Dung Beetle Diversity Survey Data for Sekar Imej Conservation Area (SICA)

The Sekar Imej Conservation Area (SICA) project was initiated by Wilmar International with aims, (1) Establishing effective management of High Conservation Value (HCV) for long term biodiversity conservation in plantation landscapes; (2) capacity building to support local communities; and (3) empowering local communities to support the protection within SICA landscapes. The SICA is recognised as the largest conservation area (2,469 hectares) within Wilmar’s operations in Malaysia (Forest & Reserves, 2021). A rapid assessment was conducted to assess the diversity of dung beetles within the targeted trails. Fieldwork was conducted from 26th – 29th September 2022. Dung beetle sampling was carried out in Monjuk trail (117°11’07.0’’; 6°20’54.1’’) and Tobobon trail (117°11’42.5’’; 6°21’14.5’’) at Sekar Imej Conservation Area (SICA), Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. The forest consist of secondary forest, dominated area with young regenerating forest and lowland mixed dipterocarp forest. These trails are located nearby to larger Paitan and Lingkabau Forest Reserves, which interspersed between other oil palm plantations. We did pitfall and canopy traps using human dung, trapping for 48 hours. The traps were spaced 200 metres from one another.Sekar Imej保护区（Sekar Imej Conservation Area，简称SICA）项目由丰益国际（Wilmar International）发起，旨在达成以下目标：（1）建立高保护价值区域（High Conservation Value，HCV）的有效管理机制，以在种植园景观中实现生物多样性的长期保护；（2）开展能力建设以扶持当地社区；（3）赋能当地社区以支持SICA景观范围内的保护工作。SICA被认定为丰益国际在马来西亚运营版图中规模最大的保护区，总面积达2469公顷（Forest & Reserves，2021）。研究团队针对预设样线开展了快速生物多样性评估，以调查目标区域内蜣螂的物种多样性。野外调查工作于2022年9月26日至29日期间开展。蜣螂采样分别在马来西亚婆罗洲沙巴州的Sekar Imej保护区（SICA）的Monjuk样线（坐标：117°11’07.0’’；6°20’54.1’’）与Tobobon样线（坐标：117°11’42.5’’；6°21’14.5’’）进行。该区域森林类型以次生林为主，包含年轻更新林与低地混合龙脑香林。上述样线毗邻更大范围的Paitan与Lingkabau森林保护区，周边区域穿插分布有其他油棕种植园。本次调查采用人粪作为诱饵，通过地面陷阱与树冠陷阱开展了为期48小时的诱集，陷阱布设间距为200米。