A drone-based population survey of Delacour's langur (Trachypithecus delacouri) in the karst forests of northern Vietnam

Abstract

The Critically Endangered Delacour's langur (Trachypithecus delacouri) is presently found only in a few isolated karst areas in northern Vietnam, where conducting field surveys has proven challenging due to the difficult terrain. Accurate population estimates from a scientifically sound method are needed to inform management of the species. From October to December 2022, we used a drone equipped with optical and thermal cameras to survey the species in Kim Bang Forest, a critical site for the species. We estimated langur abundance from the resulting point count data using N-mixture models including abiotic and biotic variables. We also compared the effectiveness and efficiency of the drone method with two commonly used ground-based methods. The drone survey recorded 16 groups with 104 individuals. We estimated a density of 0.87 groups per km² and a population of 25 groups and 175 individuals. This estimate is 80–113 % higher than previous ground-based estimates, attributed primarily to the higher area coverage by the drone survey. The estimate reaffirms the conservation importance of Kim Bang Forest for the species. The modelling also indicated that Delacour's langur abundance was correlated negatively with Assamese macaque (Macaca assamensis) presence and positively with vegetation productivity. Other variables (elevation, terrain ruggedness and distance to forest edge) were much less important in explaining langur abundance. Compared to the ground-based methods, the drone approach proved effective and resource-efficient for surveying Delacour's langurs. We recommend the drone method for future Delacour's langur surveys, with potential applicability to other arboreal mammals in difficult-to-access karst forests.