time for action!

The forests of Leuser and all animals we've been showing you on the Eyes on Leuser site are seriously threatened right now by a ridiculously stupid Spatial Plan. Time is fast running out PLEASE go here and sign the petition!!

Sumatran Serow

probably still common in Leusers far corners, but very rare near human settlements. The Sumatran Serow is now listed as vulnerable by the IUCN. We got only three videos of this odd looking species of goat antilope and it seems to be three times the same individual..

three-legged sun bear

After we found iron snares in prime tiger habitat and saw poachers on our videos last year, here's yet another proof that Leuser is not free of poaching yet..

not easy being prey

sambar deer and muntjac, always vigilant in order not to become the next meal of one of Leuser's many predators..

videos from Leusers mountains

In may we've moved the cameras from Leusers lowlands to the mountains. After 4 months we got lots of new videos, showing several new species including some rare and endemic ones, like the Aceh peasant, the Sumatran hog badger and tigers living as high as 2300 meters.
Watch the 8 minutes video featuring all the highlights here
For more videos of the Aceh pheasant, watch here, and if you like to see more vids of the marbled cat check this one. 

tiger cave

the first mountain cams are ready for action, this one right in front of a small cave at 2200m,  inside we found fresh scats of a large cat...

heading into the mountains

                                     photo: BPKEL

We are at the end of the first phase of the project so its a good moment for a brief summary of our findings so far and to look ahead to the upcoming months.

The cameras have been in the forest now for ten months and we have captured 35 different species, including some really rare ones like the Sumatran tiger and the white winged duck.  We have seen some amazing videos of the elusive marbled cat posing several times for the camera in clear daylight, a huge crested serpent eagle sitting quietly beside a pig pool and elephants that were a little too interested in one of the cameras. So, after ten months we can't complain at all, step by step the cameras reveal the true beauty and importance of the Leuser Ecosystem in a way not seen before. And also, the videos show how well Leusers wildlife can recover from destruction, as this particular area, only one day travel from the nearest town,  was severely hit by large scale logging operations in the 90's. Apparently, not all is lost when loggers just take the big and valuable trees.

However, there is still much more to achieve. For example, not a singe sun bear, (regarded as a common species in the Leuser ecosystem), has appeared, neither has the clouded leopard,  the binturong, and  the sumatran rhino. Especially in regard to the rhino, we'll need to bring the cameras to a more remote area, as poachers have virtually wiped out Leusers rhino population. So this month we'll leave the secondary lowland forest for Leusers extremely vast, wild and remote mountain area in search of new species like the sumatran serow, the hoogerwerf's pheasant, the clouded leopard,  "mountain" tigers living above 2500 meters and who knows the rarest of the rare... the sumatran  rhino.