PURSAT: Three months of footage recorded via forest cameras in Pursat province revealed a variety of rare, endangered and vulnerable species in the region’s wildlife sanctuary.

The Cambodia Sustainable Landscape and Ecotourism Project (CSLEP), with support of the World Bank and the Ministries of Environment and Rural Development, set up 20 cameras in Pursat’s forests with the aim of recording the species that frequent certain areas of the woods.

They cameras revealed rare animals such as the Asian elephant, gaur, clouded leopard, black bear, sambar deer, wild dog, and peacock.

Endangered and vulnerable wild species including the pangolin, Asiatic golden cat, and coral-billed ground-cuckoo also appeared in the recordings.

The camera monitoring was aimed to identify wild animal species belong to both local and global conservation lists and is part of the wildlife sanctuary management plan endorsed by the Ministry of Environment. CSLEP is part of a larger campaign to turn Cambodia into a major ecotourism hub. The project is currently focused on a six-year plan to clear 500km of hiking trails, starting in the Kulen Mountains.