Less than 600 Asian elephants Elephas maximus are believed to remain in Cambodia. Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary supports a subpopulation of this globally Endangered species which may represent a small but critical portion of the national total, although reliable estimates are not available for the landscape. In response, Fauna & Flora International (FFI) and USAID have undertaken surveys to collect fecal (dung) samples of elephants throughout the Prey Lang landscape. Subsequent genetic analysis of the samples will allow elephant populations in the landscape to be estimated for the first time using a mark-recapture approach.  

Over a hundred samples of elephant dung have been collected within the wildlife sanctuary and analysis is being undertaken by the Conservation Genetics Laboratory at the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP), a collaborative initiative between the RUPP, Royal Zoological Society of Scotland and FFI. Following extraction of DNA from the samples, genotype, sexing test and microsatellite analyses will be undertaken. The information provided by these tests will be used to guide conservation actions to ensure the future survival of elephants within the landscape. Learn more about project