The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation and WWF-Thailand have been continuously implementing the Tiger Population Restoration Project in the Upper Western Forest Complex after recognizing the threats to ungulates in many areas, especially the Sambar deer , which is another important variable in maintaining the balance of the forest ecosystem and the food chain. Currently, the Sambar deer is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN’s Threatened Species List.
On July 7, 2023, Khlong Lan National Park, in collaboration with Khao Kho Wildlife Breeding Station and WWF Thailand, with support from WWF Foundation, released 14 wild deer back into the wild , 9 males and 5 females, into the grassland improvement area of Khlong Lan National Park, Kamphaeng Phet Province, to restore the ecosystem and increase biodiversity in Khlong Lan Forest. This year marks the 3rd year of the project since 2021, with a total of 56 wild deer released back into the wild at Mae Wong National Park and 34 at Khlong Lan National Park. In total, the project released 90 deer back into the wild.
Since the project still recognizes the importance of monitoring and measuring the results after release to obtain data that will be useful for developing a management plan for increasing the wild deer population to lead to the recovery of the wild deer population and ecosystem, radio-satellite collaring and automatic camera traps are used to determine the survival rate and habitat use in the forest.
As in the past, the deer released back into the wild came from the Khao Kho Wildlife Breeding Station, which is under the care of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation. The project also supported the work of the station by delivering animal feed and equipment necessary for the officers’ work, including repairing and maintaining the deer barn and feeding area. The objective is to support the work of developing and restoring nature effectively and sustainably in all sectors.
