An examination of trends in the growing scientific literature on approaching wildlife with drones

Drones or unoccupied aerial vehicles are rapidly being used for a spectrum of applications, including replacing traditional occupied aircraft as a means of approaching wildlife from the air. Though less intrusive to wildlife than occupied aircraft, drones can still cause varying levels of disturbance. Policies and protocols to guide lowest-impact drone flights are most likely to succeed if considerations are derived from knowledge from scientific literature. This study examines trends in the scientific literature on using drones to approach wildlife between 2000 and 2020, specifically in relation to the type of publications, scientific journals works are published in, the purposes of drone flights reported, taxa studied, and locations of studies. From 223 publications, we observed a large increase in relevant scientific literature, the majority of which were peer-reviewed articles published across 87 scientific journals. The largest proportions of peer-reviewed research articles related to aquatic mammals or aquatic birds, and the use or trial of drone flights for conducting population surveys, animal detection or investigations of animal responses to drone flights. The largest proportion of articles were studies conducted in North America and Australia. Since animal responses to drone flights vary between taxa, populations, and geographic locations, we encourage further growth in the volume of relevant scientific literature needed to inform policies and protocols for specific taxa and/or locations, particularly where knowledge gaps exist.

Automated Roadside COW Animal Detection and Collision Prevention System

Automated Roadside COW Animal Detection and Collision Prevention System

Biological Trace Information Extracted from Bioaerosols Using NGS Analysis

Bioaerosols are atmospheric particles with a biological trace, such as viruses, bacteria, fungi, and plant material such as pollen and plant debris. In this study, we analyzed the biological information in bioaerosols using next generation sequencing of the trace DNA. The samples were collected using an Andersen air sampler and separated into two groups according to particulate matter (PM) size: small (PM2.5) and large (PM10). Amplification and sequencing of the bacterial 16S rDNA gene, prokaryotic internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1) region and DNA sequence of a plant chloroplast gene (rbcL) were carried out using several sets of specific primers targeting animal and plant sequences. Lots of bacterial information was detected from the bioaerosols. The most abundant bacteria in several samples were of the Actinobacteria (class), Alphaproteobacteria, Bacilli, and Clostridia. For the animal detection using internal transcribed spacer 1, only uncultured fungi were detected in more than half of the hits, with a high number of Cladosporium sp. in the samples. For the plant identification, the ITS1 information only matched fungal species. However, targeting of the rbcL region revealed diverse plant information, such as Medicago papillosa. In conclusion, traces of bacteria, fungi, and plants could be detected in the bioaerosols, but not of animals using our primers.

SYSTEMS OF ANIMAL DETECTION ON HIGHWAYS. EXPERIENCE OF USA AND EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

Introduction. The experience of the countries of Western Europe and USA was analyzed, the purposes and methods of implementation of wild animals detection systems on highways are developed. Problem statement. The reduction of the natural habitat of wild animals leads to an increase in the number of road accidents. Animal detection systems are aimed at reducing the frequency of collisions between wild animals and vehicles. Purpose. The purpose of the study is to analyze the literature on the effectiveness and evaluation of the implementation of wild animal detection systems; to elaborate sources that describe the history of implementation and experience of foreign countries. Materials and methods. Analysis of foreign sources on the implementation of wild animal detection systems. Results. The analysis of foreign information sources on the implementation of wild animal detection systems was carried out. Conclusions. The experience of the countries of Western Europe and North America is described, the efficiency of implementation of wild animal detection systems is analyzed.

Emerging opportunities for wildlife with sustainable autonomous transportation

Autonomous vehicles (AV) are expected to play a key role in the future of transportation, introducing a disruptive yet potentially beneficial change for vehicle-wildlife interactions. However, this assumption has not been critically examined. Here, we introduce a new conceptual framework covering the intersection between AV technological innovation and wildlife conservation to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions. We suggest future research within this framework to focus on developing robust warning systems and animal detection methods for AV systems, and to incorporate wildlife-vehicle interactions into decision-making algorithms. With large-scale deployment a looming reality, it is vital to incorporate conservation and sustainability into the societal, ethical, and legal implications of AV technology. We appeal for further debate and interdisciplinary collaborations between scientists, developers, and policymakers.