WildCRU
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
We've got a result!
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| Gul surrounded by mossy forest on one of Crocker's ridgetops |
All our hard work hiking up and down Crocker Range's high ridges and river valleys has thankfully paid off.... We've got a result! I’m still tweaking the analysis, but overall we obtained 370 clouded leopard photos,
representing 51 independent capture events of 8 different animals. Two of
these animals appear to be cubs following their mother. Using the spatially
explicit capture recapture approach I estimate that clouded leopard density in the southern portion of Crocker is around 1.4 individuals per 100km2 (0.8 - 2.2 ind/100km2 95% Confidence Intervals).
This was one of the toughest surveys to date and when we first started we weren't sure we'd pull it off. So a big thank you to the team - Gil, Gul, Jasz, Nur and Ijam for doing a sterling job. Thanks also to our volunteers - Sean Proctor, Kevin Hodge and Lyndsey Stanton, who all stood up remarkably well to the rigors of Crocker Range life! Lastly, a big thank you to all the organisations and individuals that have supported us, in particular, Staff from Sabah Parks and the Sabah Wildlife Department, Karen Povey and the Clouded Leopard Project at Point Defiance Zoo, Houston Zoo and The Kaplan family.
This was one of the toughest surveys to date and when we first started we weren't sure we'd pull it off. So a big thank you to the team - Gil, Gul, Jasz, Nur and Ijam for doing a sterling job. Thanks also to our volunteers - Sean Proctor, Kevin Hodge and Lyndsey Stanton, who all stood up remarkably well to the rigors of Crocker Range life! Lastly, a big thank you to all the organisations and individuals that have supported us, in particular, Staff from Sabah Parks and the Sabah Wildlife Department, Karen Povey and the Clouded Leopard Project at Point Defiance Zoo, Houston Zoo and The Kaplan family.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Volunteers needed in the Danum Valley!
We are now offering volunteer placements for individuals to help us conduct a clouded leopard camera trap survey of the Danum Valley Conservation Area. If you fancy experiencing the ‘real’ Bornean rainforest, learning new skills and helping us learn about the elusive Sunda clouded leopard, then read on...
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| Sunrise over the Danum Valley - one of Sabah's last remaining primary rainforests - and one of the last remaining places on Earth where Sumatran rhino, elephant, clouded leopard and orang utan live side by side. |
Return to Danum....
Our camera survey of Crocker Range is now complete and the data will shortly be analysed - more on this soon. Meanwhile our team have now moved onto perhaps the jewel in Sabah's crown: the Danum Valley Conversation Area.
Back in 2007 Danum was host to the first ever attempt at a camera trap based assessment of clouded leopard density. Ultimately though, we never reached our goal, due primarily to a lack camera trap, sub-standard camera equipment, and a lack of expertise. I'm pleased to say that thanks to our sponsors the camera traps are no longer a problem - and with six surveys under our belt since our last visit here I think it's fair to say we now have the expertise.
Our camera survey of Crocker Range is now complete and the data will shortly be analysed - more on this soon. Meanwhile our team have now moved onto perhaps the jewel in Sabah's crown: the Danum Valley Conversation Area.
Back in 2007 Danum was host to the first ever attempt at a camera trap based assessment of clouded leopard density. Ultimately though, we never reached our goal, due primarily to a lack camera trap, sub-standard camera equipment, and a lack of expertise. I'm pleased to say that thanks to our sponsors the camera traps are no longer a problem - and with six surveys under our belt since our last visit here I think it's fair to say we now have the expertise.
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| A rarely photographed clouded leopard cub, one of three animals previously recorded in Danum Valley. |
What/Why?
Our
work is focused on providing basic, yet scientifically sound information
regarding the Sunda clouded leopard and other threatened felids in Sabah to
help guide viable conservation strategies for these species. As such, one of
the core questions that we are attempting to answer is:
What
is the distribution and conservation status of Sunda clouded leopards and other
felids throughout Sabah, and what factors affect their presence and abundance?
To help address this question we have developed a research approach primarily
constructed around multiple 6-month camera trap surveys designed to estimate
clouded leopard densities and felid community structure in areas of forest
exposed to different forest management strategies. Few data exist
regarding Bornean felid communities, with your efforts, we can ensure that we
gain the best possible information we can.
When?
We
are looking for volunteers to start as early as the beginning of May 2012, but
positions will be available throughout the survey – ending in September 2012.
You must be available to work on the project for a minimum of 1 month,
although we will consider taking on candidates for shorter periods if they
already have sufficient experience. Get in touch if you are interested and
we’ll take it from there.
Where?
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| The Danum Valley Field Centre |
The
Danum Valley Conservation Area http://www.searrp.org/danum-valley
is located deep within Sabah, Malaysian Borneo (4º50′N – 5º00′N and 117º35′E –
117º45′E). The Danum Valley Field Centre is approximately 70 km inland from the
town of Lahad Datu on Sabah’s east coast.
Covering
43,800 hectares (438 km2), the Danum Valley Conservation Area is one of the
largest, most important and best-protected expanses of pristine lowland forest
remaining in SE Asia.
