Cameras trap big cats in action

A tigress photographed by a camera trap

Valmiki, 9 December, 2005: In what may be termed as a unique first in the history of the Valmiki Tiger Reserve, a tigress and her two cubs were photographed by a camera trap. To monitor these elusive cats and other herbivores in the park, the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and the Bihar Forest Department have installed camera traps. This initiative was undertaken with support from the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).

Five camera traps have been placed in various locations of the Valmiki Tiger Reserve to capture the images of passing wild animals and monitor behaviours. Data from these images would be used to strengthen various measures for long-term conservation of wildlife in the reserve.    

Fast declining wildlife population in Valmiki created the need to study the prevailing condition of their habitats.
 
According to Dr. PS. Easa, Sr. Director WTI, “these cameras will help us understand the nocturnal behaviour of animals. It will also enable us to estimate the prey base and predators in the reserve.”

Remotely triggered camera traps have been widely used in several parts of the world to estimate elusive carnivores. Camera traps have been by far, the most reliable in determining population and demographics, but owing to their high cost in India, this technique was not always feasible. A country like India with thousands of hectares of wild lands would require thousands of cameras.  

Although, conservationists and governments have employed various methods to collect data on wildlife, such as radio telemetry, DNA based techniques using scats and hair, pugmarks etc, camera traps have come as an efficient tool to learn more about life in the deep jungles where predator and prey cohabit.
 
However, owing to vast tracts of wilderness and difficult terrain in India, a combination of these methods would work to overcome the problems faced in the field. For instance, use of pugmarks for quantifying tiger population in a given area requires quality pugmark to avoid inaccuracy.

Tiger cubs

In many places like the Western Ghats, northeast India and even in Corbett TR vegetation, leaf-litter and rocky nature of the terrain makes it difficult to obtain quality pugmarks. Unreliable information in these circumstances, could lead to over estimation. Geology and type of soil play a crucial role in this technique and unlike central India, rest of the places usually do not offer good results.

Fast developments in molecular scatology have made the scat technique, a useful tool for determining wild carnivores. Scats have been widely used for identifying individuals based on genotyping.

Monitoring large forest tracts have been extremely difficult. Limited manpower and scientific tools, difficult terrain etc have compounded the problem. Again, the use of camera traps in open forested areas, where village settlers live in close proximity leaves them prone to damage and theft.

Valmiki is home to a large number of carnivores and herbivores, such as leopards, tigers, hog deer, spotted deer, sambar, sloth bear, barking deer, four horned antelope, nilgai and many others. 

The current initiative hopes to record life of some key species in Valmiki. A clear understanding of their behaviours and habitats would facilitate conservation interventions. 

Photo credit: WTI / camera traps