The conservation of tigers and other wildlife in oil palm plantations

Reasons for tiger decline
The primary reason for the decline of tigers, and subsequently other species, from the
plantation was almost definitely the encroachment of settlers that moved into the
conservation areas from late 2003 onwards, claiming land, clearing and burning it and
planting crops. From 2004 monitoring units recorded incidences of conservation
threats encountered on routine patrols. The results for 2004 show that three-quarters
of activities recorded consisted of clearing, hunting, logging and burning. Snaring was
comparatively uncommon, but when the project was being set up snares were
removed in large volume and hence local people knew they would be removed
if found.
Type Proportion of reports
Clearing 20%
Hunting 20%
Illegal logging 19%
Burnt area 17%
Snares 9%
Bird trapping 4%
Settlement (temporary) 4%
Shooting 3%
Fish poisoning 1%
Gaharu collecting 1%
These activities were overwhelmingly focussed in the unplanted areas set aside for
conservation, the same areas favoured by the tigers (Figure 24, p.36). Unfortunately,
camera-trap results could not accurately record this trend, partly because cameras in
areas being cleared or burnt were frequently stolen or destroyed, thus losing all the
records, but also probably because people actively avoided being photographed.
Although encroachment was most intense in the conservation areas, it was a problem
suffered across the plantation, and from 2004 onwards local authorities were
repeatedly asked to intervene. Several clashes between plantation security, settlers
and police occurred during this period, with solutions clouded by issues of genuine
and fraudulent land claims, divided support from local government, police and army,
local provocateurs and also the decline of security in the neighbouring forest
concession. As a result it was the conservation areas, as the areas least obviously
controlled by the plantation, and the neighbouring areas of the forest concession that
suffered the hardest and at the time of writing little viable habitat remains in the
western conservation area or across the border in the forest concession. The tigers
had disappeared before research was forcibly halted by the impossibility of cameratrapping
and direct threats to staff. The plantation tigers could not be found in
subsequent widespread surveys of the area and their fate can only be guessed.
Wildlife conservation in oil palm plantations 41