Hystrix brachyura
Silhouette: PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The Malayan porcupine or Himalayan porcupine (Hystrix brachyura) is a species of rodent in the family Hystricidae. Three subspecies are extant in South and Southeast Asia. The Malayan porcupine is a large and stout-bodied rodent covered with quills, which are sharp, rigid structures. The quills are modified hairs. Those on their upper body parts are rough with black with white or yellow stripes. The young's soft quills become hard as they enter adulthood. The porcupine has short, stocky legs covered in brown hairs; there are four claws on the front and five on the hind legs. Both front and hind paws have smooth soles. The head and body are around 56–74 cm long and the tail is about 6–11 cm. The animal weighs around 10–18 kg.
The Malayan porcupine ranges from Nepal through north-east India (Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, West Bengal, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Nagaland), to Bangladesh, central and southern China (Xizang, Hainan, Yunnan, Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Hunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, Hong Kong, Fujian, Jianxi, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Shaanxi, Gansu), throughout Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia... Wikipedia →
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Malaysia · 2023
© Daan Drukker · XC959722 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 2 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 3 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hong Kong | 🇨🇳 China |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yangon Zoological Gardens | 🇲🇲 Myanmar (Burma) | |
| 2 | Beijing Wildlife Park | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 3 | Ningbo Wildlife Park | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 4 | Khao Kheow Open Zoo | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 5 | Bratislava Zoo | 🇸🇰 Slovakia | |
| 6 | Chimelong Safari Park | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 7 | 西霞口神雕山野生動物世界 | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 8 | Shanghai Zoo | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 9 | Shenzhen Safari Park | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 10 | Kemaman Zoo & Recreation Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 11 | Nanning Zoo | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 12 | Night Safari | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 13 | National Zoo of Malaysia | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 14 | Kunming Zoo | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 15 | Singapore Zoo | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 16 | Gembira Loka Zoo | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 17 | Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 18 | Asahiyama Zoo | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 19 | Green World Ecological Farm | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 20 | Langkawi Nature Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 21 | Farm in the City | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 22 | Johor Zoo | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 23 | Langkawi Wildlife Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 24 | Ubon Zoo | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Malayan Porcupine sighting in Khao Yai National Park on a given day, based on 233 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 6th most-seen of the 24 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March–April and November–January
In those months about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Malayan Porcupine in Khao Yai National Park on a given day, against about 30% in July, the lowest month. Those are among Khao Yai National Park's driest months, with about 60 mm of rain a month against 330 mm in September.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Malayan Porcupine sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is mostly seen at night.
Yes
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Malayan Porcupine sightings, Khao Yai National Park has the highest daily chance: about 60%. Next come Kaeng Krachan National Park (Thailand, about 20%) and Cat Tien National Park (Vietnam, about 20%).
Same order: Rodentia
The closest relatives of the Malayan Porcupine that you can see in Khao Yai National Park (order Rodentia, Rodents) are Black Giant Squirrel (about 50%), Finlayson's Squirrel (about 50%) and Gray-bellied Squirrel (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Malayan Porcupine is recorded against all the mammals logged in Khao Yai National Park (233 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
