been identified which separate it from the closely related M. javanica. Both M. javanica and M. culionensis are grouped in subgenus Paramanis. [8] Genetic isolation leading to the speciation between these species is hypothesized to have been caused by rising sea levels severing a land bridge from Borneo in the Early Pleistocene. [9]

The generic name Manis is from the Greek chthonic deity Manes, while the specific name culionensis refers to the island of Culion in Palawan. [10]

The local name balintong (also halintong or malintong) means "one who rolls over" or "one who somersaults" in the Visayan Cuyonon language. Other names in Cuyonon include balekon or balikon and goling, with the same meaning. In the Palawan language, it is also known as tanggiling (also spelled tangiling), also with the same meaning. [11]

Description

The Philippine pangolin is roughly 30 to 90 centimetres (12 to 35 in) long, plus a 26 to 88 centimetres (10 to 35 in) tail. It weighs 2 to 77 lb (1 to 35 kg)[ dubious ]. [12] Philippine pangolins in captivity can live up to about 20 years. [13] It is covered in small triangular scales made of keratin everywhere except the underbelly and face, making up at least 20% of the body weight. [12] [14] [13] It regrows new scales when they are lost and always has the same number of scales throughout their lifespan. The scales come in shades of brown, yellow and olive, making for adequate camouflage at night. [12] Newer offspring have much softer scales than adults and tend to weight about 90–500 grams (3–18 oz). [12] [13] Areas of the body without scales are covered in a layer of hair. [12]

The Philippine pangolin has five sharp claws per foot and powerful appendages used for digging. However, these claws are not used as weapons for attacking or defending other animals. Pangolins can also run solely on their hind legs for a duration, using their tail for balance. [12] Its tail is prehensile, allowing it to grab onto branches or stand on its hind legs, despite being covered in scales. [13] The tail also aids the species with climbing and standing upright or to be used as a weapon to puncture enemies using its sharp scales. [12]

The Philippine pangolin's tongue can stretch up to 25 cm (10 inches) long and is coated in an adhesive saliva that is helpful for catching insects. [13] Its head is cone shaped with a long snout and no teeth. [14] [13]

Diet

The Philippine pangolin is a myrmecophage, so has a diet consisting mainly of but not limited to termites and ants. It has in incredible sense of smell that it uses to find its food. The Philippine pangolin is seem to have strong preferences when it comes to the insects they eat, selectively consuming a certain species of ant or termite they like, or even actively avoiding certain species when there is enough of a food abundance to be picky. [12] Its forefeet are used to dig into mounds and logs while its tongue harvests insects. [14] [13] The pangolin will only ever eat a portion of a termite or ant colony, leaving most of the mound/hill intact for the colony to regrow and act as a continuous food source for the pangolin later down the line. [12] It consumes sand and small stones to help grind food in their stomachs. [15]

Behavior

A Philippine Pangolin rolled in a ball, defending itself with its scales A pangolin in defensive posture, Horniman Museum, London.jpg
A Philippine Pangolin rolled in a ball, defending itself with its scales
A Philippine Pangolin pup nudges its mother, rolled up into a protective ball. Philippine Pangolin Curled-up by Gregg Yan.jpg
A Philippine Pangolin pup nudges its mother, rolled up into a protective ball.

The Philippine pangolin is nocturnal and reclusive, tending towards being solitary or in pairs. [13] Because they are mainly active at night, their eyesight is below average. [12] While their hearing is still only about average, they make up for their lack of vision with their extraordinary sense of smell. [12] It generally travels slowly, but can move in a short burst towards safety when it becomes startled, and even has a limited ability to swim. [12] [13] Occasionally, it can be seen standing on its hind legs, balancing on its tail, to help detect nearby predators. [12]

While some of their time is spent on the ground foraging, Philippine pangolins are arboreal, and tend to stay in the tree canopy. [14] [13] When sleeping, they prefer to take refuge inside hollow trees. [12] When threatened, they, like all pangolins, secrete a foul odor and roll into a ball, relying on the protection provided by their scales. [14] [13] Many even sleep rolled up into a ball to protect themselves while they are unaware. They are not known for being territorial animals, but they may be seen leaving their scent to let others know they've taken refuge there for a while. [12]

Reproduction

While little is known about the reproduction of Philippine pangolins, their mating habits are thought to be similar to those of the Sunda pangolin. Like most pangolins, Philippine pangolins mate in the spring. The same odorous secretion used as a self-defense mechanism is also used in mating habits. The secretion is used by males to assert against other males, attract a mate, and are used by the mother while nurturing their young. [12]

The young are born after a gestation period around 18 weeks and are suckled by their mothers about four months. [16] Usually only one offspring is born at once, and they are carried around on the mothers back for a time. [13] When sleeping or threatened, the mother tends to roll in a ball for defense like usual, but with the young cradled in a ball of their own, encompassed in the mother's ball. At the age of about 5 months, young will separate from their mother. Female pangolins even adopt lone young that have lost their own mother. [12]

Hunting and conservation

The Philippine pangolin, much like every other species of pangolin, is considered threatened due to how sought after they are to hunters. Other than the meat, which is a delicacy in certain Asian cultures, the Philippine Pangolin is hunted for their scales, organs, and skin, which are used in traditional medicine. [14] [13] In 2016, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) listed the animal as protected under Appendix I (meaning commercial international trade was prohibited) due to how much international trade influenced pangolin hunting. [13] The Zoological Society of London has listed the mammal as an EDGE species. [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pangolin</span> Mammals of the order Pholidota

Pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, are mammals of the order Pholidota. The one extant family, the Manidae, has three genera: Manis, Phataginus, and Smutsia. Manis comprises four species found in Asia, while Phataginus and Smutsia include two species each, all found in sub-Saharan Africa. These species range in size from 30 to 100 cm. A number of extinct pangolin species are also known. In September 2023, nine species were reported.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ground pangolin</span> Species of mammal

The ground pangolin, also known as Temminck's pangolin, Cape pangolin or steppe pangolin is a species of pangolin from genus Smutsia of subfamily Smutsiinae the within family Manidae. It is one of four species of pangolins which can be found in Africa, and the only one in southern and eastern Africa. The animal was named for the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck.

