China's stunning diversity of natural habitats--from parched deserts to lush tropical forests--is home to more than 10 percent of the world's mammal species. A Guide to the Mammals of China is the most comprehensive guide to all 556 species of mammals found in China. It is the only single-volume reference of its kind to fully describe the physical characteristics, geographic distribution, natural history, and conservation status of every species. An up-to-date distribution map accompanies each species account, and color plates illustrate a majority of species. Written by a team of leading specialists, including Professor Wang Sung who provides a history of Chinese mammalogy, A Guide to the Mammals of China is the ideal reference for researchers and a delight for anyone interested in China's rich mammal fauna.
- The definitive, comprehensive, up-to-date guide to all of China's 556 mammal species
- High-quality color plates accompany the detailed text
- Each species account comes with a distribution map
- Organized taxonomically for easy reference
- Includes an extensive bibliography
China's stunning diversity of natural habitats--from parched deserts to lush tropical forests--is home to more than 10 percent of the world's mammal species. A Guide to the Mammals of China is the most comprehensive guide to all 556 species of mammals found in China. It is the only single-volume reference of its kind to fully describe the physical characteristics, geographic distribution, natural history, and conservation status of every species. An up-to-date distribution map accompanies each species account, and color plates illustrate a majority of species. Written by a team of leading specialists, including Professor Wang Sung who provides a history of Chinese mammalogy, A Guide to the Mammals of China is the ideal reference for researchers and a delight for anyone interested in China's rich mammal fauna.
- The definitive, comprehensive, up-to-date guide to all of China's 556 mammal species
- High-quality color plates accompany the detailed text
- Each species account comes with a distribution map
- Organized taxonomically for easy reference
- Includes an extensive bibliography
A Guide to the Mammals of China
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A Guide to the Mammals of China
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Overview
China's stunning diversity of natural habitats--from parched deserts to lush tropical forests--is home to more than 10 percent of the world's mammal species. A Guide to the Mammals of China is the most comprehensive guide to all 556 species of mammals found in China. It is the only single-volume reference of its kind to fully describe the physical characteristics, geographic distribution, natural history, and conservation status of every species. An up-to-date distribution map accompanies each species account, and color plates illustrate a majority of species. Written by a team of leading specialists, including Professor Wang Sung who provides a history of Chinese mammalogy, A Guide to the Mammals of China is the ideal reference for researchers and a delight for anyone interested in China's rich mammal fauna.
- The definitive, comprehensive, up-to-date guide to all of China's 556 mammal species
- High-quality color plates accompany the detailed text
- Each species account comes with a distribution map
- Organized taxonomically for easy reference
- Includes an extensive bibliography
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781400834112 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Princeton University Press |
| Publication date: | 04/23/2010 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 576 |
| File size: | 28 MB |
| Note: | This product may take a few minutes to download. |
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A Guide to the Mammals of China
Princeton University Press
Copyright © 2008 Princeton University Press
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-691-09984-2
Introduction Andrew T. Smith and Xie Yan
China is a magnificent country and one of the most diverse on Earth. Its size ranks fourth among the world's nations (9,596,960 [km.sup.2]), and it is home to over 1.3 billion people. The topography of China ranges from the highest elevation on Earth (Mt. Everest or Chomolung ma; 8,850 m) to one of the lowest (Turpan Pendi; 154 m below sea level). Chinese environments include some of Earth's most extensive and driest deserts (the Taklimakan and Gobi) and its highest plateau (the Tibetan Plateau or "Roof of the World"). Habitats range from tropical to boreal forest, and from extensive grasslands to desert. This wide variety of habitats has contributed greatly to the richness of China's mammal fauna. Additionally, the geographic location of China, at the suture zone between the Palaearctic and Indo-Malayan biogeographic regions (Hoffmann 2001), further contributes to the country's mammal diversity. Overall, more than 10 percent of the world's species of mammal live in China (556/5,416; total count from Wilson and Reeder 2005). Twenty percent (109/556) of China's mammals are endemic, and one of these is among the most recognizable of the world's mammals, the Giant Panda. In their analysis of megadiversity countries, Mittermeier et al. (1997) consider China to have the third highest diversity of mammals among all countries(following Brazil and Indonesia).
China's Geography and Mammalian Biogeography
There have been many attempts to describe China's diverse landscape (reviewed in Mac-Kinnon and Hicks 1996; MacKinnon et al. 1996; Xie et al. 2004a). Conventionally, China has been divided into three major physical geographic regions: the Tibetan (Qinghai-Xizang) Plateau, northwest arid China, and eastern monsoon China (map 4).
