Director of Chon-Kemin Nature Park, Adilbek Kasmaliev:
-In fact, Chon-Kemin State Nature Park was established on August 13, 1997. Its main purpose is to protect ecologically valuable areas and preserve nature. The park is home to large numbers of deer, including maral and roe deer. Their populations have been increasing in recent years.
Hunters are only permitted to deal with wolves that attack livestock in village areas, and only with official authorization. However, hunting is completely prohibited within our protected nature park, and no one is allowed to enter the park carrying a gun.
Where do these animals come from?
- They come down to the water to drink and visit natural salt licks. We install one or two camera traps along the trails leading to these areas, because that's where the animals pass by, allowing us to capture and identify them on camera.
For example, when we monitor snow leopards, we already know the routes they usually use. They move through rocky areas and have their own regular trails. We install camera traps on rocks or pine trees along those routes, carefully hiding them and making sure they leave no human scent. After that, we check the results about three months later.