Srepok Wilderness Area, Cambodia Asia/Pacific > Southeast Asia >
Cambodia (Kampuchea) The Srepok wilderness area in northeastern
Cambodia is home to Asian elephant, banteng, gaur, tiger and
hundreds of bird species. However, the natural wealth of this
region is threatened by the lucrative wildlife trade, illegal
logging and land conversion for agriculture. Working with local
communities and wildlife authorities, WWF is developing an
ecotourism initiative in Srepok – similar to the successful game
reserves of South Africa – to attract tourists from all over the
world. Tourism revenue will go to the communities and to
conservation projects in the protected areas. A biologist
working in Cambodia in the 1950s and 1960s described Cambodia as
"second only to the African gamelands in game abundance,"
commenting that the expedition team "stumbled through acres of
elephant tracks and watched herds of banteng, water buffalo or
Eld's deer sweeping across parkland in billowing clouds of
dust." Wildlife populations have d