The Tibetan Plateau is one of the highest and most remote landscapes on Earth. The plateau averages between 3,000 and 5,000 m in elevation and encompasses roughly a quarter of China. The word "plateau" is a misnomer, as this area is crisscrossed by numerous impressive mountain chains, such as the Anyemaqin Shan, Bayan Har Shan, and Tanggula Shan, and many smaller spur ranges. Nevertheless, approximately 70 percent of the plateau is composed of alpine meadow or semisteppe vegetation. The Qaidam Basin, an interesting area of tectonic collapse, is found at the northern extreme of the plateau at an elevation of only 2,600 m (MacKinnon and Hicks 1996).
The arid northwest encompasses about 30 percent of China and represents an eastern extension of the great Eurasian deserts and grasslands. One of the world's most desolate deserts, the Taklimakan (translation: "those who go in do not come out alive") lies north of the Tibetan Plateau and the Kunlun range. The cooler Dzungarian Basin, China's second-largest desert, lies in the far northwest. Various smaller deserts extend to the east, increasingly interspersed with semidesert and temperate steppe grasslands. Finally, the rocky Gobi Desert occupies the northern part of China and extends into Mongolia. Two of Asia's major mountain ranges break up this barren expanse in the northwest: the Tian Shan and the Altai. One can stand below sea level in Turpan Pendi and clearly see the snow-capped top of Bogda Feng (in a spur of the Tian Shan) at 5,445 m (MacKinnon and Hicks 1996).
Eastern monsoon China comprises about 45 percent of the country but is home to roughly 95 percent of China's human population. This land is crossed by major rivers that originate on the Tibetan Plateau, most notably the Huang He (Yellow River) and the Yangtze. Almost all of the arable land has been converted to agriculture, and much of the original forest habitat has been destroyed. Most of this landscape is low in elevation and consists of broad alluvial valleys, coastal plains, and modest ancient mountain ranges. The south is seasonably humid, and the plains are punctuated by dramatic limestone pillars. The climate becomes increasingly temperate toward the north, with deciduous trees giving way to expansive coniferous forests in the far northeast (MacKinnon and Hicks 1996).
These physical geographical regions, however, do not adequately define the major bio geographic divisions in China (maps 3, 4, and 5; Xie et al. 2004a). Biogeographically, China's flora and fauna have been affected by both historical factors (their derivation from two formerly isolated biogeographic realms-the Palaearctic and the Indo-Malayan) and their relative ability to colonize new habitats.
The southern boundary of the Palaearctic realm in China and adjacent countries was analyzed by Hoffmann (2001), particularly with regard to the distribution of mammals. He found extreme compression of the zone of overlap between the Palaearctic and Indo-Malayan realms along the southern boundary of western China, as this region is defined by high altitudinal relief. In contrast, in areas of low relief (such as in eastern central China), the zonation is determined more by latitude than altitude, and there is a broad latitudinal band of overlap between forms that originated from the Palaear c-tic and Indo-Malayan realms (Hoffmann 2001). In the south this zone extends from about 28ºN on the coast to roughly 25ºN in the area in northern Yunnan where the three great rivers (Yangtze, Mekong, Salween) lie in close proximity. The northern edge of this zone essentially follows the Yangtze River from the east coast to the area where the three great rivers come together (Hoffmann 2001). This description contrasts with previous opinions that the southern limit of the Palaearctic in China largely corresponds to the latitude of the Huang He in eastern China (about 30ºN; Corbet 1978; Corbet and Hill 1992).
A sensitive and objective approach to understanding the zoogeography of Chinese mammals has been developed recently by Xie et al. (2004a). They defined 124 biogeographic units in China based on a comprehensive suite of factors (altitude, landform, climate, vegetation, hydrology, etc.) and then overlaid maps of 171 diagnostic mammal species on these units. A statistical analysis identified aggregations of biogeographic units based on mammal distributions, and this information was used to create cluster dendrograms. This analysis produced a classification of the boundaries dividing the mammal fauna at different spatial scales across China. A similar analysis was performed on 509 representative plant species.
The biogeographical divisions of mammals and plants in China determined by the methodology outlined above contrast significantly with the commonly used physical geographical regions for China (map 4). Additionally, there are distinctive differences between the biogeographical divisions using the plant and mammal data. Four major biogeographical divisions occur in China based on vegetation: northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest. These in turn can be broken down into 8 subareas and 27 regions (table 1; maps 3 and 4). Compared with the physical geographical regions, the major divisions based on plants separate the arid northwest into a western and eastern section, and eastern monsoonal China into a northern and southern part. The southwest China biogeographical region for plants is basically similar to the Tibetan Plateau physical geographic region, although both the northern and southern boundaries of the biogeographical region are found farther south than the physical geographical region (table 1; map 4; Xie et al. 2004a).
