Earticle

Although camera traps have been widely used to understand the abundance of wildlife in recent decades, the effort has been restricted to small sub-set of wildlife which can mark-and-recapture. The Random Encounter Model shows an alternative approach to estimate the absolute abundance from camera trap detection rate for any animals without the need for individual recognition. Our study aims to examine the feasibility and validity of the Random Encounter Model for the density estimation of endangered leopard cats (Prionailurus bengalensis) in Maekdo riparian park, Busan, South Korea. According to the model, the estimated leopard cat density was 1.76 km-2 (CI 95%, 0.74-3.49), which indicated 2.46 leopard cats in 1.4 km2 of our study area. This estimate was not statistically different from the previous leopard cat population count (2.33±0.58) in the same area. As follows, our research demonstrated the application and usefulness of the Random Encounter Model in density estimation of unmarked wildlife which helps to manage and protect the target species with a better understanding of their status.