User-based design specifications for the ultimate camera trap for wildlife research

2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (8) ◽  
pp. 649 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. D. Meek ◽  
A. Pittet

Context The adoption of camera trapping in place of traditional wildlife survey methods has become common despite inherent flaws in equipment and a dearth of research to test their fit for purpose. Overwhelmingly, the development of commercial camera traps has been driven by the needs of North American hunters. Camera-trap models and features are influenced by these market forces that drive the changes in designs as new technologies develop. This focus on recreation, rather than research has often frustrated wildlife professionals as the equipment has rarely met minimum standards for scientific application. Aims We investigated the demand for white-flash camera traps around the world to highlight the demand for such camera traps in wildlife research to the manufacturing industry. We also compiled the camera-trap specifications required by scientists through the world in an effort to influence and improve the quality of camera traps for research. Methods We carried out an internet-based survey of biologists, zoologists, conservationists and other wildlife researchers by using a questionnaire to gather baseline market data on camera-trap use and demand. We also conducted an informal survey of scientists via email and in person, asking for their preferences and features of an ultimate camera-trap design. Key result Infrared camera traps are widely used and more so than white-flash camera traps, although the demand for white flash remains significant. Cost, speed, size, ease of use, versatility and the range of settings were the key features identified in a good camera trap. Conclusions The present paper describes and discusses the desired features and specifications as defined by over 150 scientists using camera traps around the world. Data gathered also provide some insight into the market demand for camera traps by biologists, zoologists, conservationists and other wildlife researchers around the world. These design features are discussed under the guise of the ultimate camera trap for wildlife research, with the disclaimer that no such camera trap currently exists. Implications The information provided in the paper has and will be a useful guide to future camera-trap designs, although it is unlikely that all of the features required will ever be produced in a cheap camera trap.

Author(s):  
Luiz A. Almeida Neto ◽  
Cristiane Guiselini ◽  
Dimas Menezes ◽  
José J. F. Cordeiro Júnior ◽  
Héliton Pandorfi

ABSTRACT Brazil is the largest producer and exporter of sugarcane in the world, and the sugar and ethanol sector has invested in the development of new technologies and methods of planting to meet the market demand. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of sugarcane at the acclimation phase and under field conditions, from pre-sprouted seedlings exposed to supplementary lighting, through light-emitting diode, in the period of acclimation in a greenhouse. The experiment was carried out in Carpina, PE, Brazil, from January to September 2017. The experimental plots were composed of pre-sprouted seedlings acclimated in greenhouse, exposed to the supplementary lighting systems, 90% Red + 10% Blue (R:B 90/10), 80% Red + 20% Blue (R:B 80/20), 70% Red + 30% Blue (R:B 70/30) and a control. The evaluation of seedling growth was performed through the measurement of biometric indicators: plant height (cm); stem length (cm); stem diameter (cm) and number of tillers. The biometric indicators showed no significant differences, but plants under lighting systems with a greater proportion of the red wavelength (R:B 80/20 and R:B 90/10) showed higher percentage of survival in the field.


2016 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul D. Meek ◽  
Karl Vernes

Camera trapping is increasingly recognised as a survey tool akin to conventional small mammal survey methods such as Elliott trapping. While there are many cost and resource advantages of using camera traps, their adoption should not compromise scientific rigour. Rodents are a common element of most small mammal surveys. In 2010 we deployed camera traps to measure whether the endangered Hastings River mouse (Pseudomys oralis) could be detected and identified with an acceptable level of precision by camera traps when similar-looking sympatric small mammals were present. A comparison of three camera trap models revealed that camera traps can detect a wide range of small mammals, although white flash colour photography was necessary to capture characteristic features of morphology. However, the accurate identification of some small mammals, including P. oralis, was problematic; we conclude therefore that camera traps alone are not appropriate for P. oralis surveys, even though they might at times successfully detect them. We discuss the need for refinement of the methodology, further testing of camera trap technology, and the development of computer-assisted techniques to overcome problems associated with accurate species identification.


Animals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 388 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. J. Welbourne ◽  
A. W. Claridge ◽  
D. J. Paull ◽  
F. Ford

Camera-traps are used widely around the world to census a range of vertebrate fauna, particularly mammals but also other groups including birds, as well as snakes and lizards (squamates). In an attempt to improve the reliability of camera-traps for censusing squamates, we examined whether programming options involving time lapse capture of images increased detections. This was compared to detections by camera-traps set to trigger by the standard passive infrared sensor setting (PIR), and camera-traps set to take images using time lapse in combination with PIR. We also examined the effect of camera trap focal length on the ability to tell different species of small squamate apart. In a series of side-by-side field comparisons, camera-traps programmed to take images at standard intervals, as well as through routine triggering of the PIR, captured more images of squamates than camera-traps using the PIR sensor setting alone or time lapse alone. Similarly, camera traps with their lens focal length set at closer distances improved our ability to discriminate species of small squamates. With these minor alterations to camera-trap programming and hardware, the quantity and quality of squamate detections was markedly better. These gains provide a platform for exploring other aspects of camera-trapping for squamates that might to lead to even greater survey advances, bridging the gap in knowledge of this otherwise poorly known faunal group.


