Barking Deer Are Yummy!

Who would have thought I would be thrilled to be covered in tick bites?  But I am…this is the dry season…and finally my first report from the field:

Moving right along, I set myself up to work and live in Khao Ang Rue Nai Wildlife Sanctuary. We completed another set of 100 interview surveys of villagers that live adjacent to the sanctuary.  The interviews went something like this:

Interviewer:  How do you feel about conservation?

Villager:  I think all wildlife species should be saved for the next generation.

Interviewer:  In the last year have you made any trips into the forest to collect things like mushrooms or to harvest animals?

Villager:  Of course!  Barking deer are yummy!

A large percentage of respondents (69%) agreed with that statement that “sometimes wildlife cause problems for me and my family.”  Elephants, wild pigs, and macaques were listed as the most problematic species.  There was no shortage of elephant horror stories.

I also walked six 6km transect lines in 6 days.   The transects are set 3km apart and right now I am focusing on an area of 72 square km.  I documented the presence/absence of large mammal sign every 50m to get a snapshot of the prey distribution and relative abundance in my study area.  We also measured the strength of the cellular phone signal every 100m and setup eleven camera traps.

I have encountered 10 dhole signs (mostly feces, so I am waiting for a camera trap photo confirmation).  We think it was dhole feces rather than domestic dog because it contained hair of mouse deer (not usually eaten by domestic dogs).  There are few reported jackals in the area.

Yesterday I was invited to attend the capture of a problem gaur for relocation to Khao Khieo Open Zoo.  I had the opportunity to meet the vets involved which may help with identifying a vet to help me with the capture of dholes.  Unfortunately, the gaur died after anesthesia when it was positioned on its left side and heart had trouble pumping.

Next month I plan to continue camera trapping to confirm dhole presence.