There are three major biogeographical divisions for mammals (map 5; Xie et al. 2004a). As for plants, the mammals have distinctive western and eastern distributions in the arid northwest geo graphical region; the divisional boundary for mammals occurs farther west than that for plants (map 4). The mammals also separate eastern monsoonal China into northern and southern areas, and the boundary for mammals is further south than that for plants. In the large arc from northwest to southeast China, there is a single mammal biogeographical boundary compared with two for plants (map 4). Mammals in the interior drain age area on the Tibetan Plateau have northern affinities. The southeastern plateau region shows a continuous extension in faunal affinities to the southeast, maintaining a mammal fauna more similar to that of monsoonal southeastern China.
In northwest China the montane forests and grasslands of the Tian Shan and Altai mountains clearly are distinct from the surrounding arid landscape. The Altai (F3; map 5) shows clear ties to the fauna of Russia's boreal forest. As a result, Zhang and Zhou (1978) biogeographically linked the Altai with the Greater Xing'an mountains of northeast China. However, more than twice as many Altai mammals occur simultaneously in the Tian Shan mountains and the arid Dzungarian Basin as in the Greater Xing'an mountains (Xie et al. 2004a).
In northeast China there are distinct differences in vegetation between the Greater and Lesser Xing'an mountains (regions 1 and 5; map 3), whereas mammal distributions are similar between these ranges, and the area can be classified as a single region (region A; map 5). Overall, the analysis of Xie et al. (2004a) demonstrates that the ability to colonize varies between plants and animals, producing distinctive differences in the cluster analysis and the designation of major biogeographic areas in China. While plant distributions tend to be closely tied to prevailing environmental conditions, mammals generally exhibit broader geographic tolerance. Additionally, mammal distributions appear to be truncated by major rivers and mountain chains, whereas these do not appear to be as stringent barriers to plant distributions. Thus plant divisions appear to be more reliable than those of mammals as a general descriptor of China's biogeography (table 1; map 3).
History of Chinese Mammalogy, by Wang Sung
Pre-People's Republic of China
In ancient times knowledge about animals was primarily obtained from human activities, such as hunting and fishing. As early as the Shang dynasty (ca. 1500 BC), over 100 words existed for various kinds of birds (such as chickens), mammals (such as sheep, horses, cattle, and pigs), fish, and insects. By the Tang dynasty (AD 600-900), when culture and exploration in China were ascendant, knowledge of mammals was widespread (Schafer 1963).
During the most active time of natural history exploration (the mid-late 1800s and early 1900s), China's culture was more introspective. Most explorations in China at that time were con ducted by scientists from Europe or North America (John Anderson, Roy Chapman Andrews, M. Berezovski, Douglas Carruthers, Père Armand David, George Forrest, Walter Granger, P. M. Heude, Pyotr Kozlov, Clifford Pope, G. Potanin, Nikolai Przewalski, Vsevolod Roborovski, Arthur de Carle Sowerby, Robert Swinhoe, and Walter Zappey to name a few; Allen 1938, 1940; Rayfield 1976). A quick look in this book at the names of scientific authorities for the majority of Chinese mammal species and subspecies bears witness to the prevalence of Western scientists in the initial determination of the Chinese mammal fauna. Indeed, most of the type specimens from these expeditions remain deposited in the major museums of the United States and Europe, a factor that hampers systematic mammalogy in China to this day. Toward the end of this era (the 1920s and 1930s), some Chinese mammalogists became involved in the study of the Chinese fauna, including Shou Zhenhuang, Fu Tongsheng, Liu Chengzao, and Peng Hongshou. The publication of Glover Allen's The Mammals of China and Mongolia (1938, 1940) provided a benchmark capturing the results of these early investigations. Allen's treatise continues to inform, and it provided essential information used by the authors of this book.
Early People's Republic of China Period (1949-1966)
Chinese mammalogy began in earnest in the early 1950s, upon the founding of the PRC. The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) was founded in late 1949 after the advent of the PRC, followed shortly by the establishment of the Institute of Zoology (IOZ) under the CAS in 1951. It was immediately recognized that mammalogy was a field that had received minimal attention in the past. To rectify this, Shou Zhenhuang, an experienced zoologist who had studied abroad throughout the 1930s and 1940s, was appointed to found the Mammalogical Research Division of the IOZ. As one of the leading zoologists in China, he had published the first scientific paper about Chinese ichthyology and was the author of Birds of Hopei Province (1936), the only ornithological monograph published before the PRC was founded. Shou recruited young students for the Mammal Division and established a mammal collection, beginning with materials from old institutions in Beijing and the former Heude Museum in Shanghai. He also developed the mammalogical portion of the institutional library (including important international journals, e.g., Journal of Mammalogy, Zoological Record, Biological Abstracts, Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, Annals and Magazine of Natural History, as well as significant reference books, e.g., Allen's Mammals of China and Mongolia [1938, 1940], Miller's Mammals of Western Europe [1912], Ellerman and Morrison-Scott's Checklist of Palaearctic and Indian Mammals [1951]), despite the extreme difficulty in amassing foreign currency needed to purchase them.
