Wildlife Research

The Sumatra Project

9 May 2019 2 min read

While our cameras are specifically tested for Australian conditions, some of them have made their way overseas to help monitor and protect endangered species in other nations.

Queensland Park Ranger Sophie Cooper and her partner, Joel Kotze (also a ranger) received support from the Queensland Ranger Association (QRA) to undergo a wildlife research project in Sumatra that would help protect an area of rainforest from becoming a limestone mine.

With QRA funding, Sophie was able to purchase three Swift Enduro cameras with a further three donated by Outdoor Cameras Australia. Working with Sumatran Rangers, Sophie installed the cameras in Gunung Leuser National Park, close to the the Leuser Ecosystem near Batu Katak.

This Ecosystem provides a buffer zone around the national park and was declared a natural area after extensive research discovered that the borders Gungung Leuser were not sufficient in protecting the biodiversity within the area. The area that could be mined provides an important natural corridor for many threatened species including tigers, sunbears, pangolins and orangutans.

“By capturing some of these threatened species on the cameras, we will be able to provide evidence to the local government to warrant the protection of this area,” Sophie said.

Sophie and Joel spent five days negotiating and training the local people and Rangers, as well as establishing positive relationships with the village chiefs and local community.

One of the Swift Enduro cameras captured footage of a tiger, which allowed the Sumatran Rangers to locate the animal and push it further into the National Park before the local people killed it.

“By setting up all six cameras within the National Park, we hope to assist the Rangers in managing threatened species in the area and help to protect areas of the buffer zone surrounding the National Park,” Sophie said.

Sophie has since reported good news, saying it was likely the government would not be mining the area. However, there was a continued need educate the local people to stop them illegally logging and burning the buffer zone.

“We will be using the Enduro cameras to monitor this activity,” Sophie said.

“The cameras will also be used to locate ‘problem’ animals such as tigers, sunbears and elephants and allow them to be pushed back into the National Park to protect them.”