Camera traps have been a key part of the conservation toolkit for decades. Remotely triggered video or still cameras allow researchers and managers to monitor cryptic species, survey populations, and support enforcement responses by documenting illegal activities. Increasingly, machine learning is being implemented to automate the processing of data generated by camera traps.
A recent study published showed that, despite being well-established and widely used tools in conservation, progress in the development of camera traps has plateaued since the emergence of the modern model in the mid-2000s, leaving users struggling with many of the same issues they faced a decade ago. That manufacturer ratings have not improved over time, despite technological advancements, demonstrates the need for a new generation of innovative conservation camera traps. Join this group and explore existing efforts, established needs, and what next-generation camera traps might look like - including the integration of AI for data processing through initiatives like Wildlife Insights and Wild Me.
Group Highlights:
Our past Tech Tutors seasons featured multiple episodes for experienced and new camera trappers. How Do I Repair My Camera Traps? featured WILDLABS members Laure Joanny, Alistair Stewart, and Rob Appleby and featured many troubleshooting and DIY resources for common issues.
For camera trap users looking to incorporate machine learning into the data analysis process, Sara Beery's How do I get started using machine learning for my camera traps? is an incredible resource discussing the user-friendly tool MegaDetector.
And for those who are new to camera trapping, Marcella Kelly's How do I choose the right camera trap(s) based on interests, goals, and species? will help you make important decisions based on factors like species, environment, power, durability, and more.
Finally, for an in-depth conversation on camera trap hardware and software, check out the Camera Traps Virtual Meetup featuring Sara Beery, Roland Kays, and Sam Seccombe.
And while you're here, be sure to stop by the camera trap community's collaborative troubleshooting data bank, where we're compiling common problems with the goal of creating a consistent place to exchange tips and tricks!
Header photo: ACEAA-Conservacion Amazonica
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Im a biologist at the National University of Cordoba and I did my final thesis on mammals in a reserve in my province. Also, I´m PM4R Master certificated for BID and I work as a Project Manager at Natura International, an NGO dedicated to the creation of protected areas.
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Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
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Hello everyone. I'm part of a team working on a low-cost, deep-sea camera (BRUVS) project and we're currently facing challenges with our... |
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Camera Traps | 36 seconds ago | |
camtrapR has a function that does what you want. i have not used it myself but it seems straightforward to use and it can run across directories of images:https://jniedballa.... |
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Camera Traps, Data management and processing tools, Open Source Solutions, Software and Mobile Apps | 5 hours 40 minutes ago | |
Hi All,I understand Okala are doing a lot of work with ML and cameratraps, you could try and contact them. |
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AI for Conservation, Camera Traps | 3 days 18 hours ago | |
Hi, our software Deepfaune works with videos. It is trained for the European fauna and try to put all birds in a 'bird' class but it includes a detection stage so at least it... |
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Camera Traps | 4 days 13 hours ago | |
Thank you for the links, Robin. |
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Camera Traps | 2 weeks 1 day ago | |
The two cameras you mention below tick off most of the items in your requirements list. I think the exception is the “timed start” whereby the camera would “wake up” to arm... |
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Camera Traps | 2 weeks 3 days ago | |
Hi Ben,I would be interested to see if the Instant Detect 2.0 camera system might be useful for this.The cameras can transmit thumbnails of the captured images using LoRa radio to... |
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Camera Traps | 2 weeks 4 days ago | |
Hello Sam,What would you say would be the estimate cost was for the first version Instant Detect 1.0 ? That might help my research ? |
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AI for Conservation, Camera Traps, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Sensors | 2 weeks 5 days ago | |
Hi @GermanFore ,I work with the BearID Project on individual identification of brown bears from faces. More recently we worked on face detection across all bear species and ran... |
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AI for Conservation, Camera Traps, Data management and processing tools, Software and Mobile Apps | 1 month ago | |
Hi Jay! Thanks for posting this here as well as your great presentation in the Variety Hour the other day!Cheers! |
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Camera Traps | 1 month 1 week ago | |
For anyone interested: the GBIF guide Best Practices for Managing and Publishing Camera Trap Data is still open for review and feedback until next week. More info can be found in... |
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Autonomous Camera Traps for Insects, Camera Traps | 1 month 1 week ago | |
Hi Maddie,This camera has a very quick reaction time. |
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Camera Traps | 1 month 2 weeks ago |
How do you store your camera traps?
2 June 2022 5:21pm
17 June 2022 4:37pm
I store my Cameras in one gallon plastic bags with a zipper lock. Most cameras will fit in that size bag. There is a note card that goes in the bag, The note card lasts longer in the bag and does not smear which it will if you write on the outside and is very important if you are running a lot of cameras. You can make a nice note card with a word processor and lay out everything you want to note. The Notes can be whatever you want to track but the most useful is the brand and model, the date the camera was purchased, The Date it went into the storage bag, Notes on if the camera has been updated. The camera number, the password if the camera needs a password, The person who put the camera in the bag with their full name and the date, A note on how the camera did on it's last deployment, Camera works fine, YES, or whatever might be wrong is listed. I would also list any special features that the camera can perform, such has WIFI enable, Cell Camera, etc. I also make sure the Cameras number is easy to see on the card. When the cameras go out they should have a camera number on the inside of the camera so you can track it in your field notes and make sure all the bags come back from deployment so they are ready for when the cameras come back in from the field.
The batteries are removed from the camera, When I bring a camera in from the field I test each battery with a battery tester. If all the batteries are still good that information is noted on the bag card that the batteries were tested and their strength. Keeping the batteries with the camera keeps you from mixing batteries of various strengths. Remove any bad batteries and note if a new one has been added. If you decide to replace all the batteries, Note on the card that they are NEW and their strength because all new batteries should be tested to make sure you did not get a bad one. If batteries are not available put that on the Note card, NOTE, removing the batteries will usually require all the settings to be redone, I still put on the note card, CAMERA NEEDS NEW SETTINGS.
I also put in the SD Cards, with SD size on the Camera Card. Some of my older cameras only take a 32 gig or smaller, while my new cameras take 125 Gig SD cards. If putting out a camera for a very long run I want to grab one that can take a large SD card. I usually have two SD cards for each camera so they can be swapped out but keep the same cards. Put on the Camera Card that the SD card should reformatted before the next deployment or you can reformat the SD card before the batteries are removed, but NOTE on the camera card that the SD cards are formatted and ready to go. This is a good idea so you know before storage that the SD cards work.
Last I add one packet of Silica Dry packs. The bags are 5 grams. I use DRY and DRY. I got them in a 50 packet bag from Amazon, about 8 bucks. They are cheap and do a great job of removing all the moisture from the Camera, batteries, SD card, and keeps them dry for even very very long storage.
Hope this helps, when the camera number goes up the more you need to keep them organized.
17 June 2022 4:40pm
I forgot to add, I put the cameras in the bag with the doors or camera halves OPEN so the moisture does not stay in a closed camera, we want everything to stay dry.
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Case Study: Cape Leopard Trust uses WildID to process camera trap image data
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Advice Needed: Camera Trap Occupancy Modeling for Small Data Set
16 March 2022 7:33pm
25 March 2022 5:02pm
I'll take a look into these options, thank you for the advice!
26 March 2022 10:59am
Couple other papers looking at predator-prey interactions with camera trap data & multi-species occupancy models (though you may/probably know about some of them already!) -
Van der Weyde, L. K., Mbisana, C., & Klein, R. (2018). Multi-species occupancy modelling of a carnivore guild in wildlife management areas in the Kalahari. Biological Conservation, 220, 21-28. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0006320717316464.
Murphy, A., Kelly, M. J., Karpanty, S. M., Andrianjakarivelo, V., & Farris, Z. J. (2019). Using camera traps to investigate spatial co‐occurrence between exotic predators and native prey species: a case study from northeastern Madagascar. Journal of Zoology, 307(4), 264-273. https://zslpublications.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jzo.12645.
Kleiven, E. F., Barraquand, F., Gimenez, O., Henden, J. A., Ims, R. A., Soininen, E. M., & Yoccoz, N. G. (2021). A dynamic occupancy model for interacting species with two spatial scales. bioRxiv, 2020-12. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.12.16.423067v2.abstract.
28 March 2022 6:47pm
These are great, thank you!
News: The Latest in Conservation Tech (March 24)

