Animal Info - Thailand

(Formerly Siam)

Threatened Species, Environmental and Social Data (Mammals, Biodiversity/Ecosystems, Population, Area/Land Use, Protected Lands, Economy, Education), References and Links

Threatened Species

Threatened Species: The following list includes all mammals which occur in Thailand and are rated as Critically Endangered (CR), Endangered (EN) or Vulnerable (VU) in the 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals.

Critically Endangered:
- Javan Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus).
- Kouprey (Bos sauveli).
- Sumatran Rhinoceros (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis).
Endangered:
- Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus).
- Banteng (Bos javanicus).
- Kitti's Hog-nosed Bat (Craseonycteris thonglongyai). (Endemic to Thailand.)
- Lesser Roundleaf Bat (Hipposideros turpis).
- Neill's Long-tailed Giant Rat (Leopoldamys neilli). (Endemic to Thailand.)
- Otter Civet (Cynogale bennetti).
- Particolored Flying Squirrel (Hylopetes alboniger).
- Sei Whale (Balaenoptera borealis).
- Tiger (Panthera tigris).
- Wild Water Buffalo (Bubalus arnee).
Vulnerable:
- Asiatic Black Bear (Ursus thibetanus).
- Asiatic Golden Cat (Catopuma temminckii).
- Assamese Macaque (Macaca assamensis).
- Back-striped Weasel (Mustela strigidorsa).
- Bourret's Horseshoe Bat (Rhinolophus paradoxolophus).
- Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa).
- Dhole (Cuon alpinus).
- Dugong (Dugong dugon).
- Eld's Deer (Cervus eldi).
- Eurasian Otter (Lutra lutra).
- Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus).
- Flat-headed Cat (Prionailurus planiceps).
- Gaur (Bos frontalis).
- Long-tailed Goral (Naemorhedus caudatus).
- Mainland Serow (Capricornis sumatraensis).
- Malayan Porcupine (Hystrix brachyura).
- Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus).
- Marbled Cat (Pardofelis marmorata).
- Northern Pigtail Macaque (Macaca leonina).
- Pig-tailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina).
- Pileated Gibbon (Hylobates pileatus).
- Sikkim Rat (Rattus sikkimensis).
- Smooth-coated Otter (Lutra perspicillata).
- Sperm Whale (Physeter catodon).
- Stumptail Macaque (Macaca arctoides).
- Surat Serotine (Bat) (Eptesicus demissus). (Endemic to Thailand.)
Other:
- Fea's Muntjac (Muntiacus feae). (Rated Endangered in the 1994 Red List; rated Data Deficient in the 1996 and 2000 Red Lists.)

Environmental and Social Data

Mammals

Total number of species: 265 (Groombridge & Jenkins 1994)
Number of endemic species: 7 (Groombridge & Jenkins 1994)
Number of threatened species: 1996: 34 (13 % of total species) (IUCN 1996); 2000: 36 (14% of total species) (IUCN 2000)

Biodiversity/Ecosystems

Thailand contains portions of the Annamite Range Moist Forests, Kayah-Karan/ Tenasserim Moist Forests, Peninsular Malaysian Lowland & Montane Forests, Northern Indochina Subtropical Moist Forests, Eastern Indochina Dry & Monsoon Forests, Mekong & Salween Rivers, and Isthmus of Kra Marine Ecosystems Global 200 Ecoregions (Olson & Dinerstein 1998, Olson & Dinerstein 1999)
Thailand contains portions of the Western Sunda Global Biodiversity Hotspot (Cons. Intl. 1999a)

Population

Population in 1995: 60,206,000 (Natl. Geog. Soc. 1995)
Population density in 1995: 117.1 people/sq km (303.4 people/sq mi) (Natl. Geog. Soc. 1995)
Population in 1998: 60,037,366 (World Almanac 1999)
Average population growth rate, 1980 - 1990: 1.8 % (World Bank 1992)

Area/Land Use

Area: 514,001 sq km (198,457 sq mi) (Natl. Geog. Soc. 1995)
Percentages of primary world ecosystem types:

Other Coastal Aquatic: 7 %
Crop and Settlements: 41 %
Interrupted Woods: 7 %
Major Forests: 45 %

(Groombridge 1992)

Percent of land area classified as the following degree of human disturbance: Low: 8 %, Medium: 19 %, High: 73 % (WRI 1994)

Protected Lands

Area: 55,140 sq km (21,284 sq mi) (Groombridge 1992)
Percent of land protected: 5.53 % totally protected, 5.2 % partially protected, 10.73 % totally or partially protected (Groombridge 1992)