Most important, Shou initiated field surveys and ecological research. A five-year plan, the Mammalogical Faunal Survey, began in 1953 in northeastern China (Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, and eastern Nei Mongol), a minimally disturbed area that still contained large expanses of virgin forest. This survey covered much of the Lesser Xing'an mountains (1953), Greater Xing'an mountains (1954), Changbai Shan mountains (1955), and the Liaodong Peninsula, Songhuajiang-Liaohe Delta, and Sanjiang Plain (1956-57). Involved in the field survey team were the majority of the Mammal Division of IOZ/CAS, headed by Peng Hongshou (1953-57) together with Zhu Jing (1954), Yang Hefang (1953), Wang Sung (1954-56), Zhang Jie (1954), and Li Xueren (1954-56). While the main survey was being conducted in the northeast, other mammalian surveys began in other areas (southern Yunnan, Hainan, Guangxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Gansu, Qinghai, Guangxi), many of which remained productive until they were terminated during the Cultural Revolution.
As the IOZ's Mammal Division developed, it became the center of mammalogical research in China. A number of young colleagues from universities and institutions were sent to IOZ/CAS for further study under Shou's supervision, including Li Guiyuan (Sichuan Agricultural University), Yang Anfeng (Peking University), He Hong'en (from Hunan), Zhang Luanguang (Beijing Normal University), Chen Jun (Lanzhou University), Zheng Changlin (from Xining, Qinghai), Wu Delin (Kunming Institute of Zoology), and Xu Munong (Shandong Normal University). These young scientists eventually became some of the leading mammalogists in China.
In parallel additional zoological institutions were established, such as the Kunming Institute of Zoology (KIZ) in the late 1950s (headed by Pan Qinghua) and the Northwest Plateau Institute of Biology (NWPIB) in Xining in 1966 (headed by Xia Wuping), as well as some local institutions in Shaanxi, Xinjiang, and Guangdong. Research staff from these institutions and university teachers conducted a large number of field surveys and research projects in various regions. Thus, mammalian collections were further developed not only at the IOZ/ CAS, but also in different locations throughout China.
Over 10,000 mammal specimens were collected during the Mammalogical Faunal Survey, and these constituted the first mammalian collection in China at IOZ/CAS. The final results of the five-year survey were compiled and published as Report on Mammalian Survey in Northeastern China (1958), now regarded as a milestone of early Chinese mammalogy. It was followed by publication of The Economical Fauna-Mammalia (1962) and Illustrated Books of Animals-Mammalia (1963). These are the earliest publications about the mammalian fauna written and compiled by Chinese mammalogists.
At this time it was difficult for Chinese mammalogists to catalog incoming specimens because nearly all the type specimens were housed in foreign collections, and most of the relevant literature was in either English or Russian. The language barrier was formidable for younger scientists. Although universities offered courses in Russian, no English courses would become available for another two decades.
(Continues...)
