ENG-1974 — Page 277

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Natural History

THICK undergrowth with scores of wild creatures in their natural surroundings-this was the scene that greeted the first Chinese settlers to Kowloon peninsula and Hong Kong Island, more than 2,000 years ago.

Most of the big game vanished years ago as settlers steadily cut away the great forest replacing it first with paddy fields and villages, and later with skyscrapers and factories.

Rapid development of urban areas has made further inroads into the countryside but, especially in the New Territories, large areas of Hong Kong are still virtually un- touched, with wooded hillsides and valleys and green paddy fields.

Wild Life

Even so, many wild animals, particularly mammals, are declining in numbers. Indigenous mammals which can no longer be found are the Large Indian Civet, the Crab-eating Mongoose, the Wild Red Dog or Dhole, tigers and leopards. The last positive record of a tiger was in 1947 and the last recorded sighting of a leopard in 1957. Chinese Leopard Cats have been occasionally seen but the South China Red Fox and the Eastern Chinese Otter have not been reported for many years.

The Barking Deer, once plentiful, is now rare in the New Territories and those remaining on Hong Kong Island are confined to densely wooded areas.

Over the past decade wild pigs were sufficiently scarce to warrant their being protected under the law. The numbers have, however, increased to such an extent that crop damage caused by them provoked bitter complaints from farmers. The legal protection was accordingly withdrawn on March 18, 1974, but an annual close season from February 1 to September 30 was introduced. With a view to culling the wild pig population, strictly controlled shooting by licensed hunters is permitted now during the winter when most of the damage to crops takes place.

Of the larger indigenous mammals, the Chinese Pangolin (Scaly Anteater) which grows to three-and-a-half feet and is protected by horny scales, is seen occasionally. Monkeys are still seen near the Kowloon reservoirs. Although originating from speci- mens either released or escaped from captivity, there are now small breeding groups of both Longtailed Macaques and Rhesus monkeys inhabiting the area.

Smaller mammals are common, with the Grey Shrew and the House Shrew being numerous in some rural areas. The Chinese Porcupine, with its strikingly coloured black and white quills, is still present in parts of the New Territories and on Hong Kong Island.