00:00Hi, we are from WWF Malaysia Wildlife Conservation Program in Sarawak.
00:07We are one of the winners of Star Golden Heart Awards 2024.
00:24Deep within the rugged forests of Sarawak,
00:26WWF Malaysia's Sarawak Wildlife Conservation Team braves tough terrain to place camera traps.
00:34Their cameras have captured valuable photos of wildlife,
00:37including endangered animals such as the orangutan, lenggar and Bornean clouded leopard.
00:43We do the camera trapping installation to conduct the wildlife survey.
00:50Also, we do a markedness count survey for orangutan to estimate the population of orangutan.
00:56This valuable data is crucial for understanding the endangered species inhabiting Bornean forests.
01:02We have a lot of endangered species, especially in Borneo.
01:07We have orangutans, proboscis monkeys, pygmy elephants, Bornean clouded leopards and so on.
01:16Orangutans have a very endangered population.
01:21We hope that our conservation efforts in the next 50 years or even 100 years,
01:27this wildlife will still maintain and grow.
01:35Started in 2016 as a solo effort by senior field biologist Lukman Hakim,
01:41the team has since expanded to include four program assistants.
01:45Afi Azlizan Senin, Muhammad Hishamuddin Nasir, Donny Janis and Indrian.
01:51Their work spans sites across Sarawak, including areas like Ulubale, Gunung Lesong, Ulu Ai and more.
01:59Indrian explained that about 20 cameras are installed a kilometre apart in an area,
02:04a process that takes up to two weeks,
02:07and they are left for two to three months to silently capture passing wildlife.
02:12What we do after that?
02:14We usually collect images from SD cards.
02:19We will sort and tag based on the species.
02:25From the species, we can do data analysis.
02:29Data analysis is usually used for a baseline.
02:33We call it a baseline.
02:35This baseline will be shared with partners and stakeholders
02:40so that they can understand the concept of wildlife conservation.
02:48Navigating rough forest terrain is one of the team's greatest challenges.
02:53Among all the forests, Ulubale, also known as the heart of Borneo,
02:57is unanimously considered the toughest.
03:00Not for the faint-hearted, Muhammad Hishamuddin shared
03:03that they were lost in Ulubale for six hours from 5pm to 11pm.
03:10As darkness crept into the forest,
03:12Hishamuddin said that he thought that both Donny and himself were done for.
03:16We separated with our programme assistant at that time,
03:20and it was raining season also,
03:23and we were actually at that time at the riverside,
03:27and we followed the river all the way back to our boat.
03:33And at that time, when we were going back,
03:36there was a flood coming to the river,
03:39so we had to up the hill,
03:42and our field assistant was on the other side,
03:45so we split up.
03:46So we had to find our own way.
03:52Besides setting up camera traps,
03:54the team also carries out orangutan nest count surveys
03:57in the Batang Ai area to estimate the primate's population.
04:01The nests are divided into types A, B, C and D,
04:06where A is the one that is most recently built
04:09and still has green leaves,
04:11while D is withering and black.
04:13Actually, this magnet count survey for orangutans,
04:16we're going to that site at least three times
04:19to improve the consistency.
04:21After the survey has been done,
04:23we calculate, estimate the population by doing some formula.
04:29Andrian said that before starting a project in the forest,
04:32the team must seek permission from the local community in the area.
04:36If the request is rejected,
04:38the team will avoid surveying that area.
04:41Sometimes these communities,
04:43they are not fully open to the ideas about conservation.
04:48They misunderstand our intention
04:50because some of the camera trap points,
04:53which we plan to install,
04:55it's more like their own nest.
04:58They think that camera trap is like CCTV to monitor their activities.
05:04So it requires a lot of time to explain to them,
05:08to make them understand that our focus is solely on conservation
05:13and not to monitor the people.
05:16In the past eight years,
05:18the team has installed hundreds of camera traps,
05:21with 120 more planned for 2025.
05:25Their efforts led to the first camera trap footage
05:27of orangutans in Gunung Lesong Forest,
05:30confirming local sightings.
05:32The team also contributed to the Sarawak Sentencing Guidelines
05:35for Wildlife Crimes,
05:37helping judges determine sentences for wildlife offences.
05:41Looking ahead, the team plans to study the Bornean Clouded Leopard,
05:45a species listed as threatened
05:47by the International Union for Conservation of Nature,
05:50emphasising the need for further research to aid conservation.
05:56Happy 10th Anniversary to the Star-Bornean Heart Award.
06:01Thank you for your support in conservation.
06:05Borneo loves you!
06:15Borneo loves you!
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