scholarly journals Behaviour Classification on Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) Using Machine Learning Algorithms on Triaxial Acceleration Data of Two Commonly Used GPS Devices and Its Possible Application for Their Management and Conservation

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (6) ◽  
pp. 2229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefanie Brandes ◽  
Florian Sicks ◽  
Anne Berger
Keyword(s):  
Body Movement ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
Gps Tracking ◽  
Giraffa Camelopardalis ◽  
Wildlife Tracking ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Gps Devices ◽  
Free Ranging

Averting today’s loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services can be achieved through conservation efforts, especially of keystone species. Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) play an important role in sustaining Africa’s ecosystems, but are ‘vulnerable’ according to the IUCN Red List since 2016. Monitoring an animal’s behavior in the wild helps to develop and assess their conservation management. One mechanism for remote tracking of wildlife behavior is to attach accelerometers to animals to record their body movement. We tested two different commercially available high-resolution accelerometers, e-obs and Africa Wildlife Tracking (AWT), attached to the top of the heads of three captive giraffes and analyzed the accuracy of automatic behavior classifications, focused on the Random Forests algorithm. For both accelerometers, behaviors of lower variety in head and neck movements could be better predicted (i.e., feeding above eye level, mean prediction accuracy e-obs/AWT: 97.6%/99.7%; drinking: 96.7%/97.0%) than those with a higher variety of body postures (such as standing: 90.7–91.0%/75.2–76.7%; rumination: 89.6–91.6%/53.5–86.5%). Nonetheless both devices come with limitations and especially the AWT needs technological adaptations before applying it on animals in the wild. Nevertheless, looking at the prediction results, both are promising accelerometers for behavioral classification of giraffes. Therefore, these devices when applied to free-ranging animals, in combination with GPS tracking, can contribute greatly to the conservation of giraffes.

scholarly journals Feasibility of Using Floor Vibration to Detect Human Falls

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 200
Author(s):  
Yu Shao ◽  
Xinyue Wang ◽  
Wenjie Song ◽  
Sobia Ilyas ◽  
Haibo Guo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Human Body ◽  
Nearest Neighbor ◽  
Body Movement ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
Recognition System ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
K Nearest Neighbor ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Floor Vibration

With the increasing aging population in modern society, falls as well as fall-induced injuries in elderly people become one of the major public health problems. This study proposes a classification framework that uses floor vibrations to detect fall events as well as distinguish different fall postures. A scaled 3D-printed model with twelve fully adjustable joints that can simulate human body movement was built to generate human fall data. The mass proportion of a human body takes was carefully studied and was reflected in the model. Object drops, human falling tests were carried out and the vibration signature generated in the floor was recorded for analyses. Machine learning algorithms including K-means algorithm and K nearest neighbor algorithm were introduced in the classification process. Three classifiers (human walking versus human fall, human fall versus object drop, human falls from different postures) were developed in this study. Results showed that the three proposed classifiers can achieve the accuracy of 100, 85, and 91%. This paper developed a framework of using floor vibration to build the pattern recognition system in detecting human falls based on a machine learning approach.

scholarly journals Understanding Smartwatch Battery Utilization in the Wild

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (13) ◽  
pp. 3784 ◽  
Author(s):  
Morteza Homayounfar ◽  
Amirhossein Malekijoo ◽  
Aku Visuri ◽  
Chelsea Dobbins ◽  
Ella Peltonen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Binary Classification ◽  
Classification Problem ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
Indexing Method ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Art Research ◽  
Battery Discharge ◽  
Changes Over Time ◽  
Application Developers

Smartwatch battery limitations are one of the biggest hurdles to their acceptability in the consumer market. To our knowledge, despite promising studies analyzing smartwatch battery data, there has been little research that has analyzed the battery usage of a diverse set of smartwatches in a real-world setting. To address this challenge, this paper utilizes a smartwatch dataset collected from 832 real-world users, including different smartwatch brands and geographic locations. First, we employ clustering to identify common patterns of smartwatch battery utilization; second, we introduce a transparent low-parameter convolutional neural network model, which allows us to identify the latent patterns of smartwatch battery utilization. Our model converts the battery consumption rate into a binary classification problem; i.e., low and high consumption. Our model has 85.3% accuracy in predicting high battery discharge events, outperforming other machine learning algorithms that have been used in state-of-the-art research. Besides this, it can be used to extract information from filters of our deep learning model, based on learned filters of the feature extractor, which is impossible for other models. Third, we introduce an indexing method that includes a longitudinal study to quantify smartwatch battery quality changes over time. Our novel findings can assist device manufacturers, vendors and application developers, as well as end-users, to improve smartwatch battery utilization.

