Protecting Sumatran Tigers and the Communities Who Live Beside Them

The Critically Endangered Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) is facing increasing threats due to human activity.

Fewer than 600 individuals remain in the wild, scattered across fragmented habitats.

One of their last strongholds is the Leuser Ecosystem in North Sumatra, where tigers often come into contact with forest-edge communities living close to the park boundary.

On the edge of the Leuser Ecosystem, people and wildlife live side by side. Many of the communities we support experience conflict not just with tigers, but also with other threatened species such as Sumatran elephants and orangutans. 

Human-wildlife conflict (HWC) occurs when encounters between people and wildlife lead to negative outcomes, such as crop destruction, livestock loss, property damage, injury or death to wildlife, and in rare cases, human injury or death. 

Several of these forest-edge communities rely on grazing livestock for income. These livestock are often grazed overnight in oil palm plantations that border the national park, easy hunting ground for an ambush predator like the tiger.

Community retaliation can then result in the setting of snares, shooting, or poisoning of tigers. That’s why the Sumatran Ranger Project responds to every report of a tiger sighting or livestock loss, working closely with communities to reduce the risk of future conflict.

To help address this issue in a sustainable way, our team constructs predator-proof livestock corrals that allow villagers to safely house their cows overnight. These corrals have proven to be a successful and cost-effective solution for reducing conflict, protecting livelihoods, and keeping both people and tigers safe.

Reducing Conflict with Noise Deterrents

In addition to building corrals, we also use non-lethal noise deterrents to help prevent tigers from entering villages or livestock areas. These deterrents include firecrackers, sirens, whistles, metal pots, air horns, and motion-triggered sound devices. They are designed to startle the animal and encourage it to retreat without causing harm.(1)

Local communities and NGOs, including the Sumatran Ranger Project, Leuser Conservation Forum (FKL), and Wildlife Conservation Society Indonesia, use these methods during patrols and in response to sightings.

While effective in the short term, noise deterrents must be rotated and combined with other strategies to remain successful, as tigers can become habituated to repeated sounds. Best practices include integrating them with community patrols, predator-proof corrals, and early-warning systems.

In the buffer zones near Gunung Leuser National Park, these approaches have helped temporarily displace tigers and protect livestock, buying time to monitor their movements and prevent escalation.(2)

Social Challenges and Hopeful Trends

Human-wildlife conflict is deeply tied to socio-cultural and economic factors including poverty, traditional beliefs, and local histories with wildlife. Major challenges in addressing HWC include weak law enforcement, limited funding, and corruption.

But there is hope.

Innovative and community-driven solutions are gaining traction. The use of camera traps, drones, and AI-based monitoring is expanding. More importantly, there is growing recognition of the value of indigenous knowledge and community-based conservation efforts.

A Future Where Both Can Thrive

Our rangers work tirelessly to reduce conflict, protect livelihoods, and ensure a future where people and endangered species like the Sumatran tiger can coexist. Each corral built, each firecracker used in the right moment, and each camera trap placed helps build that future – one step at a time.

This International Tiger Day, we honour the work being done in these communities and the wild tigers we rarely see, but never stop working to protect.

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1. Goodrich J, Lynam A, Miquelle D, et al. Panthera tigris. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015: e.T15955A50659951.

2. FKL (Forum Konservasi Leuser). Tiger conflict response reports. Aceh Tenggara; 2022.