Mammals of Borneo; A Field Guide to

This book describes every species of wild mammal presently known to occur in Borneo and its offshore islands. Approximately 221 species of wild land mammals have been recorded in Borneo, of which 92 species are bats. Also included are descriptions of the more commonly encountered domestic animals which might be confused with wild mammals, as well as a few species which have not definitely been recorded in Borneo but which are likely to be found in the area. Sea mammals, including the cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) and the dugong, are also included. Little is known about these in Bornean waters, as few people have studied them and, until recently, there were few books available describing them. The only species definitely known to occur are those for which stranded specimens have been obtained. Only 10 species have been confirmed in this way, although a further 5 have been reported from sight records. To encourage more people to study cetaceans, we have included all species found in nearby seas which are likely to occur in Bornean waters. Every mammal is illustrated in colour, with the exception of a few which so closely resemble another species as to be indistinguishable by sight, or for which no adequate specimens or descriptions were available. Several of the more distinctive subspecies are also illustrated. With the exception of the cetaceans, most of the mammals were drawn either from live animals or from freshly collected specimens. However, in a few cases it was necessary to use older museum specimens. If we felt the specimens might have altered or faded significantly with age, this is indicated in the text. The illustrations of cetaceans are based on Lyall Watson and Thomas Ritchie’s Sea Guide to the Whales of the World, with the kind permission of the authors. The colour illustrations together with the brief notes on the facing page will be adequate for many people. For those who wish to learn more about each species, or confirm their identifications, greater detail is given in the text. The text highlights identification characters easily visible on the live animal, but for groups such as bats and shrews which can be difficult to identify, we have also included technical details on dentition or skull shape