Sentinel Camera Traps Monitor The Emergence Of Infectious Disease In Tasmanian Devils (Sarcophilus Harrisii)

The continued spread of a contagious and lethal cancer, devil facial tumour disease (DFTD), across the majority of the Tasmanian devil's (Sarcophilus harrisii) distribution necessitates monitoring of disease-free populations. We deployed permanent wildlife camera traps along the known boundary of disease and undiseased populations in order to track the progression of DFTD. Thirty camera traps deployed for 11 months detected four cases suggestive of DFTD and determined a disease progression rate of 10.7 km/annum. We evaluate the use of camera traps, attractant lures and an action decision matrix as tools to monitor disease emergence in highly connected wildlife populations.