The Ministry of Environment on January 14 showed the images of rare animal species caught by motion-sensor camera traps installed in natural protected areas in Pursat, Battambang and Koh Kong provinces.

Ministry spokesman Neth Pheaktra said 10 species at increased risk of local extinction were caught by the cameras installed to study the presence of wildlife in protected areas.

He said officials from the Cambodia Sustainable Landscape and Ecotourism Project under the environment ministry monitored the presence of the 10 species from late October to early January.

They include Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), gaur (Bos gaurus), sambar deer (Rusa unicolor), Indochinese serow (Capricornis sumatraensis maritimus), sun bear (Helarctos malayanus), Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus), dhole or Asian wild dog (Cuon alpinus), greater hog badger (Arctonyx collaris), northern pig-tailed macaque (Macaca leonina) and yellow-throated marten (Martes flavigula).

Some bird species were also recorded in the protected areas of the three provinces.

“We thank our specialists, environment officials, rangers and community members in Pursat, Battambang, and Koh Kong for their efforts in doing research,” Pheaktra said.

According to Pheaktra, environmental expert officials have installed the cameras at 49 locations, 23 of which are in Pursat, 16 in Battambang and 10 in Koh Kong. The cameras are being used to capture the images of rare species for data collection and analysis purposes.

This is the second collection of images of rare species conducted under the Cambodia Sustainable Landscape and Ecotourism Project. The first was conducted from May 29 to June 4 last year in wildlife sanctuaries in Pursat, Kampong Chhnang, and Kampong Speu provinces.

During the study, several rare species such as Asian elephant, clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa), sun bear, gaur and sambar deer were recorded.

According to Pheaktra, this project, which is financially supported by the World Bank, has been implemented since October 2019 and will run through 2025.

Separately on January 15, monks and environment activists in the Sorng Rukhavorn forest community in Oddar Meanchey province said they found large numbers of traps set out in the forest to poach wildlife illegally and also found many dead and injured animals.

The group of monks along with the forest protection group and two officers from Chong Kal district Military Police patrolled the forest and removed 23 traps there, according to Bun Saluth, a former monk who led the patrol.

During the patrol, the group found a dead roe deer in the forest located in Chhouk Meas village of Samrong town’s Koun Kriel commune.