Although they cover over 70% of our planet, only 0.6% of the world oceans are protected. It is estimated that we only know about 1 in 10 species in the ocean, which is unsurprising given that 90% of the ocean is more than half a mile deep and still remains largely unexplored. How might technology help us discover, understand and protect the vulnerable ecosystems below the waterline?
Marine Conservation is a fast-growing group in the WILDLABS community, capturing a wide variety of tech expertise within its member base, including those working with bioacoustic gear and hydrophones, AUVs and drones, sensors, machine learning, and more. By bringing together WILDLABS members from so many areas of conservation tech, the Marine Conservation group is the perfect place to collaborate on big, complex issues like marine biodiversity monitoring, coral reef health, plastic pollution, and sustainability.
The Marine Conservation group forum is also your place to chat about and solve the challenges unique to using conservation technology in marine environments. Whether you're struggling with deep-sea connectivity or salt water impacting gear longevity, or looking for remote solutions for long-term reef monitoring or biologging data collection, this group wants to help you explore the possibilities!
Check out some of the key marine conservation tech resources, conversations, and virtual events from across the WILDLABS platform:
Tutorials and Talks to Watch on Demand:
- Virtual Meetups: Developing cost-effective, open-source marine megafauna tracking, Jake Levenson
- Tech Tutors: How do I use open source remote sensing data to monitor fishing?, Max Schofield
- Virtual Meetups: eDNA for Aquatic Biodiversity, Alice Valentini
Case Studies, Tools, Research, and News:
- Southern Right Whales & Genome and Satellite Technology, Emma Carroll | eDNA & genomics, satellite data, biodiversity monitoring, climate change
- Building Experts Into AI, Whale Seeker | Machine learning, marine conservation, AI ethics
- Using AIS Data to Investigate the World’s Fishing Ports, Max Schofield | Remote sensing, data visualisation, fishing monitoring
- Small-scale fisheries and tech resources, Dan Steadman | Fishery monitoring, webinars, best practices
- Press Release: BAS Giant Iceberg Mission, British Antarctic Survey | Climate change, AUVs, remote sensing
- Case Study: Thermal imaging, drones, and loggerhead sea turtles, Megan Ossmann | FLIR, Duo Pro R camera, drones
- eDNA sampling to detect invasive snails in shipping ballast water, Gavin Shelton | Invasive species, eDNA, shipping
- Sustainable Fishing Challenges: Fish Catch Monitoring, Dan Steadman | Biologging, sensors, fishing monitoring
Conversations and Questions:
- Satellite tags for marine turtle recommendations | Alasdair Davies
- Calling all hydrophone users! | Team Open Acoustic Devices
- How difficult is it to build a buoy and constrain it in place? | Lindy Knowles
- Methods to detect Derelict Fishing Gear | Nandini Mehrotra
- Drone Mapping for Algal Blooms? | Harold Tay
- Minimising habitat impact of trawling gear | Dan Steadman
- Estimating carbon from 3d models of mangroves | Mark Brown
- Can we detect gillnets in turbid water? | Aurélie Shapiro
- New low cost DIY temperature loggers for reef monitoring | Harold Tay
- Machine learning to detect fish bomb blasts | Jamie Macaulay
Header Image: Emma Vogel
No showcases have been added to this group yet.
- @Alex.S
- | She/Her
MSc Marine Biologist and Data Scientist, Co-Founder and CSO & CTO of Galene Pathways
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 8 Groups
- @Cathrine
- | She
Ocean Conservationist
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 5 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 2 Groups
- @SeanB
- | he/him
Cellular Tracking Technologies
Software Engineer at Cellular Tracking Technologies. I'm passionate about developing cutting-edge technology for scientific research and advancing data analysis methods for telemetry devices.
- 0 Resources
- 1 Discussions
- 6 Groups
- @Seagoose
- | she/her
Ecologist & Conservationist. Women for the Environment, Africa Fellow. National Geographic Explorer.
- 0 Resources
- 4 Discussions
- 8 Groups
Wild Me
- 1 Resources
- 22 Discussions
- 6 Groups
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 8 Groups
Adventure Scientists is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Bozeman, MT that equips scientists and researchers with high-quality data collected from the outdoors that are crucial to addressing environmental challenges around the world.
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 16 Groups
- @DanielHugelmann
- | He / Him
Hi, I'm the co-founder of OceanLabs Seychelles. We design and build environmental and marine remote sensing devices for conservation NGOs. As an engineer and avid diver, with a love for the environment, connecting conservation and technology was the natural thing to do!
- 0 Resources
- 1 Discussions
- 12 Groups
- @chmod000
- | he/they
I build sensing and perceiving hardware that is designed to address issues that matter to me. That ranges from assistive technologies, to conservation ecology, and connecting individuals with place and each other.
