Zoological Society London (ZSL)
Hi All,
We have found that monkeys, baboons and elephants are breaking a lot of our cellular camera traps antenna. These animals love to chew on and manipulate the antennas usually until they are snapped off or completely destroyed. We use standard omni directional 16 cm screw-in black plastic mms antennas with an adjustable knuckle at the base.
We have tried coating in chili with some success until it washes off. We have also tried using a metal or PVC cover but have found this reduces signal.
I would be interested to hear from anyone else who has found a solution to this problem or a decent inflexible metal antenna that can be used. If I find something in the meantime I will keep you posted.
Sam
28 June 2019 2:59pm
Hello Sam,
We've had good luck with these:
https://www.covertscoutingcameras.com/shop/covert-accessories/booster-antenna-for-wireless-cameras/
In high baboon areas we'll pass the cable through clear PVC tubing to prevent chewing.
The other thing we'll frequently do in areas we forecast problems is to pre-deploy broken or dummy equipment at the location for a couple of weeks. We find that that deploying this "sacrificial" stuff sometimes reduces interest in the functional equipment after it is deployed after this initial period of acclimation.
Eric
Eric Schmidt
Wildlife Protection Solutions (WPS)