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
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 6 Groups
- @dilip_singh556
- | Him
On the way to Bridge technology and Nature.
- 0 Resources
- 2 Discussions
- 10 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 14 Discussions
- 3 Groups
Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI)
Conservation biologist based in Tanzania
- 0 Resources
- 2 Discussions
- 2 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 15 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 8 Groups
Early career, assistance in biologging projects with owls and eagles
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 5 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 10 Groups
- 1 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 13 Groups
- @beccadobrien
- | she/her
Undergraduate student studying mechanical engineering and environmental science at Lehigh University.
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 4 Groups
- @ghirrien
- | Gael
Seasoned Product manager & digital entreprise architect
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 1 Groups
Drone Operator and Tech Developer
- 0 Resources
- 33 Discussions
- 9 Groups
Article
As a visiting research scholar with UNODC, Isla Duporge asked wildlife crime experts about their experiences using remote sensing technologies to combat illicit wildlife and forest activities. In this article, Isla...
7 November 2016
Article
Can Drones Live up to the Hype?
Paul Glover-Kapfer
Drones are being explored for a spectrum of applications in conservation that include mapping, biodiversity inventories, antipoaching patrols, wildlife tracking and fire monitoring. However, questions remain about...
8 July 2016
Article
Can UAVs be Used to Measure Forest Quality?
Tom Swinfield
A team of researchers is using UAVs to photograph tropical forest canopy with the aim of developing low-cost methods for measuring forest quality and directing restoration management. In this case study for the Drones...
27 April 2016
Article
SnotBots: Can drones transform whale conservation?
WILDLABS Admin
By flying through a whale's spray, a SnotBot can collect samples of mucus and DNA which researchers are hoping will offer insights into whales' stress levels. After a successful Kickstart campaign, Ocean Alliance has...
25 February 2016
Article
Bringing Conservation Technology to Life
Shah Selbe
We are living in the midst of a pretty exciting era. Never before has humanity been more educated, more connected, more enabled, or more empowered than we are today. There are many reasons to be optimistic about the...
17 February 2016
Article
Katherine Chou, Product Lead at Google[x] Labs, sees technology as a way to make the impossible, possible. She explores differences in how wildlife NGOs and the tech sector think and plan, and what the conservation ...
22 December 2015
Article
Cheap Space, DIY Imaging and Big Data
WILDLABS Admin
John Amos, President of SkyTruth, explores how remote sensing is being used in conservation today and the importance of sky-truthing. He examines the role that citizen scientists can play in increasing transparency in...
21 December 2015
Article
New technologies offer a lot of potential for conservation, but are there potential risks to deploying these new technologies? In this first thought piece for the Ethics of Conservation Tech Group, Dr Chris Sandbrook...
2 November 2015
April 2023
February 2023
33 Products
Recently updated products
| Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cool! Thanks @Tomas Starnes. Meanwhile, http://precisionmapper.com/ has adopted the freemium model, so the first 60 maps by year are free, It's not open source but... |
|
Drones | 7 years 11 months ago | |
| Hey @ahughes_rspb , thanks for starting this thread! It would be really useful to share experience on GCPs in particular. We're about to start experimenting by... |
|
Drones | 7 years 11 months ago | |
| Hi Marcelo, To improve autonomy, you'll either need less weight on your drone, better batteries, or what about a fixed wing aircraft? Look at the parrot disco - it... |
|
Drones | 8 years ago | |
| This is really fascinating! This could also be potentially useful as a way to distribute vaccines for wildlife and livestock! |
|
Drones | 8 years 1 month ago | |
| Thanks for sharing, @Lot Adding a little more info in case anyone was interested but didn't click through - also, earlybird tickets are still available.... |
|
Drones | 8 years 1 month ago | |
| Hi @twhitten The British Model Flying Association provide a specialist insurance for drone operators who are not using them as a hobby nor for commercial purposes ("... |
|
Drones | 8 years 3 months ago | |
| This is a reminder about the ZSL Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation journal open call for papers on RPAS (aka UAVs)...... |
|
Drones | 8 years 3 months ago | |
| The first WILDLABS Meetup in Cambridge, UK for 2017 comes off the back of this discussion in the drones group. Anyone who has an... |
|
Drones | 8 years 3 months ago | |
| Hi all, I'm currently working on a project to improve forest quality assessments using drones. We would like to get hold of... |
|
Drones | 8 years 4 months ago | |
| Thanks for the link, @jprobert ! Parrot Education Blog's own link also here for reference http://edu.parrot.com/blog/2016/12/06/parrot-pix4d-team-forest-canopy-... |
|
Drones | 8 years 4 months ago | |
| The Parrot/Pix4D Climate innovation grant consists of an award of hardware and software for field research to foster innovation in... |
|
Drones | 8 years 5 months ago | |
| Hi Jprobert, I have been trying to use my Phanton 3 proffessional together with Pix4Dmapper to trial out some forest mapping in Principe Island. if you are interested check... |
|
Drones | 8 years 5 months ago |