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 7 Groups
- @DBayley
- | He/him
Fauna & Flora & University College London (UCL)
I'm a tropical marine ecologist, specialising in coral reefs, MPAs, and blue carbon. Within conservation technology my focus has been around developing underwater imaging techniques, primarily to assist coral reef monitoring
- 0 Resources
- 1 Discussions
- 5 Groups
- @nicoboenisch
- | He / him / his
Co-Director FOS Europe, Conservation Strategist and Technical Advisor to the Miradi Software Team, Improving Conservation through Adaptive Management and Evidence-based Learning
- 0 Resources
- 0 Discussions
- 8 Groups
Funding
The Mesoamerican Reef Fund ( MAR Fund ) calls proposals for its small grants program and for the Reef Rescue Initiative. | El Fondo para el Sistema Arrecifal Mesoamericano (MAR Fund) convoca propuestas para su programa...
3 October 2024
Funding
The Connected Conservation is thrilled to announce our award's third round in collaboration with the Airbus Foundation. This award champions the use of cutting-edge satellite imagery to tackle biodiversity loss and...
30 September 2024
Funding
The Coral Research & Development Accelerator Platform opened it's Coral Accelerator Program 2024 for internationally collaborating teams to apply with innovative projects ranging from 'novel early-phase' to 'final...
26 August 2024
Careers
Seeking expressions of interest from PhD candidates to join the MAVE Lab at the University of Wollongong, NSW, Australia
26 August 2024
Article
Join us for Season Five of the WILDLABS Virtual Meetup Series, tuning in to the world of Bioacoustics! Laying the groundwork for our new horizon scan research, each event will convene cross-sector experts to explore a...
22 August 2024
Article
Join us in celebrating this year’s Judging Panele Award winners!
19 August 2024
Article
Join us in celebrating this year’s Community Choice Award winners!
15 August 2024
Article
Vote for your favorite submissions that best demonstrate conservation impact, novel innovation/discovery, and strong storytelling of the work and the sector.
12 August 2024
Article
We’re taking a look at past and current submissions that feature the fastest growing areas of conservation tech: movement ecology, AI, aquatic conservation, and bioacoustics. Today’s topic: aquatic conservation!
8 August 2024
Article
Read our exciting interview with Samuel Mangi, a Marine Expert working to conserve sea turtles at Bahari Hai in Watamu using underwater monitoring tools and cloud storage.
19 July 2024
Discover the challenges marine animals face in busy shipping lanes—from the constant noise disrupting their habitats to the threat of ship collisions. Slowing down ships could offer a simple yet effective solution to...
8 July 2024
Careers
Fully funded PhD in AI biodiversity monitoring
Benno Simmons
Come and do the first research into responsible AI for biodiversity monitoring, developing ways to ensure these AIs are safe, unbiased and accountable.
11 June 2024
October 2025
event
Lacey Hughey and 3 more
March 2026
November 2023
| Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hello everyone, I'm interested in gathering insights on how the behavior of different species impacts the development and efficacy of... |
|
Animal Movement, Acoustics, Camera Traps, eDNA & Genomics, Emerging Tech, Marine Conservation | 1 year 4 months ago | |
| Hi all, I am searching for marine species projects that monitor orientation/IMU and/or acceleration data... |
|
Animal Movement, Marine Conservation | 1 year 5 months ago | |
| Hi Scott, thanks so much for sharing your thoughts here! It would be great to learn more about this, would you be interested in finding a time to chat? Thanks! |
|
Marine Conservation, Sustainable Fishing Challenges, Wildlife Crime | 1 year 5 months ago | |
| Ah yes. I didn’t notice that. Indeed it’s “near infrared”, 850nm lighting. |
|
Camera Traps, Marine Conservation | 1 year 5 months ago | |
| Thanks Aude, very useful. Will reach out to them! |
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Early Career, Acoustics, eDNA & Genomics, Marine Conservation, Protected Area Management Tools | 1 year 7 months ago | |
| Thank you for sharing! Super interesting, as we don't see many underwater stereo cameras! We also use Blue Robotics components in our projects and have found them reliable and... |
|
Sensors, Camera Traps, Marine Conservation | 1 year 7 months ago | |
| If you are considering an external microphone and a towed system, then you would also be in a position to consider a raspberry pi with an external microphone with sbts-aru.... |
|
Acoustics, AI for Conservation, Marine Conservation, Sustainable Fishing Challenges | 1 year 7 months ago | |
| Hi Eva, Me and my colleagues run a small NGO based on Yogyakarta in Indonesia, although our projects are spread around the country. One of our active project is working with... |
|
Community Base, Animal Movement, Citizen Science, Climate Change, Human-Wildlife Coexistence, Marine Conservation, Geospatial | 1 year 7 months ago | |
| My suggestion would probably be a 3D printer and Solder Station with a stock of common components. With those two things you can solve most problems. |
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Community Base, Emerging Tech, Marine Conservation, Protected Area Management Tools, Sensors | 1 year 8 months ago | |
| Hey Stephanie,Thanks a lot! Sorry I missed your message but of course I can ask our users about their experience with sensors! |
|
Animal Movement, Human-Wildlife Coexistence, Marine Conservation, Protected Area Management Tools | 1 year 10 months ago | |
| I agree, this would be great for canopy work! |
|
Autonomous Camera Traps for Insects, Camera Traps, Emerging Tech, Marine Conservation | 2 years ago | |
| Steve Simpson (on behalf of collaborator @MilesParsons) joined our June Variety Hour to give a report from the Wolrd Oceans Passive... |
|
Acoustics, Marine Conservation | 2 years 1 month ago |
