Obsession

Conservation biologists often obsess over counting animals in the wild.

“How many [insert animal name] are in [insert habitat name] this month? How do those population figures compare to last year at this time?”

If you think such questions are exciting, head to your nearest research university to start your Ph.D. in conservation biology. For the rest of us, take a few moments to appreciate how difficult it is to answer those questions. Counting animals? For the 2010 Census alone, the United States government has hired over 400,000 people to help count the total number of Americans, at a cost of over $11 billion. Even the most optimistic of scientific grants for counting another animal species wouldn’t cover a fraction of that budget.

Thus, to count their targets, conservationists have to get creative. A popular method for larger animals involves setting up motion-triggered cameras in the wild: an animal comes close to the camera, sensors record that motion and activate the camera, and the camera records a few seconds of footage for scientists to view later. Over time, the camera can record multiple images of animals passing by the camera, and scientists can extrapolate the total number of animals from a particular species based on the number of appearances of that species in the camera footage. They have to take other measures into account as well (the distance between cameras, what is known about the roaming or migratory patterns of the species in question, etc.), but this passive method sure beats hiring 400,000 Americans to count the number of jaguars in Guatemala.

Speaking of jaguars in Guatemala, conservationists recently wanted to estimate the number of jaguars living among the Mayan ruins of Guatemala. Their method of choice? Motion-triggered cameras, with a twist. When they set up the cameras, scientists sprayed cologne around the cameras to attract jaguars. Their cologne of choice was Calvin Klein’s Obsession for Men, and it wasn’t selected at random. Pat Thomas, the general curator for the Bronx Zoo in New York, had experimented with a variety of colognes on the big cat species at the Bronx Zoo. “Big cats” include species like lions, tigers, leopards, and jaguars. In short, those large wild cousins of the domestic cat could be called “big cats.” After experimenting with several colognes and perfumes, Thomas soon realized that Obsession for Men was a winner: big cats like cheetahs and jaguars were attracted to the scent, and explored and rubbed up against objects sprayed with the cologne. Eventually, biologists discovered that many other cat species also loved the scent.

No one has yet discovered what compound within Calvin Klein’s Obsession for Men is attracting felines. But, biologists quickly seized on Pat Thomas’ discovery and put it to practical use. In Guatemala, Calvin Klein’s Obsession for Men helped draw jaguars out toward the motion-triggered cameras, allowing conservationists from the Wildlife Conservation Society to estimate the number of jaguars living in the Maya Biosphere Reserve. Here’s a video of the types of footage they collected.

Hopefully, other big cat researchers are taking note, and stocking up on this Calvin Klein goldmine. But, other conservation biologists should also take note. Obsession for Men may not attract other animals; but, this random discovery will hopefully encourage other biologists to think outside the box, and try unconventional methods to attract animals to their cameras.

The picture above shows a jaguar in the Maya Biosphere Reserve of Guatemala, attracted to a motion-triggered camera in an area sprayed with Calvin Klein’s Obsession for Men. Image provided courtesy of the Wildlife Conservation Society.