24 March 2022 12:00am
Experience with Microwave Motion Sensors!
23 February 2022 10:22am
16 March 2022 3:07pm
@TomRS @greghall and @htarold my initial (and brief) tests with the microwave sensor (same as this one: https://wiki.dfrobot.com/MicroWave_Sensor_SKU__SEN0192) I have suggest it's really sensitive to movement at fairly close range (~2m or less). Whilst this is impressive (like, it can detect my finger moving a few mm @ ~1-2m), it suggests that in order to avoid a lot of false positives/blank images, a fairly high tolerance or threshold would have to be set in the code. This will take a bit of trial and error to get right I reckon. Even though it has an in-buit potentiometer to toggle 'sensitivity' (equates to distance), even at the lowest setting, which is what I have it at, it's still really sensitive out at several metres. It definitely does appear to have an ability to tell the difference between a 'one off' or superficial movement, and more consistent movement that might be expected when an animal moves through an area. Maybe a combo PIR (interrupt) and microwave sensor (double checks after wakeup) could be a goer...although that could be a bit slow...Anyway, thought I'd share...
20 March 2022 5:20pm
20 March 2022 6:05pm
Thanks @PaulG and @TomRS I've now ordered some of the same model units, so shall hopefully get to test em out soon!
Cheers,
Rob
Apply now: Women in Conservation Technology Programme, Kenya
8 March 2022 12:00am
Introducing the WILDLABS On the Edge Fellows

