The Impact of Human Traffic on the Abundance and Activity Periods of Sumatran Rain Forest Wildlife

Abstract

Human traffic and activity in a natural area might affect the behavior and ecology of resident wildlife, not only in open areas but also in the dense conditions afforded by the undergrowth of a tropical rain forest. Animals have several options to avoid people. They may leave the area, they may become more nocturnal or more arboreal, or they may simply avoid using the trails on which humans are likely to travel and thus go unnoticed without actually making major behavioral changes. Because the withdrawal or changes in the activity period of some species could potentially lead to population increases of their competitors or their prey, the ecological impact of human traffic is potentially farreaching. Unfortunately, it is difficult to assess how much intense human traffic affects the wildlife in a rain forest. Observations create disturbance which makes it almost impossible to study the control situation of no human traffic. This problem can be overcome by using the recently developed technique of camera-trapping (Griffiths & van Schaik 1993). The purpose of this study was to examine the impact