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
No showcases have been added to this group yet.
Mechanical engineer with a passion for applied UAV systems
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 2 Groups
Forgotten Parks Foundation
- 0 Resources
- 3 Discussions
- 5 Groups
Based in Australia, in the Blue Mountains and working with WWF-Australia on a new program "Eyes on Country". Working on the interface of tech, conservation and First Nations/Ranger groups.
- 0 Resources
- 3 Discussions
- 11 Groups
- @EllieW
- | She/Her
- 88 Resources
- 123 Discussions
- 13 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 4 Groups
- @jahiyaclark
- | she/her
PhD Student at UCSC Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 6 Groups
- @shahselbe
- | he/him
Conservify
Conservation Technologist, National Geographic Explorer, and Founder of Conservify and FieldKit
- 0 Resources
- 5 Discussions
- 18 Groups
- @Ngunu_24
- | He\him
I'm a marine biologist working at Local Ocean Conservation as a marine research and data manager. I love exploring the wonders of the underwater world and learning about the amazing creatures that live there. I'm passionate about protecting our oceans and raising awareness.
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 11 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 11 Groups
Conservation Biologist working in marine conservation in Cambodia who recognizes tech as the new age of conservation, monitoring, surveillance and prevention of wildlife crime.
- 0 Resources
- 7 Discussions
- 2 Groups
- @fabianiodrobo
- | He/Him/His
I am a Computer Engineer, love tech and possibilities of new discoveries, hoping always to use my work to collaborate in make a better world
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 1 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 8 Groups
Article
Technical Difficulties: Understanding the Realities
Eric Becker and 1 more
In their three-part interview from our new series Technical Difficulties, Colby Loucks and Eric Becker share the failures they've encountered and learned from throughout six years of working on the WWF-US Wildlife Crime...
13 October 2021
Article
New Papers: Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation
Zoological Society London (ZSL)
ZSL's Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation journal has released new research for early view before inclusion in an issue. See the full list of recent open access research papers on RSEC.
22 April 2021
Community Announcement
Whether you spent the last year working in the field, lab, at home, or virtually, the WILDLABS community's conservation tech achievements were on full display in our annual #Tech4Wildlife Photo Challenge! Relive our...
25 March 2021
Funding
Funding Opportunity: COVID-19 Science Fund
National Geographic
National Geographic is offering funding up to up to $50,000 for conservationists conducting research on how the pandemic has impacted wildlife and conservation work. If you are interested in researching aspects of the...
10 March 2021
Article
How can drones and ATVs protect black-footed ferrets from the plague? In this case study from WWF's Northern Great Plains Program, Black-footed Ferret Restoration Manager Kristy Bly discusses how delivering vaccines to...
17 February 2021
Article
Sol Milne's new paper, Drivers of Bornean Orangutan Distribution across a Multiple-Use Tropical Landscape, is now available. Using drones to detect orangutan nest density in aerial surveys (as shared during our...
12 February 2021
Article
Press Release: BAS Giant Iceberg Mission
British Antarctic Survey
A research mission to determine the impact of the giant A-68a iceberg on one of the world’s most important ecosystems using underwater robotic gliders gets underway this January. A team of scientists, led by British...
13 January 2021
Article
Conservation Technology User Guidelines Issue 5: Drones
World Wide Fund for Nature/ World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
The latest issue of WWF's Conservation Technology Series is about drones and is designed for a broad audience of conservationists. Containing ten case studies, scientific literature, and handy information on getting...
18 November 2020
Article
Report: Helping Ensure Ethical Indian Drone Operations
Shashank Srinivasan
As drone usage continues to grow within the conservation tech community, driven by improved performance, increased accessibility, and the wide range of data collection methods that can be served by drones, so do the...
19 October 2020
Article
#Tech4Wildlife News: Airdropping Sensors from Moths
WILDLABS Team
The miniaturisation of technology is rapidly opening up new possibilities for conservationists and environmental scientists in need of less invasive, easy to deploy solutions. University of Washington researchers have...
13 October 2020
Article
Sustainable Fishing Challenges: Fishing Gear Innovations
Daniel Steadman
Today, Sustainable Fishing Challenges group leader Daniel Steadman discusses how fishing gear itself could benefit from fresh technological innovations to prevent both environmental damage and damage to species and...
19 August 2020
Article
In this case study from herpetologist Emily Taylor, we learn about the best methods and gear used to track snakes, lizards, and other reptiles and amphibians via radio-telemetry, and how these techniques have changed...
31 July 2020
August 2025
event
Louisa Richmond-Coggan
September 2025
event
Louisa Richmond-Coggan
March 2026
December 2020
June 2020
33 Products
Recently updated products
| Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Very cool, thanks for sharing, Adrian! We'll put this up on Twitter as well. |
|
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... |
|
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... |
|
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... |
|
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... |
|
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.... |
|
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.... |
|
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,... |
|
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... |
|
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... |
|
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... |
|
Drones | 5 years 7 months ago | |
| Really useful to know about that package, thanks |
|
Drones | 5 years 8 months ago |
