Title
Distribution and population status of Przewalski's gazelle, Procapra przewalskii (Cetartiodactyla, Bovidae)
Author(s)
Zhang, L.;Liu, J.;Wang, D.;Schaller, G. B.;Wu, Y.;Harris, R. B.;Zhang, K.;Lü, Z.
Published
2013
Publisher
Mammalia
Abstract
Przewalski's gazelle (Procapra przewalskii) is a rare species endemic to China. Only 200-300 individuals were estimated to survive around the Qinghai Lake by the 1990s. Recent work has revealed that the status of the species is less precarious than indicated by earlier reports; 602 individuals were recorded in 2003. Here, we describe detailed distributions for 9 of the 10 known subpopulations of the gazelle and update its population status. We tallied 1320 individuals, but found that one subpopulation first discovered in 2003 had declined since then and in 2008 was probably close to extirpation. Estimates using distance sampling conducted in a portion of the study area were higher than those that would have resulted from extrapolation of the raw observations underlying them (i.e., unadjusted counts), suggesting that the total population of Przewalski's gazelle was larger than 1320. We conclude that our larger population estimates were mainly due to a more thorough survey protocol and consideration of detection probability, and did not reflect a true population increase. © 2013 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston.
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PUB15005