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Table of Contents
List of Species Plates xiList of Figures xv
List of Maps xvii
List of Habitat Illustrations xix
Preface xxi
Contributors xxiii
INTRODUCTION: Andrew T. Smith and Xie Yan 1
China's Geography and Mammalian Biogeography 1
History of Chinese Mammalogy: Wang Sung 4
Mammalian Conservation 9
China's Protected Area System 10
How to Use This Book 11
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 14
Species Plates 32
Taxonomic Descriptions 155
CLASS MAMMALIA: Andrew T. Smith 155
ORDER PROBOSCIDEA: Andrew T. Smith and John MacKinnon 155
Family Elephantidae 155
ORDER SIRENIA: Andrew T. Smith 157
Family Dugongidae 157
ORDER SCANDENTIA: Andrew T. Smith 158
Family Tupaiidae 158
ORDER PRIMATES: John MacKinnon 158
Family Lorisidae 159
Family Cercopithecidae 160
Subfamily Cercopithecinae 160
Subfamily Colobinae 164
Family Hylobatidae 169
ORDER RODENTIA: Darrin Lunde, Andrew T. Smith, and Robert S. Hoffmann 172
Family Sciuridae: Robert S. Hoffmann and Andrew T. Smith 172
Subfamily Ratufinae 173
Subfamily Sciurinae 174
Subfamily Callosciurinae 182
Subfamily Xerinae 189
Family Gliridae: Andrew T. Smith 196
Family Castoridae: Andrew T. Smith 197
Family Dipodidae: Andrew T. Smith 198
Subfamily Allactaginae 198
Subfamily Cardiocraniinae 202
Subfamily Dipodinae 204
Subfamily Euchoreutinae 206
Subfamily Sicistinae 206
Subfamily Zapodinae 208
Family Platacanthomyidae: Andrew T. Smith 208
Family Spalacidae: Andrew T. Smith 209
Subfamily Myospalacinae 209
Subfamily Rhizomyinae 212
Family Cricetidae: Darrin Lunde and Andrew T. Smith 214
Subfamily Arvicolinae: Darrin Lunde 214
Subfamily Cricetinae: Andrew T. Smith and Robert S. Hoffmann 239
Family Muridae: Andrew T. Smith and Darrin Lunde 247
Subfamily Gerbillinae: Andrew T. Smith and Robert S. Hoffmann 247
Subfamily Murinae: Darrin Lunde 252
Family Hystricidae: Andrew T. Smith 273
ORDER LAGOMORPHA: Andrew T. Smith 275
Family Ochotonidae 275
Family Leporidae 287
ORDER ERINACEOMORPHA: Robert S. Hoffmann and Darrin Lunde 292
Family Erinaceidae 292
Subfamily Erinaceinae 293
Subfamily Galercinae 295
ORDER SORICOMORPHA: Robert S. Hoffmann and Darrin Lunde 297
Family Soricidae 297
Subfamily Crocidurinae 298
Subfamily Soricinae 303
Family Talpidae 320
Subfamily Scalopinae 321
Subfamily Talpinae 321
Subfamily Uropsilinae 326
ORDER CHIROPTERA: Don E. Wilson 327
Family Pteropodidae 328
Family Rhinolophidae 334
Family Hipposideridae 344
Family Megadermatidae 349
Family Emballonuridae 350
Family Molossidae 351
Family Vespertilionidae 353
Subfamily Vespertilioninae 353
Subfamily Myotinae 371
Subfamily Miniopterinae 380
Subfamily Murininae 382
Subfamily Kerivoulinae 386
ORDER PHOLIDOTA: Andrew T. Smith 387
Family Manidae 387
ORDER CARNIVORA: W. Chris Wozencraft 388
Family Felidae 389
Subfamily Felinae 390
Subfamily Pantherinae 399
Family Viverridae 404
Subfamily Hemigalinae 405
Subfamily Paradoxurinae 406
Subfamily Prionodontinae 410
Subfamily Viverrinae 411
Family Herpestidae 414
Family Canidae 416
Family Ursidae 422
Family Otariidae 427
Family Phocidae 429
Family Mustelidae 431
Subfamily Lutrinae 432
Subfamily Mustelinae 434
Family Ailuridae 448
ORDER PERISSODACTYLA: Andrew T. Smith 449
Family Equidae 449
ORDER ARTIODACTYLA: John MacKinnon 451
Family Suidae 452
Family Camelidae 452
Family Tragulidae 453
Family Moschidae 454
Family Cervidae 457
Subfamily Capreolinae 457
Subfamily Cervinae 459
Subfamily Hydropotinae 467
Family Bovidae 468
Subfamily Antilopinae 468
Subfamily Bovinae 472
Subfamily Caprinae 473
ORDER CETACEA: Andrew T. Smith 481
Family Delphinidae 482
Family Phocoenidae 482
Family Iniidae 483
APPENDIXES 485
I. Cetaceans Found Off the Coast of China 485
II. Hypothetical Mammals 486
III. Introduced Alien, Feral, or Free-ranging Domestic Mammals 487
GLOSSARY 489
REFERENCES 495
INDEX TO SCIENTIFIC NAMES 527
INDEX TO COMMON NAMES 541
What People are Saying About This
This is destined to be a landmark book on Asian mammals. Its publication marks a watershed event, enabling public understanding of a tenth of the world's mammal species. Contributors to the volume include many of the world's experts on Chinese mammals. This is an ambitious book.
— Bruce D. Patterson, Field Museum of Natural History
"This is destined to be a landmark book on Asian mammals. Its publication marks a watershed event, enabling public understanding of a tenth of the world's mammal species. Contributors to the volume include many of the world's experts on Chinese mammals. This is an ambitious book."—Bruce D. Patterson, Field Museum of Natural History