YOU CAN'T PROPERLY DESCRIBE WHAT'S UNDER A ROCK UNLESS YOU LOOK UNDERNEATH IT - a metaphor of course, put it another way, you can't really describe the odour of rose a unless you've smelt it yourself.
Camera traps. We live in a world of opinions. If they're backed up by facts, research, data, experience. looking under rocks and smelling of roses, well, they're great. But give me data, data, data. Love the stuff.
The camera trap is now a vital tool for those who know how to use them. Often called trail cameras (we call them remote cameras or RCs), they are where technology meets nature. Set them up properly and high quality data can be obtained.
At the moment I'm testing three models which send information straight to my inbox as soon as a still image or video is obtained. I'm trying to adapt them to meet upcoming winter Himalayan conditions. The Australian bush is my testing ground. Teeming with wildlife, wonderful. As a wildlife monitoring tool they are fantastic. It takes a fair bit of work to set them up the right way in the right regions but it's worth the effort.
They are also environmental crime fighting tools. Capture the image of a poacher or other environment destroyer and it can lead to an arrest. A successful identification, often possible in village or local community situations can lead to a lot more data. Put a poacher under surveillance. See who he meets. One image can lead to a network of dealers and buyers.
The successful deployment of a camera trap can lead to a long thread of information in wildlife crime and human/wildlife conflict, relationships. Yes, time, training and money have to be invested but it works.
It's just after 5.30am, the birds are singing, light is replacing dark. I've got a three hour walk in the bush to check an RC. Wonder what I'll find...
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