What’s at stake: A glimpse into Malaysia’s rare biodiversity

Currently, there are less than 150 wild tigers left in Malaysia, their fate hangs in the balance. – Photos by Emmanuel Rondeau / WWF-US

AS THE sun begins to dip below the horizon of Malaysia’s Royal Belum State Park, the team makes the final adjustments to the last of the digital camera traps. Everyone is in good spirits and the leeches have taken a day off as the ground is dry underfoot. The light may be fading, but the anticipation is high.

An anti-poaching team of dedicated orang asli working with WWF-Malaysia have been trekking through the dense, humid forests of Royal Belum State Park with wildlife photographer Emmanuel Rondeau to set up a series of high-quality cameras in this 130-million-year old rainforest, for over a week.