In recent years, drone technologies have been explored for a range of applications in conservation including (but not limited to) mapping, biodiversity inventories, antipoaching patrols, wildlife tracking, and fire monitoring. The rise of customizable, open-source drones like those of ArduPilot and OpenROV hold promise for more effective conservation applications, and combined with other monitoring sensors and devices, they are capable of collecting high-resolution data quickly, noninvasively, and at relatively low cost.
However, challenges remain in putting these tools to use. A recent paper reviewing 256 conservation drone projects highlighted some of these major obstacles, ranging from unintended social and ecological consequences of drone operations to still prohibitive costs, both in terms of hardware and in terms of storing and processing large volumes of data. The longstanding challenge of power/battery life remains as well.
If you're considering trying out drones for yourself, and want to explore the possibilities and understand the major conversations happening around this technology, check out these beginner's resources and conversations from across the WILDLABS platform:
Three Resources for Beginners:
- Conservation Technology User Guidelines Issue 5: Drones, World Wildlife Fund | Drones, best practices, ethics, regulations, case studies
- WILDLABS Virtual Meetup Recording: Drones, Craig Elder, Dr. Claire Burke, and Gabriel Levin | Drones, thermal camera, wildlife crime, ML, biologging
- New Paper: Drones and Bornean Orangutan Distribution, Sol Milne | Drones, data analysis, citizen science, community science, primates
Three Forum Threads for Beginners:
- Curious about radio-tracking with drones? | Wildlife Drones, Biologging (5 replies)
- Drones for GIS Best practice Document | Adrian Hughes, Drones (10 replies)
- WWF Conservation Technology Series: Drones in Conservation | Aurélie Shapiro, Drones (7 replies)
Three Tutorials for Beginners:
- How do I use a drone to capture radio-tracking data? | Debbie Saunders, Tech Tutors
- How do I choose the right drone for my conservation goals? | Shashank Srinivasan, Tech Tutors
- How do I strategically allocate drones for conservation? | Elizabeth Bondi, Tech Tutors
Want to know more about using drones, and learn from experts in the WILDLABS community? Make sure you join the conversation in our Drones group!
*Header photo: Parker Levinson, Point Blue Conservation Science
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- @ryanhuang
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Conservation scientist based in Pretoria, South Africa
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Neuroscientist & engineer looking for a data/R&D role in conservation.
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- @hyodopenguin
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I am currently a rising junior at UC Berkeley studying data science. I hope to apply data with biodiversity, especially by utilizing camera traps for species classification. People in conservation tech are truly living my dream careers, and I can't wait to get even more inspired!
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- @Slater
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I am the Conservation Science Director at HawkWatch International, where I've worked since 2006. My work focuses mainly on conservation and research of Golden Eagles, including nesting, tracking, and winter ecology.
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I work as in-house ecologist for a renewable energy developer in Ireland. Nature inclusive design, emerging tech and doing it better for biodiversity.
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- @EvelyneNgugi
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Environmentalist and AI Tutor
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Spanish veterinarian interested in wildlife conservation
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- @CaseyAliveAI
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I'm an AI developer focused on ecology and the director of Alive AI
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- @Mumonkan
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Conservation X Labs & Wild Me
Software Engineer for Wildlife Conservation
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I am an Ecologist working at the intersection of conservation and technology. Looking forward to better understand the use of GIS, Drones, Camera Traps and Bioacoutics in conservation & restoration.
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| Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Very cool, thanks for sharing, Adrian! We'll put this up on Twitter as well. |
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Drones | 4 years 10 months ago | |
| Hi all, Firstly, I'd just like to say a big thank you to everyone who attended my Tech Tutors presentation last month. And secondly, thank you for your patience in allowing... |
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Animal Movement, Drones | 4 years 10 months ago | |
| We are happy to share that we open a worldwide-first research residency in ecosystem restoration with drones and native seeds. Do you... |
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Drones | 5 years ago | |
| Hi all, There is a conversation underway in the "Ethics of conservation tech" group on best practices for responsible use of... |
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Drones | 5 years 2 months ago | |
| Hi! We've been using our Mavic 2 Pro to create 3d models and volumetric assessments of mangroves. We're learning more about... |
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Drones | 5 years 3 months ago | |
| Hi Ruth, Thanks for your email. Essentially the software is only an advantage if the drones are being flown at altitudes that provide a wide area and less visible detail (i.... |
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Drones | 5 years 4 months ago | |
| Hi everyone! We are very excited to announce that the BIRDSAI dataset for conservation drones is now publicly available at https://sites.... |
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Drones | 5 years 5 months ago | |
| We are very excited to announce that our open-source drone-reforestation crowdfunding is LIVE! We know climate change is here,... |
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Drones | 5 years 5 months ago | |
| Hello, I'm new here. I thought I would share an article that I wrote a couple of years ago about my work with using drones for... |
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Drones | 5 years 6 months ago | |
| Hi everyone, I have a LIDAR sensor (LIDAR USA-Fagerman Technologies-Velodyne puck) and a DJI M-600 drone. I would like to use... |
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Drones | 5 years 7 months ago | |
| Cheers Al, and looking forward to hearing more about them. I am, as we speak, editing some thermal videos of wallaby behaviour near roads, specifically in relation to devices... |
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Drones | 5 years 7 months ago | |
| Really useful to know about that package, thanks |
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Drones | 5 years 8 months ago |
