THE POTENTIAL OF FORAGE AS FOOD SOURCE FOR JAVAN DEER (RUSA TIMORENSIS DE BLAINVILLE, 1882) IN THE MASIGIT KAREUMBI GAME RESERVE, WEST JAVA

• Main Author: Septiana Rosyadah, Anisa
• Format: Final Project
• Language: Indonesia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/69978
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

Masigit Kareumbi Game Reserve (TBMK) is a conservation area with a hunting park function. In certain areas, BBKSDA has management involved with Wanadri Group, include the development of a Javan deer (Rusa timorensis de Blainville, 1822). Fulfilling the availability of forage in the habitat of the Javan deer is an important factor that needs to be considered to ensure the supply of forage in TBMK. Javan deer prefers feeding in open area. Buru cluster V, with an area of 159 ha, is an open area planned as a deer realese zone. Buru cluster V burned down in 2015, so currently there are many open areas dominated by shrubs. This study aims to determine the abundance and diversity of forage vegetation and the productivity of forage in Buru cluster V, which has an area of 70.11 ha. A vegetation analysis was carried out on 30 square plots with 10 x 10 m to determine the potential forage for Javan deer. In addition, the forage productivity test was carried out on 9 plots sized 1 m x 1 m with a harvest period of 20 days with two repetitions. The results showed that there were 46 species had the potential to be food source for Javan deer based on their composition at the herb level, and shrubs were more commonly found in buru cluster V. The diversity index for types of food for Java deer that had the potential to be in Buru cluster V was herbs, with a value of 1.034. In the study area, there were 23 plant families with potential as deer feed, with three dominant families, namely Asteraceae (7 species), Fabaceae (6 species), and Poaceae (11 species). A total of three forage species had the highest IVI, Paspalum conjugatum, Setaria palmifolia, and Oplismenus compositus, with the productivity of respectively 43 (kg/ha/day), 15.41 (kg/ha/day), and 22.91 (kg/ha/day), and the total productivity is 81.32 (kg/ha/day), it was quite high compared to several other places in West Java. The conclusion shows that Buru luster V has quite a number of potential forage species and high productivity as a food sourceso that it has the potential to be developed as a forage area for Javan deer TBMK.