Vocal behaviour and communication of the Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus)

Pernille Johansen Naundrup

Articles

Vol. 21 No. 29 (2012)

Vocal behaviour and communication of the Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus)

Pernille Johansen Naundrup^▸^▾

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Submitted: 10 July 2025
Published: 2012-12-01

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the vocal repertoire of the Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus), and to describe the observed calls by physical parameters and appearance in spectrogram. Vocalizations from five animals at Sungai Dusun Wildlife Conservation Centre were recorded for 14 days, prior to morning feeding. Four distinct call types were observed, two of which were categorised as whistling-type calls, the other two call types were categorised as non-whistling-type calls. Two other whistling-type calls were observed, but it was not possible to determine whether they were different, or if their differences were due to individual differences between the animals. The effects of distance on the number of high order harmonics were studied, and showed that the higher harmonics of the whistling-type calls would be severely dampened within 50m. This, and the fact that the majority of the recorded calls were whistling-type calls with higher harmonic rather than non-whistling-type calls without harmonics, supports the hypothesis that Malayan tapirs originally were adapted to life in the open, rather than life in forests.

References

Barker, N.K.S., Dabelsteen, T., Mennill, D.J. (2007). Sound transmission at ground level in a short-grass prairie habitat and its implications for long-range communication in the swift fox Vulpes velox. Journal of Acoustic Society America 124(2), 758-766.
Budde, C. and Klump, G. M. 2003.Vocal repertoire of the black rhino Dicerosbicornis ssp. and possibilities of individual identification. Mammal Biology 68 (1), 42-47.
Corlett, R. T., 2010. Megafaunal extinctions and their consequences in the tropical Indo-Pacific. Terra Australis 32 : 117 – 131.
Cranbrook, Earl of, 2010. Late Quaternary turnover of mammals in Borneo: the zooarchaeological record. Biodiversity Conservation 19: 373-391.
Cranbrook, Earl of, 1986. A review of fossil and prehistoric remains of rhinoceroses of Borneo. Sabah Museum and Archives Journal 1(1): 50–110
Cranbrook, Earl of, & Piper, P.J (2011). Large mammals and extinction crisis in south-east asia: a palaeontological review with special reference to Malayan tapir Tapirus indicus, the great survivor. Keynote paper for the Fifth International Tapir Symposium, IUCN Tapir Specialist Group, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Cranbrook, Earl of, & Piper, P.J. 2007. The Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sondaicus in Borneo. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 55(1):217–220
Cranbrook, Earl of, & Piper, P.J., 2009. Borneo records of Malay Tapir Tapirus indicus Desmarest: a zooarchaeological and historical review. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology 19: 491 – 507
Darden, S.K., Pedersen, S.B., Larsen, O.L. and Dabelsteen, T. 2008. Sound transmission at ground level in a shortgrass prairie habitat and its implications for long-range communication in the swift fox Vulpes velox. Journal of Acoustic Society America 124(2): 758-766.
Eisenberg, J. F., Groves, C. P., & MacKinnon, K. Grzimek’s Encyclopedia: Mammals. Vol. IV. New York, St. Louis, San Francisco. McGraw-Hill Publishing Company. 1990. p. 589-608.
Geissman, T. 2002. Duet-splitting and the evolution of gibbon songs. Biol. Rev 77: 57-76
Hunsaker. D., Hahn, T. C. 1965. Vocalization of the SouthAmerican Tapir, Tapirus terrestris. Animal behaviour 13 (1): 69-74.
Kawanishi, K., Sunquist, M., Othman, S. 2002. Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus): far from extinction in a Malaysian rainforest. Tapir Conservation 11: 23-27.
Konrad, R and Geissman, T. 2006. Vocal Diversity and Taxonomy of Nomascus in Cambodia. International Journal of Primatology, Vol. 27(3): 713-745.
Lemasson, A., Boutïn, A., Boivin, S., Blois-Heulin, C. and Hausberger, M. 2009. Horse (Equuscaballus) whinnies: a source of social information. Animal cognition 17 (5): 693-704.
Louys, J., & Meijaard, E., 2010. Palaeoecology of Southeast Asian megafauna-bearing sites from the Pleistocene and a review of environmental changes in the region. Journal of Biogeography 37: 1432– 1449
Norris, S. 2001. The New Encyclopedia of Mammals.Oxford University Press. Penny, M. 1987. The Sumatran rhinoceros. Rhinos: Endangered Species. Fact On File Publications, New York. 64-68.
Podos, J., Huber, S.K. and Taft, B. 2004. Bird Song: The Interface of Evolution and Mechanism. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Evol. Syst. 2004. 35:55–87.
Policht, R., Tomášová, K., Holečková, D. and Frynta, D. 2008. The vocal repertoire in Northern White Rhinoceros Ceratotherium simum cottoni as recorded in the last surviving herd. Bioacoustics 18: 69–96.
Proops, L., McComb, K. and Reby, D. 2008.Cross-modal individual recognition in domestic horses (Equus Caballus). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 106 (3), 947-951.
Traeholt, C. 2008. The Malay Tapir: Conspicuous, yet elusive. Malaysian Naturalist 62 (1), 29-32.
Wiley, R.H. and Richards, D.G. (1978). Physical constrain on acoustic communication in the atmosphere: Implication for the evolution of animal vocalization. Behavioural ecology and socio-biology 3, 69-94.

