‘Insane’ camera trap video captures rare battle in the Amazon

Without camera traps we would never be privy to two endangered species sparring in the remote Amazon rainforest.

Jeremy Hance

Tuesday 21 February 2017 08.54 GMT Last modified on Thursday 23 February 2017 15.35 GMT 

As darkness descended over the Peruvian Amazon in 2006, my wife and I listened spellbound while our guide told us the grisly story of the jaguar and giant anteater. 

Eyewitnesses, our guide insisted, had found the two foes dead together, embracing like lovers but in mutual destruction – the jaguar’s jaw still drooped around the anteater’s neck where it had pierced its prey’s artery and the anteater’s ten-centimeter-long claws still embedded in the big cat’s flanks. Later, after the spell – and liquor – wore off, I thought it was probably a tall tale, something to tell tourists after the sun sets over the world’s greatest jungle and you’ve all had a few too many. But an incredible new camera trap video proves I may have been wrong to doubt. 

The video captures 12 hair-raising seconds of a giant anteater going toe-to-toe with a jaguar – a battle rarely, if ever – seen by human eyes. Taken in Gurupi Biological Reserve in the state of Brazilian state of Maranhão as a part of a survey on jaguars, it shows just how agile and deft a giant anteater can be, like a gangly martial arts master. 

“I was in the office, sorting out thousands of camera trap videos, which is really cool but can get a bit boring after the umpteenth time,” Elildo Carvalho Jr., a researcher with the Brazilian National Research Centre for Carnivore Conservation (CENAP). said. “And then, this insane image suddenly jumps out of [the] screen... I felt captured by the incredible [video]. I watched it again and again…Then I called my colleagues, proudly announcing that they would see something [they’d] never seen before.”

In the video we can see the raw physicality – and danger – of such an encounter for both of these threatened and declining species. But, according to Carvalho, we’ll never know how it turned out.

“There were no clues on site, besides we retrieved the camera a month after the event and only saw the footage long after.”

Read on and watch footage 

Spotted! Elusive Snow Leopard Caught on Camera in Kyrgyzstan

by Tia Ghose, Senior Writer   |   November 05, 2015 02:00pm ET

Editor's Note: This story was updated on Friday, Nov. 6 at 4:15 p.m. E.T.

Scientists have captured new images of a snow leopard being collared in Kyrgyzstan. The move marks the first time that one of these elusive creatures has been collared in the remote Central Asian nation.

The gorgeous, white-coated creature is a female in the prime of her life, between 6 and 7 years old. She was collared in the Sarychat-Ertash Strict Nature Reserve in eastern Kyrgyzstan, near the border with China.

Read on …

Yellow-bellied weasel makes a surprise appearance in Cambodia

A research team got more than they expected when they found that their camera traps had captured the first photograph of the elusive yellow-bellied weasel in Cambodia.

The image was captured on a camera trap, which was part of a joint camera trapping initiative by Fauna & Flora International (FFI) and the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU).

The research team ­­– led by FFI field biologist Channa Phan – were conducting a study of clouded leopards in the Central Cardamoms Protected Forest in southern Cambodia. Finding the weasel outside its usual range came as a surprise, as it was previously believed that the animal was found only in the pine forests of Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Continued ...

Elusive Bay Cat Caught On Camera

Nov. 4, 2013 — The world's least known cat has been caught on camera in a previously unsurveyed rainforest by scientists from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Imperial College London.

Until now, the bay cat (Pardofelis badia) had been recorded on camera traps just a handful of times in its Borneo forest home and was only photographed in the wild for the first time in 2003. But more images of this animal have been captured than ever before, together with evidence of four other wild cat species, in a heavily logged area of forest where they were not expected to thrive.

This is only one of four forest areas in all of Borneo -- the third largest island in the world -- which has so far been reported to have all five species, including the Sunda clouded leopard (Neofelis diardi), leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis), flat-headed cat (Prionailurus planiceps) and marbled cat (Pardofelis marmorata).

ZSL and Imperial College London PhD researcher Oliver Wearn says: "We discovered that randomly placed cameras have a big influence on the species recorded. This is something I was taught in school -- I remember doing a project on which plant species were most abundant on our playing field, and being taught to fling quadrats over my shoulder in a random direction before seeing what plants lay within it, rather than placing it somewhere that looked like a good place to put it -- the same principle applies here."

Continued

Albino jackal spotted in Iran

White jackal caught by camera trap

July 2013. An (probably) albino jackal, a medium-sized canid which is widespread in western Asia, has been caught on camera in south-eastern Iran during a research project into the population survey of the Asiatic cheetah in the Ravar Wildlife Refuge.

