Monitoring of forage and nutrition before and after reintroduction of banteng (Bos javanicus d’ Alton, 1823) to Salakphra Wildlife Sanctuary, Thailand

Banteng (Bos javanicus) are susceptible to hunting and habitat destruction. Banteng were successfully reintroduced in Salakphra Wildlife Sanctuary, Thailand. Thus, understanding their adaptation to natural forage species and nutrition is important to enhance the chance for successful reintroduction of the banteng. We studied the adaptation of banteng to natural forages and nutrition before and after the reintroduction in Salakphra Wildlife Sanctuary between November 2015 and November 2017. Four individuals in 2015 and three individuals in 2016 were reintroduced. We analyzed nutritional values before release and after release into the natural habitat. Twenty-four forage species were identified and the ratio of monocots to dicots was 20:80. The highest energy was found in Dalbergia cultrate (17.5 MJ kg(−1)) in the wet season and Wrightia arborea (19.9 MJ kg(−1)) in the dry season (p < 0.001). Nutritional values were significantly different among experiments (p < 0.001). Moreover, the macro nutrients including N and Ca in natural forages were the highest in the dry season. In the wet season, micro-nutrients were the highest in dung collected while bantegn were in captivity. Our research improves our understanding of how banteng adapt their foraging after release into the wild, helps in evaluation of the reintroduction, and informs adaptive management of the banteng to support the long term survival of the population.