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Keywords

Bioacustics
Tapirus indicus
Behavior

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Naundrup, P. J. (2012). Vocal behaviour and communication of the Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus). Tapir Conservation, 21(29), 8-13. http://www.tapirconservation.org/index.php/tc/article/view/137

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[1] Barker, N.K.S., Dabelsteen, T., Mennill, D.J. (2007). Sound transmission at ground level in a short-grass prairie habitat and its implications for long-range communication in the swift fox Vulpes velox. Journal of Acoustic Society America 124(2), 758-766.

[2] Budde, C. and Klump, G. M. 2003.Vocal repertoire of the black rhino Dicerosbicornis ssp. and possibilities of individual identification. Mammal Biology 68 (1), 42-47.

[3] Corlett, R. T., 2010. Megafaunal extinctions and their consequences in the tropical Indo-Pacific. Terra Australis 32 : 117 – 131.

[4] Cranbrook, Earl of, 2010. Late Quaternary turnover of mammals in Borneo: the zooarchaeological record. Biodiversity Conservation 19: 373-391.

[5] Cranbrook, Earl of, 1986. A review of fossil and prehistoric remains of rhinoceroses of Borneo. Sabah Museum and Archives Journal 1(1): 50–110

[6] Cranbrook, Earl of, & Piper, P.J (2011). Large mammals and extinction crisis in south-east asia: a palaeontological review with special reference to Malayan tapir Tapirus indicus, the great survivor. Keynote paper for the Fifth International Tapir Symposium, IUCN Tapir Specialist Group, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

[7] Cranbrook, Earl of, & Piper, P.J. 2007. The Javan Rhinoceros Rhinoceros sondaicus in Borneo. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 55(1):217–220

[8] Cranbrook, Earl of, & Piper, P.J., 2009. Borneo records of Malay Tapir Tapirus indicus Desmarest: a zooarchaeological and historical review. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology 19: 491 – 507

[9] Darden, S.K., Pedersen, S.B., Larsen, O.L. and Dabelsteen, T. 2008. Sound transmission at ground level in a shortgrass prairie habitat and its implications for long-range communication in the swift fox Vulpes velox. Journal of Acoustic Society America 124(2): 758-766.

[10] Eisenberg, J. F., Groves, C. P., & MacKinnon, K. Grzimek’s Encyclopedia: Mammals. Vol. IV. New York, St. Louis, San Francisco. McGraw-Hill Publishing Company. 1990. p. 589-608.

[11] Geissman, T. 2002. Duet-splitting and the evolution of gibbon songs. Biol. Rev 77: 57-76

[12] Hunsaker. D., Hahn, T. C. 1965. Vocalization of the SouthAmerican Tapir, Tapirus terrestris. Animal behaviour 13 (1): 69-74.

[13] Kawanishi, K., Sunquist, M., Othman, S. 2002. Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus): far from extinction in a Malaysian rainforest. Tapir Conservation 11: 23-27.

[14] Konrad, R and Geissman, T. 2006. Vocal Diversity and Taxonomy of Nomascus in Cambodia. International Journal of Primatology, Vol. 27(3): 713-745.

[15] Lemasson, A., Boutïn, A., Boivin, S., Blois-Heulin, C. and Hausberger, M. 2009. Horse (Equuscaballus) whinnies: a source of social information. Animal cognition 17 (5): 693-704.

[16] Louys, J., & Meijaard, E., 2010. Palaeoecology of Southeast Asian megafauna-bearing sites from the Pleistocene and a review of environmental changes in the region. Journal of Biogeography 37: 1432– 1449

[17] Norris, S. 2001. The New Encyclopedia of Mammals.Oxford University Press. Penny, M. 1987. The Sumatran rhinoceros. Rhinos: Endangered Species. Fact On File Publications, New York. 64-68.

[18] Podos, J., Huber, S.K. and Taft, B. 2004. Bird Song: The Interface of Evolution and Mechanism. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Evol. Syst. 2004. 35:55–87.

[19] Policht, R., Tomášová, K., Holečková, D. and Frynta, D. 2008. The vocal repertoire in Northern White Rhinoceros Ceratotherium simum cottoni as recorded in the last surviving herd. Bioacoustics 18: 69–96.

[20] Proops, L., McComb, K. and Reby, D. 2008.Cross-modal individual recognition in domestic horses (Equus Caballus). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 106 (3), 947-951.

[21] Traeholt, C. 2008. The Malay Tapir: Conspicuous, yet elusive. Malaysian Naturalist 62 (1), 29-32.

[22] Wiley, R.H. and Richards, D.G. (1978). Physical constrain on acoustic communication in the atmosphere: Implication for the evolution of animal vocalization. Behavioural ecology and socio-biology 3, 69-94.