2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge A Ahumada ◽  
Eric Fegraus ◽  
Tanya Birch ◽  
Nicole Flores ◽  
Roland Kays ◽  
...  

SummaryWildlife is an essential component of all ecosystems. Most places in the globe do not have local, timely information on which species are present or how their populations are changing. With the arrival of new technologies, camera traps have become a popular way to collect wildlife data. However, data collection has increased at a much faster rate than the development of tools to manage, process and analyse these data. Without these tools, wildlife managers and other stakeholders have little information to effectively manage, understand and monitor wildlife populations. We identify four barriers that are hindering the widespread use of camera trap data for conservation. We propose specific solutions to remove these barriers integrated in a modern technology platform called Wildlife Insights. We present an architecture for this platform and describe its main components. We recognize and discuss the potential risks of publishing shared biodiversity data and a framework to mitigate those risks. Finally, we discuss a strategy to ensure platforms like Wildlife Insights are sustainable and have an enduring impact on the conservation of wildlife.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 496-506
Author(s):  
Carl S. Cloyed ◽  
Laura R. Cappelli ◽  
David A. Tilson ◽  
John A. Crawford ◽  
Anthony I. Dell

Abstract Ecologists are increasing the use of remote technologies in their research, as these methods are less labor intensive than traditional methods and oftentimes minimize the number of human errors. Camera traps can be used to remotely measure abundance and community composition and offer the potential to measure some phenotypic traits, such as body size. We designed a camera-trap setup that enabled us to capture images of both large and small animals and used our camera-trap design to investigate the community composition of mammals and birds and to estimate the biomass of mammals along two transects in a conservation reserve in Missouri. One transect ran from the edge of an agricultural field to an upland forest, and the other transect ran from the edge of a wetland to an upland forest. Over the 4.5-wk study, our cameras recorded 2,245 images that comprised 483 individuals of 16 species of mammals and birds. Coyotes Canis latrans and nine-banded armadillos Dasypus novemcinctus were unique to the riparian transect, as were several bird species. Fewer species used the forest immediately adjacent to the agricultural field, but more species used the forest immediately adjacent to the wetland. Biomass estimates from our camera-trap images were similar to those of published accounts. This is the first study to use camera traps to successfully estimate biomass. We showed that the value and utility of camera traps in wildlife studies and monitoring can be expanded by 1) using multiple cameras at different heights from the ground so as to capture different-sized animals and 2) obtaining phenotypic information of the captured animals.


Oryx ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Rajan Amin ◽  
Hannah Klair ◽  
Tim Wacher ◽  
Constant Ndjassi ◽  
Andrew Fowler ◽  
...  

Abstract Traditional transect survey methods for forest antelopes often underestimate density for common species and do not provide sufficient data for rarer species. The use of camera trapping as a survey tool for medium and large terrestrial mammals has become increasingly common, especially in forest habitats. Here, we applied the distance sampling method to images generated from camera-trap surveys in Dja Faunal Reserve, Cameroon, and used an estimate of the proportion of time animals are active to correct for negative bias in the density estimates from the 24-hour camera-trap survey datasets. We also used multiple covariate distance sampling with body weight as a covariate to estimate detection probabilities and densities of rarer species. These methods provide an effective tool for monitoring the status of individual species or a community of forest antelope species, information urgently needed for conservation planning and action.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1003-1008
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Matsuoka ◽  

In the world auto market, top three companies are VW(Volkswagen), Runault-Nissan-Mistubishi, and Toyota. About some selected countries and areas, China, England, Italy, Australia, Germany, Turkey, Russia, Sweden, USA, Brazil, UAE, Japan, Vietnam and Thailand are more competitive. However, the situation is different. Seeing monopolistic market countries and areas, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Korea, Malaysia, France, India, and Pakistan, in particular, the influence of Japan to Taiwan, India, and Pakistan is very big. But in Korea and France, their own companies’ brands occupy the market. In Japan domestic market, the overall situation is competitive. Almost all vehicles made in Japan are Japanese brand. From now on, we have to note the development of electric vehicle (EV) and other new technologies such as automatic driving and connected car. That is because they will give a great impact on the auto industry and market of Japan. Now Japan’s auto industry is going to be consolidated into three groups, Honda, Toyota group, and Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi group for seeking the scale merit of economy. Therefore, I will pay attention to the worldwide development of EV and other new technologies and the reorganization of auto companies groups.