Albinism is a congenital disorder characterized by the complete or partial absence of pigment in the skin, hair and eyes. Albinism results from inheritance of recessive gene alleles and is known to affect all vertebrates, including humans. Albinism has not been common among golden jackals but there are few cases from west Asia dating back to 1970s. In contrast, recently melanistic golden jackal has been also reported from Turkey.

A ‘true' albino has no colouring at all, and many features such as eyes and ears, appear pink. This jackal does have a hint of colouring around the eyes and nose, so it may be ‘leucistic', or more probably, this is just a trick of the light as the image is taken at night.

Leucism (or Leukism) 

Leucism is a very unusual condition whereby the pigmentation cells in an animal or bird fail to develop properly. This can result in unusual white patches appearing on the animal, or, more rarely, completely white creatures. 

Click here to see our gallery of albino and leucistic animals and birds. 

Ravar Wildlife Refuge

With an area of 15,000 km2, Ravar Wildlife Refuge is part of the Asiatic cheetah monitoring program that the Iranian Cheetah Society (ICS) leads within multiple reserves in Iran in partnership with Iranian Department of Environment, Conservation of Asiatic Cheetah Project (CACP) and Panthera. Since early autumn 2012, the ICS' experts have been surveying the area while training game wardens with monitoring skills. However, unlike other cheetah habitats in the country, Ravar is not an easy area to do field surveys, as it is near the border with Afghanistan and has a high chance of encountering drug smuggling caravans. The project will continue until the end of summer 2013.

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/albino-jackal.html

Caucasian leopard caught on camera - just

A tantalising glimpse of a Caucasian Leopard

July 2013. Leopards are elusive animals at the best of times but in the vicinity of the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge (CWR) it has been eight years since one had been seen. If it hadn't been for traces of hair and a scat found in the CWR and proven to belong to a Caucasian Leopard, we might still be wondering if they really did exist.

As of last week, the World Land Trust came another step nearer to seeing a leopard up close. But the leopards are determined to live up to their elusive reputation and so far have toyed with the watchers by only showing a tail!

Caucasus Wildlife Refuge

The landmark recording was made in July in the Caucasus Wildlife Refuge, which is supported by World Land Trust (WLT) and IUCN-Netherlands. The Caucasus Wildlife Refuge is managed by WLT's conservation partner in Armenia, the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets (FPWC).

Manuk Manukyan, FPWC's Coordinator of Conservation Projects, is one of the few people to have seen a Caucasian Leopard in the wild, being lucky enough to catch sight of one nearly a decade ago. He told WLT: "The leopard is no longer a ghost! We know he (or she) is there and that the habitat is suitable. It is very quiet and there is plenty of prey. We will adjust the cameras and sooner or later we will get pictures of the entire animal."

Read on

Camera trap footage of Asian elephants in Cambodia

Elephants filmed in Cambodia's Seima Protection Forest

April 2013. A series of remote camera traps in Cambodia's Seima Protection Forest have provided an intimate glimpse of families of wild Asian elephants; the cameras were placed by The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). 

The footage shows elephant families wandering through the jungle, wallowing in mud holes, feeding, and playing. The footage was collected during biodiversity monitoring work by WCS and the Cambodian Government's Forestry Administration, and filmed by Daniel Morawska, WCS's Seima Management Advisor. 

Haven for cats and other species

Seima was once a draw for loggers. It is now a haven for 23 carnivore species, including seven cat species, two bears, and the Asian wild dog. The country's government transformed the former logging concession into a Yosemite-sized protected area in 2009. WCS worked closely with Cambodian governmental agencies to help create the protected area and continues to provide support to ensure the sustainable management of forests and biodiversity. 

Covering more than 1,100 square miles along Cambodia's eastern border with Vietnam, Seima is the country's first protected area designed to conserve forest carbon as one of its key goals. WCS is helping to measure carbon stocks contained in the forest to calculate the amount of greenhouse gas emissions it keeps out of the atmosphere. 

Joe Walston, WCS Executive Director for the Asia Program, said "These beautiful images in Seima Protection Forest are a visual testimony of what conservation success can look like." 

Significant population

WCS pioneered the use of genetic fingerprints obtained from dung to monitor elephant numbers in Seima, working with Professor Lori Eggert from the University of Missouri in the U.S. and the Cambodian authorities. This effort found that Seima contained a regionally significant population both in terms of numbers and genetic diversity, but the animals are still elusive and rarely seen. While working in the protected area in 2010, wildlife photographer Allan Michaud took the first high-quality footage ever filmed of a wild elephant in Cambodia. 

