The Tenkile Conservation Alliance (TCA) aims to save the critically endangered Tenkile Tree Kangaroo, or Scott's Tree Kangaroo (Dendrolagus scottae) and Weimang (Dendrolagus pulcherrimus) from becoming extinct. The Tenkile and Weimang are classified as critically endangered by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources-Redlist 2010). TCA is a Papua New Guinean non-government organisation which works closely with the 39 villages which holds these two species of tree kangaroos on their land.

TCA's focus area is the Torricelli Mountain Range - north west Papua New Guinea. TCA researches the Tenkile and Weimang, conducts education and alternative livelihood projects and provides community development.

Thomas Schmid, director of TTMS, has undertaken several extended field trips to the Torricelli Mountains to assist TCA in its objective of establishing a conservation area to preserve the habitat of the Tenkile and Weimang tree kangaroos. This has involved developing a field mapping program through the training of nine local TCA staff in GPS use. These TCA project officers work with local village landowners to map the boundaries of land that will be contributed to the conservation area. The field data is sent to Thomas and used to update the boundary map of the proposed conservation area. Ultimately a contiguous conservation area of approximately 130,000 hectares of the Torricelli Mountains is hoped to be established.

For more information on TCA visit www.tenkile.com

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