Evaluation of Interstate Work Zone Mobility using Probe Vehicle Data and Machine Learning Techniques

2019 ◽  
Vol 2673 (2) ◽  
pp. 811-822 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsen Kamyab ◽  
Stephen Remias ◽  
Erfan Najmi ◽  
Kerrick Hood ◽  
Mustafa Al-Akshar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Machine Learning ◽  
Machine Learning Algorithms ◽  
Work Zone ◽  
Third Party ◽  
Machine Learning Techniques ◽  
Work Zones ◽  
Vehicle Data ◽  
Gps Devices ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact

According to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), US work zones on freeways account for nearly 24% of nonrecurring freeway delays and 10% of overall congestion. Historically, there have been limited scalable datasets to investigate the specific causes of congestion due to work zones or to improve work zone planning processes to characterize the impact of work zone congestion. In recent years, third-party data vendors have provided scalable speed data from Global Positioning System (GPS) devices and cell phones which can be used to characterize mobility on all roadways. Each work zone has unique characteristics and varying mobility impacts which are predicted during the planning and design phases, but can realistically be quite different from what is ultimately experienced by the traveling public. This paper uses these datasets to introduce a scalable Work Zone Mobility Audit (WZMA) template. Additionally, the paper uses metrics developed for individual work zones to characterize the impact of more than 250 work zones varying in length and duration from Southeast Michigan. The authors make recommendations to work zone engineers on useful data to collect for improving the WZMA. As more systematic work zone data are collected, improved analytical assessment techniques, such as machine learning processes, can be used to identify the factors that will predict future work zone impacts. The paper concludes by demonstrating two machine learning algorithms, Random Forest and XGBoost, which show historical speed variation is a critical component when predicting the mobility impact of work zones.

scholarly journals Rapid Detection of Serum Antibody by Dual-Path Platform VetTB Assay in White-Tailed Deer Infected with Mycobacterium bovis

2013 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 907-911 ◽  
Author(s):  
Konstantin P. Lyashchenko ◽  
Rena Greenwald ◽  
Javan Esfandiari ◽  
Daniel J. O'Brien ◽  
Stephen M. Schmitt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Diagnostic Accuracy ◽  
Mycobacterium Bovis ◽  
Skin Testing ◽  
Serum Antibody ◽  
Antibody Responses ◽  
Antibody Detection ◽  
Serum Samples ◽  
Content Type ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Free Ranging

ABSTRACTBovine tuberculosis (TB) in cervids remains a significant problem affecting farmed herds and wild populations. Traditional skin testing has serious limitations in certain species, whereas emerging serological assays showed promising diagnostic performance. The recently developed immunochromatographic dual-path platform (DPP) VetTB assay has two antigen bands, T1 (MPB83 protein) and T2 (CFP10/ESAT-6 fusion protein), for antibody detection. We evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of this test by using serum samples collected from groups of white-tailed deer experimentally inoculated withMycobacterium bovis,M. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosis, orM. bovisBCG Pasteur. In addition, we used serum samples from farmed white-tailed deer in herds with no history of TB, as well as from free-ranging white-tailed deer culled during field surveillance studies performed in Michigan known to have bovine TB in the wild deer population. The DPP VetTB assay detected antibody responses in 58.1% of experimentally infected animals within 8 to 16 weeks postinoculation and in 71.9% of naturally infected deer, resulting in an estimated test sensitivity of 65.1% and a specificity of 97.8%. The higher seroreactivity found in deer with naturally acquiredM. bovisinfection was associated with an increased frequency of antibody responses to the ESAT-6 and CFP10 proteins, resulting in a greater contribution of these antigens, in addition to MPB83, to the detection of seropositive animals, compared with experimentalM. bovisinfection. Deer experimentally inoculated with eitherM. aviumsubsp.paratuberculosisorM. bovisBCG Pasteur did not produce cross-reactive antibodies that could be detected by the DPP VetTB assay. The present findings demonstrate the relatively high diagnostic accuracy of the DPP VetTB test for white-tailed deer, especially in the detection of naturally infected animals.