Continued: http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/cambodia-elephant-film.html

Camera Trap Snaps Curious Tiger Cub

Andrea Thompson, OurAmazingPlanet Managing Editor

Date: 26 March 2013 Time: 11:29 AM ET

Cats, whether house-size or larger, are known for their curiosity. A tiger cub in India's Bhadra Tiger Reserve was no exception, as it was photographed inspecting a remote camera set up in the park to monitor its species.

The cub is estimated to be about four to five months old, according to a release from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which conducts animal surveys in the area and helped place the camera that captured the young tiger's image. A second camera can be seen in the background of the picture.

The Bhadra reserve stands as an example of tiger conservation success, the WCS notes, with their surveys showing that tiger numbers are rising. The cameras the group places help them identify tigers by their stripe patterns, which are unique to each animal.

Local conservationists have joined the WCS to push for more protections in the reserve, as well as opposing forest exploitation, illegal settlements and other development projects that could damage the habitat of the tigers and their prey, the group said in the statement. An increase in the tigers' prey has also contributed to the tigers' own increasing numbers.

Continued:  http://www.livescience.com/28180-tiger-cub-camera-trap-photo.html

Skunk Scares Off Cougar in Camera Trap Photo

A skunk-versus-cougar face-off was caught on film by a camera trap in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta, Canada.

"The cougar was looking at the skunk like it might be lunch, and the skunk was looking at cougar like 'you're going to regret this decision,'" said Dennis Madsen, resource conservation manager for the park, who helps manage the hidden cameras. "The cougar chose the path of wisdom and decided to go elsewhere," Madsen told OurAmazingPlanet.

The unusual encounter, snapped in March, is one of thousands of camera trap images that reveal the hidden lives of animals in Waterton Lakes. [See the camera trap images.]

Continued:  http://www.livescience.com/24794-skunk-cougar-camera-trap.html

Sneaky Cat Caught on Camera in Himalayas

Picture:  WWF

An elusive thick-furred feline has been caught on camera for the first time in the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan.

A camera trap captured images of the fluffy Pallas's cat, also known as the manul, in the country's sprawling Wangchuck Centennial Park (WCP), which is also home to the snow leopard and Himalayan black bear. Pallas's cats had never been documented in the region before, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

"This is an exciting and remarkable discovery that proves that the Pallas's cat exists in the Eastern Himalayas," Rinjan Shrestha, a conservation scientist with WWF, said in a statement. "This probably indicates a relatively undisturbed habitat, which gives us hope, not only for the Pallas's cat, but also the snow leopard, Tibetan wolf and other threatened species that inhabit the region".

Read on:  http://www.livescience.com/24369-sneaky-cat-caught-on-camera-in-himalayas.html

African wolf found in Morocco for the first time

Camera trap photos from the Middle Atlas reveal a wolf

September 2012. A group of Spanish-Moroccan researchers has announced the discovery of the African Wolf (Canis lupus lupaster) in the Middle Atlas Mountains of Morocco. The team leader, Vicente Urios, from the University of Alicante says it is "a fabulous find". The wolves were photographed by camera trap in 2011.

The researchers discovered from the Berbers that inhabit that they knew of two types of "jackals", one large and one small. Vicente Urios's team guessed that the largest would actually be a wolf. "They even have a word for wolf, but they always thought the animals were jackals" says Urios.

The photographs show an animal with "obvious wolf characteristics, such as a large body, slender, with a powerful neck, tall individuals with darker mantle and short tail." The photo is taken in the Atlas at about 1,800 metres.

Much larger distribution than previously thought
This discovery extends the known distribution area of the African Wolf (Canis lupus lupaster) westwards by more than 3000 Km to north-west Africa.

Read on:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/morocco-wolf.html

Leopard in Dramatic Photo Traced to 2004 Camera Trap

ScienceDaily (July 19, 2012) — A dramatic photo of a male leopard dragging a massive gaur (or Indian bison) calf in Karnataka's Bandipur Tiger Reserve turned out to be the same animal photographed by a WCS camera trap nearly eight years ago.

The photo, taken by Indian photographer Vinay S. Kumar, was initially submitted to Conservation India, a not-for-profit portal to enable conservation action. Intrigued by the picture, CI's editors sent it to researchers at Wildlife Conservation Society's India Program who have been running a tiger-monitoring program for over two decades -- the longest in the world. Their huge database of camera trap pictures also includes hundreds of pictures of leopards.

The male was quickly identified, thanks to special computer software that can compare rosette patterns, as Bandipur Leopard #123 or BPL-123, which was first camera-trapped on December 2, 2004, according to Dr. N. Samba Kumar, Joint Director -- Conservation Science, WCS -- India.

Picture:   http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120719110938.htm