<i>Manis</i> Genus of mammals

Manis ("spirit") is a genus of South Asian and East Asian pangolins, the Asiatic pangolins, from subfamily Maninae, within family Manidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manidae</span> Family of pangolins

Manidae ("spirits") is the only extant family of pangolins from superfamily Manoidea. This family comprises three genera, as well as extinct Fayum pangolin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philippine forest turtle</span> Species of turtle

Siebenrockiella leytensis is a species of freshwater turtle endemic to the Philippines. It is classified as critically endangered. It is known as the Philippine forest turtle, the Philippine pond turtle, the Palawan turtle, or the Leyte pond turtle. Despite the latter common name, it does not occur in the island of Leyte but is instead native to the Palawan island group. It is locally known as bakoko in Cuyonon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian pangolin</span> Species of mammal

The Indian pangolin, also called thick-tailed pangolin and scaly anteater, is a pangolin native to the Indian subcontinent. Like other pangolins, it has large, overlapping scales on its body which act as armour. The colour of its scales varies depending on the colour of the earth in its surroundings. It can also curl itself into a ball as self-defence against predators such as the tiger. It is an insectivore feeding on ants and termites, digging them out of mounds and logs using its long claws, which are as long as its fore limbs. It is nocturnal and rests in deep burrows during the day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giant pangolin</span> Species of mammal

The giant pangolin is a species of pangolins from genus Smutsia of subfamily Smutsiinae within the family Manidae. It is the largest living species of pangolins. Members of the species inhabit Africa with a range stretching along the equator from West Africa to Uganda. It subsists almost entirely on ants and termites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunda pangolin</span> Species of pangolin found in southeast Asia

The Sunda pangolin, also known as the Malayan or Javan pangolin, is a species of pangolin.

<i>Eomanis</i> Extinct genus of mammals

Eomanis is the earliest known true pangolin from extinct family Eomanidae within suborder Eupholidota. It lived during the Eocene in Europe. Eomanis fossils found in the Messel Pit in Germany are very similar in size and anatomy to living pangolins of the genus Manis, indicating that pangolins have remained largely unchanged in morphology and behavior for 50 million years. However, unlike modern pangolins, its tail and legs did not bear scales. According to the stomach contents of the excellently preserved Messel specimens, Eomanis’ diet consisted of both insects and plants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palawan stink badger</span> Species of carnivore

The Palawan stink badger, pantot or tuldo in the Batak language, is a carnivoran of the western Philippines named for its resemblance to badgers, its powerful smell, and the largest island to which it is native, Palawan. Like all stink badgers, the Palawan stink badger was once thought to share a more recent common ancestor with badgers than with skunks. Recent genetic evidence, however, has led to their re-classification as one of the Mephitidae, the skunk family of mammals. It is the size of a large skunk or small badger, and uses its badger-like body to dig by night for invertebrates in open areas near patches of brush. While it lacks the whitish dorsal patches typical of its closest relatives, predators and hunters generally avoid the powerful noxious chemicals it can spray from the specialized anal glands characteristic of mephitids.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chinese pangolin</span> Species of mammal

The Chinese pangolin is a pangolin native to the northern Indian subcontinent, northern parts of Southeast Asia and southern China. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2014, as the wild population is estimated to have declined by more than 80% in three pangolin generations, equal to 21 years. It is threatened by poaching for the illegal wildlife trade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long-tailed pangolin</span> Species of mammal

The long-tailed pangolin, also called the African black-bellied pangolin or ipi, is a diurnal, arboreal pangolin species belonging to the family Manidae, in the order Pholidota. They feed on ants rather than termites. The common names for this species stem from physical characteristics, such as the extremely long tail or the dark hairs that cover the underside of their bodies and limbs. Pangolin comes from the Malay word pengguling, meaning “something that rolls up”.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tree pangolin</span> Species of mammal

The tree pangolin is one of eight extant species of pangolins, and is native to equatorial Africa. Also known as the white-bellied pangolin or three-cusped pangolin, it is the most common of the African forest pangolins.

<i>Phataginus</i> Genus of mammals

African tree pangolin (Phataginus) is a genus of African pangolins from subfamily small African pangolins (Phatagininae), within family Manidae. Its members are the more arboreal of the African pangolins.

<i>Smutsia</i> Genus of mammals

African ground pangolin is a genus of pangolins from subfamily Smutsiinae within family Manidae. It was formerly considered a subgenus of genus Manis. Its members are the more terrestrial of the African pangolins. In past, this genus was also present in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pangolin trade</span> Illegal poaching, sale and trafficking

The pangolin trade is the illegal poaching, trafficking, and sale of pangolins, parts of pangolins, or pangolin-derived products on the black market. Pangolins are believed to be the world's most trafficked mammal, accounting for as much as 20% of all illegal wildlife trade. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), more than a million pangolins were poached in the decade prior to 2014.

Pangolin, sometimes known as a scaly anteater, is a mammal of the order Pholidota -one extant family, Manidae; more specifically:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taiwanese pangolin</span> Subspecies of mammal

The Taiwanese pangolin, also known as the Formosan pangolin, is a subspecies of the Chinese pangolin that is native to Taiwan. Its population has largely declined over the past few decades, mainly due to the threat of poaching and illegal trading of their valuable scales and meat.

References

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