Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #CameraTraps
Most recents (12)
Do you use #CameraTraps for wildlife abundance? Do you feel intimidated by the complex models & codes that statisticians come up with to help design & analyze camera trap data?
If your answer is yes to any of the above, follow this thread with a new resource that is pure gold:
If your answer is yes to any of the above, follow this thread with a new resource that is pure gold:
Spatial Capture Recapture (#SCR) co-developer @david_borchers and fellow @indurbach with @statsStAndrews have created a fabulous website with online training material to help get started with spatial capture-recapture (SCR) methods, with a focus on camera traps.
With simple, intuitive navigation, the site has three sections:
1. Software
2. Training videos
3. Other resources
While there are a few books on #SCR, remember the method has undergone rapid development during the last decade, making it daunting to keep pace...
1. Software
2. Training videos
3. Other resources
While there are a few books on #SCR, remember the method has undergone rapid development during the last decade, making it daunting to keep pace...
Density is the gold standard of #cameratrap monitoring. But it’s famously hard to estimate, & has only been done before 1 species at a time.
We developed a multi-species Random Encounter Model (REM) to allow density estimation for a species community 🧵
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.111…
We developed a multi-species Random Encounter Model (REM) to allow density estimation for a species community 🧵
besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.111…
Why is this useful?
Managers, conservationists and, of course, community ecologists are often interested in multiple species at once. E.g. because they’d like to know the density of both predator & prey. Or simply for a more holistic understanding of the status of biodiversity.
Managers, conservationists and, of course, community ecologists are often interested in multiple species at once. E.g. because they’d like to know the density of both predator & prey. Or simply for a more holistic understanding of the status of biodiversity.
Typical methods for density estimation, based on capture-recapture (CR), are reliant on distinctive markings 🐅🐆🦓. But most species are 'unmarked' - they cannot be individually ID’d 🦌🐗🦘🐃🦨🐿️🐇🐪🐐🐎. So we know we can't do multi-species density estimation using CR.
Have you ever thought about how we monitor #wildlife? In this thread🧵 I will explain my #PhDthesis
#CREAF20K #cameratraps #mammals #conservation
#CREAF20K #cameratraps #mammals #conservation
Traditional methods of studying wildlife were based on direct observation of animals🧐🔭.
However, the technological boom of recent decades has also changed the way of monitoring wildlife. Do you want to know how?
Keyword is #cameratrap 📸!!
However, the technological boom of recent decades has also changed the way of monitoring wildlife. Do you want to know how?
Keyword is #cameratrap 📸!!
#Cameratraps are remotely activated cameras by an infrared sensor. When an animal passes in front of them, they record photos. Cameras operate with batteries and SD cards, we can place them in remote areas. Finally, animals don't react to them and showed their habitual behaviour
But this is only part of the #bilby story. How did #bilbies behave once they were released into the Taronga #sanctuary, and did this affect overall success? To find out, we attached GPS devices & radio-transmitters to bilbies to track their movements post-release. #ScienceWeek
GPS devices collected incredibly detailed data on nightly #bilby movements, and radio-transmitters allowed us to locate #bilbies underground during the day. This track shows how bilby “Charlie” used the sanctuary just after release
Tracking data revealed hidden #bilby behaviours, such as their little-known social lives! It turns out that #bilbies have quite complex #socialnetworks and that bilby sociality may help explain some of the story behind their post-release success.
Once #feralpests were removed and undetected on #cameratraps or other surveys in the Taronga Western Plains Zoo sanctuary for some time, it was time to cut the ribbon, and the apron strings, and release the #bilby founders. #ScienceWeek
Of course, all #bilbies underwent thorough health checks with the Taronga Western Plains Zoo veterinary professionals prior to release. #WildlifeHealth
“Allow me to reintroduce myself”… some #bilbies were super keen to get on with the program, digging out of the pre-release yard into the #sanctuary. Fortunately, their radio-transmitters allowed the team to locate, catch and return them, ready for the official release.
A flagship project for Taronga is the greater #bilby #conservation breeding program at Taronga Western Plains Zoo in #Dubbo, which is a collaboration with multiple partners, including the @NSWDPIE #SavingOurSpecies program. #ScienceWeek
While the ultimate aim is securing the species in the wild, producing animals fit #ForTheWild and a sanctuary fit to house them in, constitutes a significant amount of the work towards achieving this goal.