10 February 2022 12:00am
Comparisons: Close-up Lenses for Camera Traps
9 January 2018 8:49am
14 January 2022 9:34pm
14 January 2022 10:28pm
19 January 2022 11:29am
Wifi trail camera
3 December 2021 8:47pm
16 January 2022 11:41pm
This seems like an eminently sensible thing to try. The main issue I've seen with most wifi cameras is that their antennas are omnidirectional - i.e. they send in every (horizontal) direction, because they don't know where the other wifi endpoint is. That means their signal doesn't go very far, but it's easy to connect. The tplink (and ubiquiti) long range devices have very directional antennas, so their signal is very focussed in that direction, which effectively means it remains quite strong for some distance. They also have to listen for the (more-interesting) return signal though from the wifi camera, and that could cause you grief. However, the highly-directional antenna can pick up fainter signals, from the direction they are pointing at, so it may be ok.
Getting wifi (or any radio signal) over any distance depends a lot on circumstances (distances, terrain, vegetation, weather, interference, ...) so I can't generalise to say this would/wouldn't work. You'd have to try it and see (or get into wifi signal strength measurements and calculations, which you can do with some apps). Some cameras also have removable antennas, so you could replace an omnidirectional (stick) antenna with something much more directional. Or, set up a wifi bridge, with e.g. a ubiquiti point-to-point link, with one end is close to your wifi camera (to pick up its weaker signal) and the other end at the house.
There are plenty of wifi wildlife cameras on ebay, which I understood use their own wifi hotspot to learn how to connect to a broader wifi network - same as the reolink, etc. when you first set them up. Lacking a broader wifi network they might offer their own as a fallback, so you can download while walking by. But I've not tried them, as they are quite expensive, and I have little faith their wifi signal would reach far enough (as per above) for our needs. I'm trying to build my own wildlife cameras now, using esp32cam modules and an external wifi antenna, just waiting on a few more parts :-)
17 January 2022 1:23am
Markusb very true but those camera are not truly wifi, they are a wifi /Bluetooth camera , meaning the create there own wifi network to down load the pics you have to connect to that network.
Now in saying that I have not experimented in writing a code using a programming language to be able to turn on and off wifi or Bluetooth and then turn it back off and tell the code to be able to do this ever two hours or so.
But using a small form factor pc that is connect to a ubiquiti or tplink long range wifi device this is possible to a Bluetooth / wifi trail camera
17 January 2022 2:27am
Ok, understand. Note, the bluetooth feature is very short range, just to configure the camera from your phone when standing nearby. Wifi will give you some longer range and greater bandwidth for image/video downloads. If it is only offering its own wifi network then that is sad, but unsurprising (they try to be very simple/cheap). Doesn't change my point though about the signal strength - if you are trying to get a really long distance (which is "over 100m" on most wifi cameras) then you will need to add something in between. A dedicated NUC/RPi/small-PC would be one option - but your reolink already has a simple PC built in, that offers the remote control and download features and storage to an SD card, etc. You can write your code to talk to that, from your home, using the reolink API/CGI (https://support.reolink.com/hc/en-us/articles/900000625763-What-is-CGI-API). The small PC might still need to handle the "long-distance" wifi link if appropriate for your needs, in which case a ubiquiti/tplink wifi bridge (and a PC at home) might be more cost-effective? That can basically extend the camera's wifi back to your home.
This might need some whiteboarding and actual site-information to optimise :-)
Camera traps and community knowledge in Eastern India