Danum
Valley, and several other large primary forest protected areas including the
Maliau Basin and Imbak Canyon Conservation Areas, are embedded within an
exceptionally large (>10,000 km2) forest concession operated by Yayasan
Sabah (the Sabah Foundation). The bulk of the of the Yayasan Sabah area is
under a regime of natural forest management, but also includes extensive timber
and oil palm plantations, community forestry programmes, eco-tourism sites and
two of the region’s largest forest rehabilitation projects.
Duties
Volunteers
will assist with all aspects of the project (see earlier posts on the blog for
an idea of what we get up to), including, but not restricted to: mapping and
creation of forest trails and incorporation of spatial data into a GIS, deploying
and checking camera traps over an approximate area of 150km2 of forest, and photographic data management.
Requirements
We
are ideally looking for candidates with (or currently undertaking) at least a
first degree in an appropriate Natural Science, although this is by no means a
prerequisite and we will happily consider keen individuals with a demonstrated
interested in wildlife conservation. Above all else candidates should
have an extremely high level of fitness and a willingness to work in a
challenging environment. The work will involve very long and arduous
hikes over difficult terrain, and will frequently necessitate camping for up to
10 nights at a time at remote locations. Volunteers
must be able to carry 50+ litre rucksacks weighing between 15-20 kg. The ideal
candidates will have some experience of the activities described above,
although this is not essential as full training will be provided.
This
is an extremely rewarding position working in arguably one of the most beautiful forests remaining on Borneo. However, I simply cant overstate just how important it is for volunteers to be physically fit. In the past we have had to turn down candidates simply because they were unable to deal with the conditions. Please think this through before applying!
Costs
Unlike other projects we
will not ask for any contribution towards project costs. However, you must be able to
cover both your own transport costs to Danum Valley Field Centre, Sabah, and
your subsistence costs (i.e., food and accommodation costs at field sites).
Further Questions
For further information and to apply please email me
Further Questions
For further information and to apply please email me
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Video: Clouded leopard scent marking!
Things are drawing to a close here in the Crocker Range, and we're now busy bringing our fleet of camera traps in from the hills. It's a bit of an anxious time as we find out if any more cameras have been stolen (10 to date!) and whether we've captured enough clouded leopards on camera to enable us to estimate their density. Despite the nerves, we are very optimistic, and if the rate of photo-captures these last 4 weeks matches that of the first 2 months of cam trapping, then I'll be smiling.
So far we've captured an impressive 288 cloudie photographs, representing 37 separate occasions of six different animals. Most of these have been from Male 1, including the video below, which I've stitched together from multiple camera images. Here he can be seen moving along a sharp ridgeline, and clearly pauses at a tree to scent mark, probably the first footage of this behavior in this elusive cat!
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Crocker's cloudies rolling in...
Yesterday
was a good day – a very good day. On
Monday Gil, Gul and I packed our bags and headed to the village of Ulu Senagang,
where the trail up onto the Senagang ridge rises, and where the last of our
cameras to be checked awaited us. The
week before produced the first of our clouded leopard photos from Crocker Range, all
of a single male clouded leopard, so we were excited to see whether this same animal, or indeed
any of his friends, had also used the Senagang ridge.
It had originally taken us four days of camping to put the camera traps out along this ridge, so we thought we could shave some time off and do it in three. We did it in two (very painful) days, just managing to leave the forest as night fell. On arrival back at the house we were all exhausted, and so, despite our excitement, we agreed to look through the new photos in the morning. But perhaps just one camera trap before bed…
It had originally taken us four days of camping to put the camera traps out along this ridge, so we thought we could shave some time off and do it in three. We did it in two (very painful) days, just managing to leave the forest as night fell. On arrival back at the house we were all exhausted, and so, despite our excitement, we agreed to look through the new photos in the morning. But perhaps just one camera trap before bed…
And that’s when the fun began! Camera after camera began to reveal more and more cool animals, including some Hose’s civet, a handful of leopard cat, yet another Malay weasel and even some more Linsang, and….. loads of clouded leopards!
By 12:00am this morning we had finally finished going through all the photos; we knew we had some new animals, but final identification of the cloudies would have to wait.
Like I say, we knew we had some new animals, but having carefully cropped and compared all the images I was blown away to find that we now have SIX animals – 1 female and five males!!!!! On one occasion, the female has walked past the camera, followed immediately by a new male, and later by another (perhaps young male).
This is an amazing start, and it bodes well for Crocker Range’s clouded leopard population. If the photos keep coming in at this rate, I think we can do some useful science. Stay tuned.
By 12:00am this morning we had finally finished going through all the photos; we knew we had some new animals, but final identification of the cloudies would have to wait.
Like I say, we knew we had some new animals, but having carefully cropped and compared all the images I was blown away to find that we now have SIX animals – 1 female and five males!!!!! On one occasion, the female has walked past the camera, followed immediately by a new male, and later by another (perhaps young male).
This is an amazing start, and it bodes well for Crocker Range’s clouded leopard population. If the photos keep coming in at this rate, I think we can do some useful science. Stay tuned.
Caption: top to bottom, Male 1, Female 1, Male 2, Male 3, Male 4, Male 5. As you can see, camera trap images are not always pretty... but these are more than adequate to idenitify the animal to an individual. The shots are in black and white as this particulalr camera trap shoots in infrared at night. Although some animals can see this light quite clearly, it doesn't seem to bother most of them.
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