To prepare for the #bilby release, introduced predators (#foxes) and herbivores (#rabbits) were detected, removed, and excluded from the 110ha fenced #sanctuary. Detection involved #cameratraps, track plates, and thermal cameras
Through the Myall Lakes Dingo Project, Taronga’s #science team are quickly developing an understanding of the #dingo population. #MyallLakesNationalPark, a beautiful coastal area, has a very pure dingo population of high #conservation value. #ScienceWeek PC: Bobby-Jo Vial
Using GPS #radiocollars to keep up with packs, and a comprehensive photo identification library, the team tracks the movements and fortunes of many individuals across several packs. #Dingo pelage patterns, particularly the socks and chest blaze, identifies individuals.
We draw these distinctive features on our #dingo ID cards, and use photograph reference photos to identify them. The team are working on making an identikit publicly available, but for now here’s an example for UOM1701 (aka “Bombah Boy”), the dominant male in the Mungo Brush Pack
**NEW PAPER ALERT** 'Road effect mitigation promotes connectivity and reduces mortality at the population level'. #turtles #snakes #amphibians #roadecology @OntarioParks @PresquilePP
Road mortality is a major threat to reptile and amphibian populations. Using a 6-year paired BACI design, we tested if roadside fencing and tunnels beneath the road would reduce road mortality rates of reptiles and amphibians.
We found that road mortality was reduced for turtles and amphibians compared to our control site- great! However, we found no effect of the mitigation on snake mortality - not good!
We use #Tech4Wildlife for our project developing automated methods of individual ID for brown bears and other wildlife. We use a combination of #cameratrapping, visual observations, and #machinelearning with collaborative partnerships to make this happen. @WILDLABSNET 1/
Despite the pandemic, 2020 has been a big year for our project. Our wonderful partners @knightinlet @wildbearlodge @nanwakolas took a central role in getting #cameratraps up and running for the field season. #Tech4Wildlife @WILDLABSNET 2/
We conducted some testing of our BearID software in real time using @Docker and the help of some #grizzlybears. We are using a population of bears that have been studied for >20yrs to assess the robustness of our #DeepLearning models. #Tech4Wildlife @WILDLABSNET 3/
Check out our paper today at #CVPR2020 🎉🎉🎉
cvpr20.com/event/context-…
Context R-CNN: Long Term Temporal Context for Per Camera Object Detection
Come ask questions at the live Q&As!
First session: June 18, 3-5 PM PDT
Second session: June 19, 3-5 AM PDT
Our @CVPR spotlight vid:
cvpr20.com/event/context-…
Context R-CNN: Long Term Temporal Context for Per Camera Object Detection
Come ask questions at the live Q&As!
First session: June 18, 3-5 PM PDT
Second session: June 19, 3-5 AM PDT
Our @CVPR spotlight vid:
In static cameras (like #cameratraps), relevant context for identifying objects can be spread out across long time horizons. For example, these two images come from the same camera and are uncannily similar, but they were taken a month apart! Turns out animals are pretty habitual
We propose a simple and flexible method for aggregating context from up to a month of data, using attention! We first build an (unsupervised) “memory bank” for each location. We add context for each object by finding features in the memory bank that help us identify that object.
You hear lots of people saying that #cameratraps are great. But just how do they stack up to rival methods (line transects, live traps, detector dogs, eDNA etc)? We had a go at answering this question using available data. 1/n
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rs…
(📷 @Carolina_ASN)
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rs…
(📷 @Carolina_ASN)
First step: we read a tonne of papers (systematically, mind). From thousands of studies, we whittled it down to 104 studies that yielded insights on camera traps vs other sampling methods. It’s obvious from the start: we realllly need more studies on this to be done. 2/n
Next we summarised what the authors of each study had concluded (if anything) about the relative effectiveness of camera traps vs other methods. We also like proper data (ouch), so as well as mushy qualitative data we extracted quantitative data (e.g. # species detected). 3/n
Camera traps are used to record wildlife in it’s natural environment, they are designed to be unobtrusive and cause minimal disturbance but its quite clear they are noticed by animals 1/n #CameraTrapTuesday #cameratrap
Though many have a camouflage design even an infra-red and ‘low-glow’ flash is still very visible + human scent around a camera site can make animals wary. Animals may react strongly to a camera when it is first put in place, but become accustomed to its presence over time 2/n
Depending on what you want from a camera this curious behaviour may not be a problem as animals stay in shot longer, allowing clearer images and videos to be taken which are great for sharing and can help with individual ID! 3/n #fox #cameratraps