20 December 2021 12:00am
Identification of Wildlife in Camera Trap Images

20 December 2021 12:00am
Feedback Needed: Wireless Camera Traps
4 October 2017 3:33am
16 November 2017 7:14pm
Just be aware of the limitations; you'll be transmitting at a very slow baud rate on frequencies that may have strict duty cycle (transmission time) and ERP (transmission power) limits. Check up on the rules for the region in which you intend to operate and make sure that the restrictions fit in with your intended application.
27 November 2017 5:03pm
The following two papers describe our attempst to develop an open source RPi camera trap platform with long range communications capability, and may be of interest:
Nazir, S., Fairhurst, G., Verdicchio, F., 2017. WiSE - a satellite-based system for remote monitoring. Int. J. Satell. Commun. Netw. 35, 201–214. https://doi.org/10.1002/sat.1176
Nazir, S., Newey, S., Irvine, R.J., Verdicchio, F., Davidson, P., Fairhurst, G., Wal, R. van der, 2017. WiseEye: Next Generation Expandable and Programmable Camera Trap Platform for Wildlife Research. PLoS One 12, e0169758. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0169758
More details can be found here: https://erg.abdn.ac.uk/wise/
/Scott
7 December 2021 5:54pm
Vasudev
I have had no issues using ubiquiti device and pushing internet out to 5 miles line of site, what I am curious what are you using for you camera on the other end, I have always wanted to try and build a long distance wifi trail camera ( true wifi ).
is it solar powered or battery powered that has been my issue trying to figure out the power issue
Cellular and Lora camera traps
20 May 2021 10:51am
21 May 2021 8:36pm
Hi Antoine,
I am intrigued myself about how well a LoRa-based trail camera might work. I wonder if the 'LoRa' element is a more traditional radio connection? And of course the system still appears to rely on a cellular connection at the base station end. But interesting nonetheless.
On the radio side, there's also the CuddeLink model: https://www.cuddeback.com/cuddelink
However, I'd be sitting down when you look at the price.
I've had reasonable success with older model 3G cameras such as the Bolymedia MG983G-30M. From memory, it couldn't transfer video files larger than 10sec in length and it gets a bit glitchy if the batteries are running low. But, it worked well enough for me at the time.
If you do end up looking closer at the 'LoRa' model, please let us know how it works.
Cheers,
Rob
24 May 2021 4:09pm
Hi Antoine,
I had not seen these before, but I'll echo Rob in wondering if the radio links in these are truly what most would consider 'LoRa'. That tech/protocol generally has very low data transfer rates and would be quite challenged in sending pictures. That said, what they call it may not be relevant if it works for you. I would just be cautious of thinking it could integrate with other 'LoRa' devices or networks. Some other web sites that mention this system describe the radio link as 'proprietary'.
Kyler
7 December 2021 4:51pm
Antoineede they are a mesh style of camera, one links to the other and then send pictures back to the home unit where you either send them via cellular or you check the sd card. The cover Lora and cuddielink cameras do this but they play hell on battieries.
I had a cuddelink system and got rid of it , the home unit was to hook up to a pc and then from there you could easily wept a scrip to send to txt message or email etc but they scrapped that idea
Try our open-source automatic camera trap detection/labeling tool!
12 November 2021 8:31pm
1 December 2021 10:37am
This sounds so cool! I will try it out and spread the word.
6 December 2021 5:40pm
Wow, Zamba looks like a great tool. I'm curious about the terms of data use and privacy of the data uploaded to Zamba by users. I couldn't find that info on the website, could you point me in the right direction?
7 December 2021 3:55pm
Hi Morgan! We're currently still working out the exact terms. Are there any specific concerns that you had?
Low-cost underwater camera trapping and deep learning

