Bornean Giants Population Survey
This project is a collaboration between Malaysian Palm Oil Green Conservation Foundation, Sabah Wildlife Department and Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS). It was known that major threats to the continued survival of Bornean wild elephant species including anthropogenic activities which has caused increasing conversion of natural habitat to human dominated landscapes, bringing elephants and humans into greater contact and conflict. Effective monitoring programs, which involve systematic collection of data on the distribution, size, and trend of elephant populations, as well as threats such as illegal killing, are needed to provide a rational basis for the management of this elephant populations.
This three years project’s aim to provide a baseline population estimation for a comprehensive evaluation of the effectiveness of the Sabah’s Bornean Elephant Action Plan (2020-2029). The major goal covered is to provide a baseline elephant population estimate for two elephant populations, Tabin Wildlife Reserve (TWR) and Segaliud-Deramakot-Tangkulap-Tawai Complex (SDTT). These areas were identified for not having sufficient data collection compared to other hot spots area such as Kinabatangan.
Previously the number of elephants detected by direct sightings is usually taken as a proxy to indicate the effectiveness and success of different management approaches, but this method is notoriously unreliable in tropical forests. For this current initiative, the project employs dung count-based surveys, elephant satellite collaring and random encounter model methods (using camera trap pictures) to estimate the elephant population size. Dung count-based surveys collect data on dung density, decay and production rated, which will be analyses to estimate elephant population sizes through statistical analysis.
The objectives of this project primarily to further refine standard dung count-based survey methods and apply them to estimate the current elephant population size in TWR and SDTT Complex, focusing on building the capacity for Sabah’s young scientists and conservationists in Bornean elephant ecology, monitoring, and conservation. Two Malaysian MSc graduate students are currently registered with Universiti Malaysia Sabah and pursuing their studies under this project.