Author(s):  
Peter Hoar

Kia ora and welcome to the second issue of BackStory. The members of the Backstory Editorial Team were gratified by the encouraging response to the first issue of the journal. We hope that our currentreaders enjoy our new issue and that it will bring others to share our interest in and enjoyment of the surprisingly varied backstories of New Zealand’s art, media, and design history. This issue takes in a wide variety of topics. Imogen Van Pierce explores the controversy around the Hundertwasser Art Centre and Wairau Māori Art Gallery to be developed in Whangarei. This project has generated debate about the role of the arts and civic architecture at both the local and national levels. This is about how much New Zealanders are prepared to invest in the arts. The value of the artist in New Zealand is also examined by Mark Stocker in his article about the sculptor Margaret Butler and the local reception of her work during the late 1930s. The cultural cringe has a long genealogy. New Zealand has been photographed since the 1840s. Alan Cocker analyses the many roles that photography played in the development of local tourism during the nineteenth century. These images challenged notions of the ‘real’ and the ‘artificial’ and how new technologies mediated the world of lived experience. Recorded sound was another such technology that changed how humans experienced the world. The rise of recorded sound from the 1890s affected lives in many ways and Lewis Tennant’s contribution captures a significant tipping point in this medium’s history in New Zealand as the transition from analogue to digital sound transformed social, commercial and acoustic worlds. The New Zealand Woman’s Weekly celebrates its 85th anniversary this year but when it was launched in 1932 it seemed tohave very little chance of success. Its rival, the Mirror, had dominated the local market since its launch in 1922. Gavin Ellis investigates the Depression-era context of the Woman’s Weekly and how its founders identified a gap in the market that the Mirror was failing to fill. The work of the photographer Marti Friedlander (1908-2016) is familiar to most New Zealanders. Friedlander’s 50 year career and huge range of subjects defy easy summary. She captured New Zealanders, their lives, and their surroundings across all social and cultural borders. In the journal’s profile commentary Linda Yang celebrates Freidlander’s remarkable life and work. Linda also discusses some recent images by Friedlander and connects these with themes present in the photographer’s work from the 1960s and 1970s. The Backstory editors hope that our readers enjoy this stimulating and varied collection of work that illuminate some not so well known aspects of New Zealand’s art, media, and design history. There are many such stories yet to be told and we look forward to bringing them to you.


2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 77
Author(s):  
Mehmet Ragıp KALELİOGLU

:Ensuring competition in global economy, the production of high value products within the country and the reduction of current budget deficit; in other words, increasing the output of industries manufacturing intermediate goods and end products, which have high import dependency, are major targets of Turkey. The state of technological infrastructure of manufacturing industry in the country as well as the process of change that the industry undergoes are essential for the realization of these targets. New technologies play an important role in the competitiveness and economic development of cities, region and the country in the international market. In particular, the use of new technologies in manufacturing industry and companies’ capacity for innovation are prerequisites for businesses to enter a tougher competition in the global economy as well as for cities and countries to persevere on the larger scale. In this respect, the main purpose of this study is to examine the technological transformation of the manufacturing industry in Gaziantep, which is positioned in the top five among Turkey's exports and employs a considerable work force, in comparison to the technological change experienced by the manufacturing industry in Turkey. In the study, the technological level of manufacturing industry in Turkey and the technological change process of manufacturing industry in Gaziantep are presented between 2009-2016 with key indicators. The findings of this study reveal that the current level of technology the city of Gaziantep manufacturing industry has had is far behind the level Turkish manufacturing industry has reached.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 125-133
Author(s):  
S. V. Shchurina ◽  
A. S. Danilov

The subject of the research is the introduction of artificial intelligence as a technological innovation into the Russian economic development. The relevance of the problem is due to the fact that the Russian market of artificial intelligence is still in the infancy and the necessity to bridge the current technological gap between Russia and the leading economies of the world is coming to the forefront. The financial sector, the manufacturing industry and the retail trade are the drivers of the artificial intelligence development. However, company managers in Russia are not prepared for the practical application of expensive artificial intelligence technologies. Under these circumstances, the challenge is to develop measures to support high-tech projects of small and medium-sized businesses, given that the technological innovation considered can accelerate the development of the Russian economy in the energy sector fully or partially controlled by the government as well as in the military-industrial complex and the judicial system.The purposes of the research were to examine the current state of technological innovations in the field of artificial intelligence in the leading countries and Russia and develop proposals for improving the AI application in the Russian practices.The paper concludes that the artificial intelligence is a breakthrough technology with a great application potential. Active promotion of the artificial intelligence in companies significantly increases their efficiency, competitiveness, develops industry markets, stimulates introduction of new technologies, improves product quality and scales up manufacturing. In general, the artificial intelligence gives a new impetus to the development of Russia and facilitates its entry into the five largest world’s economies.


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