scholarly journals Treatment of a forelimb fracture and rehabilitation of a free-ranging Iberian Wolf (Canis lupus signatus)

2016 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
pp. 412-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filipe C. Silva ◽  
Roberto F. Sargo ◽  
Luís C. Sousa ◽  
Helena Rio-Maior ◽  
Ricardo Brandão ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Canis Lupus ◽  
Wound Management ◽  
Long Bone ◽  
Operative Care ◽  
Wildlife Tracking ◽  
Osteosynthesis Plate ◽  
The Right ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Canis Lupus Signatus ◽  
Iberian Wolf

Abstract: The surgical treatment of an exposed compounded comminuted fracture of the right radius and ulna in a free-ranging adult female Iberian Wolf (Canis lupus signatus) with an osteosynthesis plate and screws and subsequent post-operative care are described. The evolution of the fracture healing was very similar to those expected in a dog of the same size. The prompt surgical intervention and a proper housing, feeding and wound management adapted to a free-ranging wolf, in view to reduce manipulation and post-operative complications, allowed the subsequent rehabilitation and release of the animal. After 10th post-operative weeks the wolf was fitted with a Global Positioning System (GPS) for wildlife tracking collar and released in the same area where it has been caught. GPS telemetry data showed that the animal covered increasingly large distances confirming a complete functionality of the right thoracic limb and its successfully return to the wild. This report could constitute the first detailed report of a long bone fracture treatment in a free-ranging wolf and its successfully rehabilitation, release and adaptation to the wild.

scholarly journals Assessing the Species in the CARES Preservation Program and the Role of Aquarium Hobbyists in Freshwater Fish Conservation

Fishes ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Jose W. Valdez ◽  
Kapil Mandrekar
Keyword(s):  
Freshwater Fish ◽  
Wild Species ◽  
Information Exchange ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Red List ◽  
Priority List ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Conservation Organizations

Freshwater fish represent half of all fish species and are the most threatened vertebrate group. Given their considerable passion and knowledge, aquarium hobbyists can play a vital role in their conservation. CARES is made up of many organizations, whose purpose is to encourage aquarium hobbyists to devote tank space to the most endangered and overlooked freshwater fish to ensure their survival. We found the CARES priority list contains nearly six hundred species from twenty families and two dozen extinct-in-the-wild species. The major families were typically those with the largest hobbyist affiliations such as killifish, livebearers, and cichlids, the latter containing half of CARES species. CARES included every IUCN threatened species of Pseudomugilidae and Valenciidae, but only one percent of threatened Characidae, Cobitidae, and Gobiidae species. No Loricariidae in CARES were in the IUCN red list as they have not been scientifically described. Tanzania and Mexico contained the largest amount of species, with the latter containing the most endemics. Many species were classified differently than the IUCN, including a third of extinct-in-the-wild species classified as least concern by the IUCN. This vast disconnect exemplifies the importance of future collaboration and information exchange required between hobbyists, the scientific community, and conservation organizations.

scholarly journals The decline of the endemic Fijian crested iguana Brachylophus vitiensis in the Yasawa and Mamanuca archipelagos, western Fiji

Oryx ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter S. Harlow ◽  
Martin Fisher ◽  
Marika Tuiwawa ◽  
Pita N. Biciloa ◽  
Jorge M. Palmeirim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Loss ◽  
Forest Fires ◽  
Population Decline ◽  
Forest Degradation ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Red List ◽  
Critically Endangered ◽  
Introduced Predators ◽  
Free Ranging

