Monitoring Wildlife Using Camera Traps: Effect of Bait Type in Pine Plantations and Natural Hardwood Stands

Camera traps across from cages baited with either sardines or suet were installed in forests on the campus of Ferrum College in Virginia, USA, during the Fall and Spring seasons over two years. The objective of this study was to determine the vertebrate wildlife abundance and species composition in natural hardwood forests with mixed pine species compared to pine plantations. We found that the forest type and bait preference differed among the species by season. The relative abundance of natural foods and the need for winter thermal cover may explain the capture success in this study.