Tapir Conservation - Tapir Specialist Group

CONTRIBUTED PAPERS
Figure 1. Species list and percent photo-capture of each species
through eight camera traps in the Taratak Forest Reserve
(176 photos taken in 12,416 hours of monitoring).
With respect to specific camera placements, only
four among the eight camera placement sites detected
Malayan tapirs; specifically, those points located near
or in the salt lick area and below 320 m a.s.l. These
four camera placements were also located close to each
other, while the four other camera traps were located
further away from the salt licks.
The rank in percentage of herbivore image-captured
during this study (see Figure 1) is similar to that
of Kawanishi et al. (2002) in Taman Negara, Malaysia,
where they also found Malayan Tapir, Barking Deer
and Wild Boar as the three most common large mammals
in their study area – in that order. The ratio of
tapirs photo-captured per unit samp-
ling effort (number of times that tapirs
passed through the camera / number
of trapping hours) during this study
(0.089) is higher than that of a previous
study in Kerinci Seblat National
Park, also in Sumatra, where Holden
et al. (2003) only recorded 0.017-
0.081 animals per unit effort. This difference
emerges perhaps as an effect
of altitude, but most likely the camera
placement. In contrast to Holden
and colleagues, who placed cameras
to maximize tiger photo-captures, in
this study cameras were placed near a
salt lick located on secondary lowland
forest, which seems to be the most
preferred habitat of Malayan tapir.
Kawanishi et al. (2002) also obtained
a high number of tapir photographs
Tapir Conservation n The Newsletter of the IUCN/SSC Tapir Specialist Group n Vol. 14/2 n No. 18 n December 2005
29
when conducting camera trapping near
or on the trails leading to salt licks.
Tapirs came to the salt lick in every
one of the two-week intervals between
checks. This preliminary result highlights
the use and importance of this
area for Malayan tapirs. Results also
show that tapirs seem to prefer flat and
damp areas, rather than dry areas with
difficult topography and high slope or in
hill forest (see Table 1). The tendency of
Malayan tapir to prefer secondary forest
rather than primary forest was recorded
in previous studies (Novarino, 2004);
this tendency also was recorded on other
species of tapir such as the Baird’s tapir
(T. bairdii) (Foerster & Vaughan, 2002).
Regarding distance from forest edge,
this study’s results show a significant
difference between rates of tapirs photographed
at the forest edge and in forest
interior (see Table 1). However, these
differences may perhaps be an effect
of forest type and topography, rather than distance
from the edge. O’Brien et al. (2003), in their studies
in Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (BBSNP), also
in Sumatra, found that tapirs were photographed at
approximately equal rates near and far from the forest
edge.
Preliminary results also indicate that tapirs seem
to be active mostly at night and tend to be solitary. All
tapir photos are recorded at nigh and until early morning
(19:57 to 04:25) and all are of single individuals.
This result is different compared to previous results
obtained by Holden et al. (2003) in Kerinci Seblat
National Park, who recorded tapirs as active since
Table 1. Characteristics of placement sites of eight photo-trapping
cameras for the study of Malayan tapirs in the Taratak Forest Reserve,
and number of tapir photo-captures.