The endemic Fijian crested iguana Brachylophus vitiensis, categorized as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, has been recorded from several islands in western Fiji. We conducted a survey for the crested iguana on 12 uninhabited and five inhabited islands in the Yasawa and Mamanuca archipelagos of western Fiji in September 2000. Night searches for sleeping iguanas along a total of 11.2 km of forest transects suggest that crested iguanas are either extremely rare or extinct on all of these islands. Although we collectively searched a total of 44 km of transect over 123 person hours, we located crested iguanas on only four islands: three small uninhabited islands (all <73 ha) and one large inhabited island (22 km). In July 2003 we resurveyed two islands identified as having the best potential for the long-term conservation of crested iguanas, and found that populations were continuing to decline. We suggest that the scarcity of crested iguanas on all islands surveyed is due to the combination of habitat loss and the introduction of exotic predators. All islands surveyed have free ranging goats, forest fires have occurred repeatedly over the last few decades, and feral cats are established on many islands. To reverse the population decline of this species immediate intervention is required on selected islands to halt continuing forest degradation and to clarify the effects of introduced predators.

Serum concentrations of amino acids, fatty acids, lipoproteins, vitamins A and E, and minerals in apparently healthy, free-ranging southern giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis giraffe)

Zoo Biology ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debra A. Schmidt ◽  
Ray L. Ball ◽  
Douw Grobler ◽  
Mark R. Ellersieck ◽  
Mark E. Griffin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Fatty Acids ◽  
Serum Concentrations ◽  
Giraffa Camelopardalis ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Apparently Healthy

scholarly journals Habituating the great apes: the disease risks

Oryx ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael H. Woodford ◽  
Thomas M. Butynski ◽  
William B. Karesh
Keyword(s):  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Great Apes ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Human Diseases ◽  
Illegal Hunting ◽  
Civil Unrest ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Disease Risks ◽  
International Visitors

All six great apes, gorillas Gorilla gorilla and G. beringei, chimpanzees Pan troglodytes and P. paniscus, and orang-utans Pongo pygmaeus and P. abelii, are categorized as Endangered on the 2000 IUCN Red List and face many threats to their continued existence in the wild. These threats include loss of habitat to settlement, logging and agriculture, illegal hunting for bushmeat and traditional medicine, the live ape trade, civil unrest and infectious diseases. The great apes are highly susceptible to many human diseases, some of which can be fatal while others can cause marked morbidity. There is increasing evidence that diseases can be transmitted from humans to free-living habituated apes, sometimes with serious consequences. If protective measures are not improved, ape populations that are frequently in close contact with people will eventually be affected by the inadvertent transmission of human diseases. This paper describes the risks, sources and circumstances of infectious disease transmission from humans to great apes during and consequent upon habituation for tourism and research. A major problem is that the regulations that protect habituated apes from the transmission of disease from people are often poorly enforced. Suggestions are made for improving the enforcement of existing regulations governing ape-based tourism, and for minimizing the risk of disease transmission between humans, both local people and international visitors, and the great apes.

scholarly journals The changing fates of the world's mammals

2011 ◽  
Vol 366 (1578) ◽  
pp. 2598-2610 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Hoffmann ◽  
Jerrold L. Belant ◽  
Janice S. Chanson ◽  
Neil A. Cox ◽  
John Lamoreux ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Extinction Risk ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Red List ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
International Union ◽  
The Status ◽  
Conservation Actions ◽  
In The Wild

A recent complete assessment of the conservation status of 5487 mammal species demonstrated that at least one-fifth are at risk of extinction in the wild. We retrospectively identified genuine changes in extinction risk for mammals between 1996 and 2008 to calculate changes in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List Index (RLI). Species-level trends in the conservation status of mammalian diversity reveal that extinction risk in large-bodied species is increasing, and that the rate of deterioration has been most accelerated in the Indomalayan and Australasian realms. Expanding agriculture and hunting have been the main drivers of increased extinction risk in mammals. Site-based protection and management, legislation, and captive-breeding and reintroduction programmes have led to improvements in 24 species. We contextualize these changes, and explain why both deteriorations and improvements may be under-reported. Although this study highlights where conservation actions are leading to improvements, it fails to account for instances where conservation has prevented further deteriorations in the status of the world's mammals. The continued utility of the RLI is dependent on sustained investment to ensure repeated assessments of mammals over time and to facilitate future calculations of the RLI and measurement against global targets.

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