Oil palm expansion reshapes indigenous hunting: Kadazandusun-Murut bearded pig hunting practices in Sabah, Malaysia

1. Land-use change and political-economic shifts have shaped hunting patterns globally, even as traditional hunting practices endure across many local socio-cultural contexts. The widespread expansion of oil palm cultivation, and associated urbanization, alters land-use patterns, ecological processes, economic relationships, access to land, and social practices. 2. In particular, we focus on the socio-ecological dynamics between Kadazandusun-Murut (KDM) hunters in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo, and native bearded pigs (Sus babatus; Malay: “babi hutan”), the favored game animal for non-Muslim communities throughout much of Borneo. We conducted 38 semi-structured interviews spanning over 50 hours with bearded pig hunters, asking them about contemporary hunting practices, changes in hunting practices, and patterns of meat consumption.3. Amidst widespread land use change, primarily driven by oil palm expansion, respondents reported substantially different characteristics of hunting in oil palm plantations as compared to hunting in forests. Additionally, 17 of 38 hunters—including 71% (10/14) of hunters who started hunting before 1985, compared to 26% (6/23) of hunters who started hunting in 1985 or later—mentioned that bearded pigs are behaving in a more skittish or fearful way as compared to the past. We also documented shifts in dietary meat consumption among our respondents between rural and urban contexts, as well as urbanization-related reductions in hunting frequency. However, despite these substantial changes in hunting practices, numerous KDM motivations, hunting techniques, and socio-cultural traditions have endured over the last several decades. 4. Oil palm has stimulated new hunting practices that differ from those in forests, and has potentially contributed to altered bearded pig behavior due to increased hunting accessibility. Simultaneously, urbanization has led to changes in dietary patterns, as well as shifted schedules and time availability for hunting. We also note the striking endurance of long-standing KDM pig hunting practices and traditions. We recommend policies that allow flexible, location-specific management approaches to ensure fair access to the dietary and social benefits of bearded pig hunting, while preserving the critical conservation needs of bearded pig populations and habitat. This is particularly important given the recent confirmed outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) in numerous forests and districts within Sabah.