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
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Natural Resources Engineer. Birdwatcher and citizen science lover, data science enthusiast.
Wanting to learn more ways to use technology for conservation.
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Software developer with a focus on machine learning, my background is in environmental science. In my free time I love going into nature and photographing it. The intersection between wildlife conservation and tech interests me a lot so I'm here to learn more.
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University of Michigan & Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Incoming Assistant Professor and Researcher in Artificial Intelligence for Conservation
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PhD Student at the Post Graduate Programme in Animal Biology at Federal University of Pernambuco. Biologist at the National Centre of Research and Conservation of Aquatic Mammals (ICMBio/CMA).
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São Paulo State University (UNESP)
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World Wide Fund for Nature/ World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
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World Wide Fund for Nature/ World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
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Wildlife conservationist currently working on biodiversity monitoring and community development for AFOLU VCS & CCB projects.
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I am PhD in Wildlife Ecology/Management from PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Pakistan. I have extensive field and lab experience with reptiles, birds, and mammals (10 years). My area of specializations are: wildlife conservation & management, small mammalian survey techniques.
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Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
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Thanks, I grabbed those datasets already. I know about that website, put couldn't quite make sense of it. It says 'open repository', but then there is a login page with no way to... |
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AI for Conservation, Open Source Solutions, Protected Area Management Tools, Drones, Remote Sensing & GIS | 1 day 14 hours ago | |
RealityCapture is now free to use for students, educators, and hobbyists and for companies making less than $1 million USD/year.Best regards!Steffen |
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Drones | 1 week ago | |
Hi Nilaksha,maybe this is interesting too 😉 My free manual 'Drones in Biomonitoring' - https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8077113 can help to get (more) knowledge how to proceed... |
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Drones | 1 week ago | |
Ah, and perhaps have a look at conservationdrone.org 😉 |
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Drones, Human-Wildlife Conflict | 1 week ago | |
Hi all,maybe it helps 😉 My free manual 'Drones in Biomonitoring' - https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8077113 can help to get (more) knowledge how to proceed easily and successfully... |
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Drones, Marine Conservation, Wildlife Crime | 1 week ago | |
Hi all,maybe it helps 😉 My free manual 'Drones in Biomonitoring' - https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8077113 can help to get (more) knowledge how to proceed easily and successfully... |
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Drones | 6 days 20 hours ago | |
Great!!! |
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AI for Conservation, Drones, Emerging Tech, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Wildlife Crime | 2 weeks 2 days ago | |
Thank you for elaborating, @evebohnett ! And for the heads ups! |
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Camera Traps, Drones | 3 months 1 week ago | |
We will be conducting in-person demos of our cutting-edge drone technology in the US this year! 🇺🇸 If you're interested in experiencing... |
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Biologging, Drones, Remote Sensing & GIS, Software and Mobile Apps | 6 months ago | |
Hi Danilo. you seem very passionate about this initiative which is a good start.It is an interesting coincidence that I am starting another project for the coral reefs in the... |
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Acoustics, AI for Conservation, Biologging, Camera Traps, Citizen Science, Climate Change, Community Base, Connectivity, Drones, Emerging Tech, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Open Source Solutions, Sensors, Software and Mobile Apps, Wildlife Crime | 6 months 2 weeks ago | |
Forgot to mention this wildlife drone group - |
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Drones, eDNA & Genomics | 6 months 2 weeks ago | |
Hi, I have used a commercial company for drone work for my PhD and they were willing to give me a significant discount for research purposes. One thing to consider is that in SA a... |
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Drones, East Africa Community | 6 months 2 weeks ago |