WWF Indonesia’s tiger team have been carrying out an initial survey in Rimbang Baling Landscape, Sumatra.

The aim of this survey is to look for signs of tigers in this area which serves as a corridor linking Rimbang Baling Wildlife Reserve and Bukit Bungkuk Nature Reserve.

At this initial stage the team are looking for the best locations to place camera traps, which they hope will capture images of passing tigers as well as numerous other threatened species. Threatened species in this landscape include clouded leopards, Sumatran serow, Malayan sun bears, golden cats and Malayan tapirs.

Finding ideal places for camera traps is part science and part art. It also involves nerves of steel as team members scale heights looking for the perfect position.

Factors to consider when placing a camera trap include height, angle and vegetation cover to ensure that the animal can be easily seen while the camera remains hidden from poachers.

There are now fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers left in the wild. They face a daily threat from habitat loss and poaching.

As forest cover is lost tiger populations can become isolated. Corridors are essential to allow tigers to move from one protected area to another.

Find more information on WWF Indonesia’s tiger work and the role camera traps play in tiger conservation.