It's amazing what 420 cameras (including 60 trap cameras) can catch on film in just two years. On August 15, 2011, Conservation International released the first of almost 52,000 thousand images captured from the largest global camera trap mammal study, conducted by a group of local and international scientists. From the tiniest mouse to the mighty African elephant, researchers reached one conclusion, "Habitat loss and smaller reserves have a direct and detrimental impact on the diversity and survival of mammal populations."
Cameras placed from Uganda to Tanzania
The mammal study, led by Dr. Jorge Ahumada, an ecologist with the Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring (TEAM) Network at Conservation International, involved placing a camera for one month periods to document mammal species in seven areas: The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda; Udzungwa Mountains National Park in Tanzania; Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park in Indonesia; Nam Kading National Protected Area, in Laos; Central Suriname Nature Reserve in Suriname; Manaus in Brazil and the Volcan Barva Transect of Costa Rica.
Once the images were collected, scientists categorized animals by species, body size and diet. What they learned was that larger habitats and reserves had three commonalities: they contained a higher number of species, supported a larger variety of sizes and provided more diet variations than smaller reserves. Dr. Amuhada said this proved important because it confirms, "What we suspected: habitat destruction is slowly but surely killing our planet's mammal diversity."
Some species more vulnerable to habitat loss
Amuhada believes protected areas matter far more than one might think, especially when, "Some mammals seem more vulnerable to habitat loss than others: insect-eating mammals – like anteaters, armadillos and some primates, are the first to disappear," he said.
The Central Suriname Nature Reserve [1.6 million hectares], provided the highest number of species diversity with 28 and the Nam Kading National Protected Area in Laos [1,690 sq. km], presented the lowest number of diversity with thirteen.
Around one quarter of all mammal species are under threat say scientists. An important fact add researchers, who generally agree that, "Mammals serve as indicators of ecosystem health." With that in mind Amhuda says, "We hope that these data contribute to a better management of protected areas and conservation of mammals worldwide."
The study, "Community Structure and Diversity of Tropical Mammals: Data from a Global Camera Trap Network," published in the September issue of the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, is still monitoring 17 sites and has expanded to Panama, Ecuador, an additional site in Brazil, two sites in Peru, Madagascar, Congo, Cameroon, Malaysia and India.
The Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring (TEAM) Network partners with Conservation International, The Missouri Botanical Garden, The Smithsonian Institution and the Wildlife Conservation Society.
The study was partially funded collectively by these institutions and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. It was supported by local partners: the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazonia (INPA), Conservation International Suriname, Organization for Tropical Studies, Museo Tridentino di Scienze Naturali, and the Institute of Tropical Forest Conservation. View more camera-trap photos released at Conservation International and learn how camera trap studies are informing conservation strategies.
Elizabeth Batt - Elizabeth Batt is a former large animal nurse, certified NREMT, lover of equines and conservationist.
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