University of Minnesota Foundation

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Summer 2018
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Window on wildlife

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Tracking baboons in Botswana and monitoring cheetahs in Tanzania is no easy task. By installing heat- and motion-activated camera traps in wildlife reserves in southern and eastern Africa, researchers from the U’s Lion Center are learning about the species inhabiting those areas and how to protect them from decline. Led by Distinguished McKnight University Professor Craig Packer, the Snapshot Safari project is building on work that started in the Serengeti in 2010. Gifts to the U’s African Lion Aid fund have made the installation and long-term maintenance of the cameras possible.

All images were taken in parks and reserves in South Africa.

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Baboons are the largest primates found in the areas being studied.
Snapshot’s cameras are providing new insights into the behavior and ecology of the elusive leopard.
Individual zebras can be identified by their unique stripe or spot patterns.
Impala population trends are useful for gauging the health of an entire ecosystem.
Naturally curious and intelligent, elephants will remove cameras that aren’t well-protected.
The white rhinoceros is one of the world’s most endangered species. Cameras help monitor them and catch poachers.
The southern ground hornbill eats snakes, lizards, insects, tortoises, and other birds. Their numbers declined by approximately two-thirds during the 20th century, making them a conservation icon. In South Africa, where this image was taken, there are an estimated 1,500 left in the wild.
A curious hippopotamus inspects one of the camera traps. Hippos rely on a range of water sources—rivers, lakes, and wetlands—to keep their skin from drying out and cracking. They also secrete a red liquid that acts as a kind of sunscreen and antibiotic.
The steenbok is an antelope found in southern and eastern African countries. Steenboks are fairly solitary; they don't forage or rest in groups. But some studies have found that pairs will share a territory.

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