A trap camera in Dong Yai Wildlife Sanctuary in Buri Ram has captured pictures of a rare Indochinese tiger among other wildlife species.
Somsuan Raksat, chief of the sanctuary, on Friday disclosed pictures of the tiger that was captured by the Network Centric Anti-Poaching System (NCAPS) set up around a salt lick in tambon Lam Nang Rong of Non Dindaeng district on Wednesday.
The camera captured the moment the tiger was probably hunting its prey, along with other wild animals -- such as deer, muntjacs, gaurs and wild elephants.
Mr Somsuan said the tiger may have crossed over from Thap Lan Forest to roam for food around the Dong Phayayen–Khao Yai Forest Complex.
The discovery indicates the abundant wildlife in that area where authorities are working to suppress illegal poaching and conserve protected animals, he said.
Dong Yai Wildlife Sanctuary is part of the Dong Phayayen–Khao Yai Forest Complex which comprises a number of protected areas including the four national parks of Khao Yai, Thap Lan, Pang Sida and Ta Phraya. It spans the provinces of Saraburi, Nakhon Nayok, Nakhon Ratchasima, Prachin Buri, Sa Kaeo and Buri Ram.
The forest complex plays a key role in maintaining the biodiversity of a range of ecosystems including tropical rainforest, mixed deciduous, tropical grassland, limestone and brook forests.
In a separate announcement, the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) said that Thailand has successfully nursed baby leatherback turtles, listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Unlike other sea turtles, this species prefers deep oceanic waters and only comes to shore to lay eggs.
Over the past five years, they have started returning to the beaches of Phangnga and Phuket to lay eggs. The DMCR has been nursing them before releasing them back to the sea.
The department did not say how many leatherback turtles have been released.
Thailand, it said, has become one of only five countries -- the others are Sri Lanka, the United States, France and Canada -- to have successfully nursed this species of baby turtle and kept them alive for over a year.
The experiment took place at the Marine and Coastal Resources Research Centre in Phuket.
Besides this, the DMCR has also supported the safe breeding of white-spotted jellyfish and another jellyfish species called Lobonema smithii.