"Colugo: the Flying Lemur of South-east Asia" by Norman Lim (2007)

Colugo: the Flying Lemur of South-east Asia. Norman Lim. Draco Publishing & Distribution Pte Ltd and the National University of Singapore, Singapore. 78 pp. ISBN 981-05-6454-6
































Ten years ago, while writing a review of frugivory and seed dispersal, I did a comprehensive search of the literature for information on the diet of the Sunda Colugo (Galeopterus variegatus). Bill Wischusen’s PhD study of the Philippine colugo (Cynocephalus volans) had shown that this species was largely folivorous, but almost nothing seemed to be known about the ecology of the Sunda species. This was a surprise since colugos are neither rare nor difficult to see, and every field naturalist in the region has a favourite colugo story. Mine is seeing one gliding between street trees while eating dinner at a roadside restaurant in Penang. A partial excuse for this ignorance is the apparent impossibility of keeping them alive in captivity, but I suspect the primary reason is that they cannot be studied by any of the standard techniques developed for primates, bats or ground-dwelling mammals.

Now Norman Lim has now provided the science of Dermopterology – the study of colugos – with its first book. Almost everything known about colugos up to 2005 is in here, from distribution and morphology to diet, behaviour and reproduction. The highly readable text is illustrated on almost every page by stunning photographs, as well as maps, diagrams and tables. Of particular value, is the way that the author has brought together observations from many other naturalists to flesh out his own studies in Singapore. Much of the information on the Sunda Colugo is previously unpublished, so this book will be the primary source for mammalogists interested in this species. The final chapter makes a plea for conservation – perhaps unnecessary for this relatively resilient species? – and also makes some sensible suggestions for studies that are needed to fill in gaps in our knowledge. The need for further taxonomic studies is particularly urgent, for while colugos are still common in the region as a whole, it is possible that unrecognized cryptic species are under threat, on islands or in continental Southeast Asia. Diet, social organization and life history are other obvious gaps.

The 2005 cut-off in the literature sources was rather unlucky, since several relevant papers have been published since. These include new fossil evidence from Thailand, Myanmar and Pakistan, which shows both the great antiquity of the colugos in Asia and that their present distribution is a relict from a more widespread past (Marivaux et al., 2006). The fossil,
molecular and morphological evidence now all agree in grouping the colugos with the tree-shrews in the aptly named Sundatheria (“Sunda animals”), which is, in turn, the sister group of the primates. We can only hope that this new understanding of colugo relationships will inspire more researchers to work on this interesting group. There is no better place to start than with this beautifully produced book.

LITERATURE CITED
Marivaux, L., L. Bocat, Y. Chaimanee, J. J. Jaeger, B. Marandat, P. Srisuk, P. Tafforeau, C. Yamee & J. L. Welcomme, 2006. Cynocephalid dermopterans from the Palaeogene of South Asia (Thailand, Myanmar and Pakistan): systematic, evolutionary and palaeobiogeographic implications. Zoologica Scripta, 35: 395-420.

Richard T. Corlett
Department of Ecology & Biodiversity,
University of Hong Kong,
Pokfulam Road,
Hong Kong SAR, P. R. China

First published in The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Vol 55(1): 222 on 28 Feb 2007.

"Fishes of Mongolia," by M. Kottelat (2006)

FISHES OF MONGOLIA.
A check-list of the fishes known to occur in Mongolia with comments on
systematics and nomenclature. M. Kottelat. September 2006. 103 pp, 2
appendices. Environment and Social Development Unit, East Asia and
Pacific region, The World Bank.

Available for download from: worldbank.org.



This report is the second systematic work to be published by Environment and Social Development Unit of the World Bank. It is based on work done in 2005 and was partly funded by the World Bank’s Netherlands-Mongolia Trust Fund for Environmental Reform (NEMO). It is mainly based on existing literature, interviews, preserved material and very limited field collections.

A total of 76 native species from 14 families are recorded, with possibly five new taxa and another six introduced species, in Mongolia. A list of 81 invalid names is also given to highlight the complex and unstable situation with the taxonomy of Mongolian fishes. The systematics and nomenclature of the fishes are re-evaluated and brought up to date. This list is also compared with fish of neighbouring countries, namely the Chinese Provinces of Xinjiang and Nei Mongol, and the Russian Tuva and Buryatia Republics. The evaluation of this present report is that the fish diversity in Mongolia is far from adequate and the number of fish species is underestimated.

From this present report, it is also apparent that there are a large number of nomenclatural inconsistencies across the political boundaries. These problems stem from different conceptual approaches to taxonomy, lack of communication and the ignorance of the International Code of Zoological
Nomenclature (ICZN).

It includes a section with detailed accounts of the fishes of Mongolia, including original citations and subsequent synonymies. Each account starts with an introduction to the family, followed by the species account, with synonymy, remarks on systematics and distribution. A small section on accounts of species recorded from adjacent areas is also included.

This is followed by a recommendation section which lists the priority areas to be surveyed, taxonomy of selected fish groups to be revised along with fresh field collections, with comparative studies of related fauna from China and Russia.

A long bibliography list concludes the report.

At the end of the report, two appendices and one addendum is attached. The first appendix deals with nomenclatural data on species mentioned in the text but not located from Mongolia. The second appendix illustrates the fishes with colour plates of living and freshly preserved specimens, interspaced with black and white plates. The addendum lists more records obtained that were too late to include in the main text.

All in all, this is a small and concise publication, done up to high standards expected from any of Maurice Kottelat’s endeavours. This is a very commendable effort and an important piece of work for ichthyologists working on the freshwater fishes of Asia.

Tan Heok Hui
Department of Biological Sciences,
National University of Singapore,
Kent Ridge 119260, Republic of Singapore

First published in The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Vol. 55(1): 221 on 28 Feb 2007.