30 November 2021 12:00am
Technical Difficulties: The Promise and Pitfalls of Machine Learning for Conservation

23 November 2021 12:00am
Caiman: Images as Sources of Intelligence

18 November 2021 12:00am
Technical Difficulties: Pangolin in a Haystack

11 November 2021 12:00am
Mesh camera trap network?
9 April 2017 1:29pm
8 November 2021 9:53am
Hi Capreolus, hi all,
As this thread seems to have come alive again, I thought it might finally be time to share some of the progress that's been made on a LoRa connected camera trap system developed by the Zoological Society of London called Instant Detect 2.0. There are already some blogs on this site about Instant Detect 2.0 so I’ll just focus on the LoRa camera here.
Sending images using an off-the-shelf LoRa module and protocol isn’t possible, so we had to develop our own protocol (MAC and Application layers) from scratch using the LoRa physical layer.
We designed this protocol to meet with EU radio emissions standards and usage restrictions (duty cycles) so that the system can be CE certified, and we have also designed protocol variants for many other countries based on their radio regulations. Our goal is to have variants developed that allow the system to be used legally in every country.
The Instant Detect 2.0 LoRa cameras have now been undergoing testing and optimisation for almost 3 years. The key requirements we have designed for and now have working are:
1. 100% reliable transmission (no images are lost in the ether),
2. maximise range (regardless of terrain and vegetation),
3. maximise speed (this reduces power consumption and on-air time),
4. multiple cameras sending images at once (deconfliction management and queuing),
5. minimise power usage so the whole network can run off batteries (including the base station),
6. easy to set-up by non-technical users (it just works).
The Instant Detect 2.0 system is now undergoing field trials to prove its capabilities and find its limits and if all goes to plan we hope to have it available sometime next year.
8 November 2021 12:44pm
Hi Sam,
I´ve been waiting for your Instant Detect 2.0 .
So great to hear about your progress. Please keep us updated!
Greetings from Austria,
Robin
8 November 2021 1:05pm
Hi Sam,
Impressive! Any chance the LoRa code is open source? I should like to take a gander.
Thanks
Opportunity: Wildlife Connectivity Technician (Seasonal)

3 November 2021 12:00am
Technical Difficulties: Understanding the Realities

13 October 2021 12:00am
Technical Difficulties: A Deployment Checklist

13 October 2021 12:00am
Advice needed: Beginner's Conservation Tech Starter Kit
22 September 2021 6:06pm
5 October 2021 11:52pm
Hey Rob!
Thanks for all the tips! Getting 2 SD cards was a good reminder. I'd put extra batteries on my shopping list, but forgotten an extra SD card. Do you have a recommendation for a minimum SD card size?? I don't have any understanding of how long it'll take one of any size to completely fill up.
I also think I'll try a little of both for video vs. still images, but the majority of it will probably be video to see how the squirrels are behaving/fighting.
And I'm way ahead of you with the picnic table idea. These squirrels will be treated to some very fun props and dining opportunities along the way.
5 October 2021 11:56pm
Hey Harold, that'd be amazing! I'll get in touch for more info, thank you!
8 October 2021 1:02am
Hey Ellie--
Glad to see you getting started with this.
I'll speak to the data-storage question, it might be worth it for you to do something like paying for extra google drive space rather than go through the external hard drive process. That way you're ensuring you don't have to worry about losing your drive or just leaving it at home. It's $30 US for 200GB of space for a year, which is quite reasonable, especially for a single recorder / camera trap.
I'd also make sure you have an SD card reader, and maybe a sealed card holder/wallet to keep data safe while it transitions from the field. How much to budget for batteries will depend on exactly what sensors you end up purchasing but in my experience, ordering high-end alkaline batteries is the best bet (for example, in the Duracell line, their Procell D batteries really do perform better than the normal consumer level coppertop batteries). I'd recommend playing around with the scheduler software for whatever acoustic sensor you end up obtaining to figure out whether you'll be limited by power or storage depending on how you set things up.
Old camera traps go cellular
6 February 2020 12:00pm
27 August 2021 4:30pm
Oh very cool Robin. Do you mind if I ask how much it is for the unit?
27 August 2021 5:43pm
Hi Rob,
prices drop but I payed 88€ for mine.
7 September 2021 5:18pm
Thank Capreolus,
for your feedback, did you try it where the cellular network is weak?
Thank you.
8 June 2022 1:15pm
Hi Erika,
Suggestions coming in over on Twitter: