Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Using Drones with Thermal Imaging to Estimate Population Counts of European Hare (Lepus europaeus) in Denmark

Peter Povlsen
ORCID logo ,
Anne Cathrine Linder
* ,
Hanne Lyngholm Larsen
ORCID logo ,
Petar Durdevic
ORCID logo ,
Daniel Ortiz Arroyo
,
Dan Bruhn
ORCID logo ,
Cino Pertoldi
ORCID logo ,
Sussie Pagh
Version 1 : Received: 19 October 2022 / Approved: 20 October 2022 / Online: 20 October 2022 (11:35:55 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Povlsen, P.; Linder, A.C.; Larsen, H.L.; Durdevic, P.; Arroyo, D.O.; Bruhn, D.; Pertoldi, C.; Pagh, S. Using Drones with Thermal Imaging to Estimate Population Counts of European Hare (Lepus europaeus) in Denmark. Drones 2023, 7, 5. Povlsen, P.; Linder, A.C.; Larsen, H.L.; Durdevic, P.; Arroyo, D.O.; Bruhn, D.; Pertoldi, C.; Pagh, S. Using Drones with Thermal Imaging to Estimate Population Counts of European Hare (Lepus europaeus) in Denmark. Drones 2023, 7, 5.

Abstract

Drones equipped with thermal cameras have recently become readily available, broadening the possibilities for monitoring wildlife. The European hare (Lepus europaeus) is a nocturnal mammal that is closely monitored in Denmark due to populations declining since the mid-1900s. The limitations of current population assessment methods, such as spotlight counts and hunting game statistics, could be overcome by relying on drone surveys with thermal imaging for population counts. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of a DJI Mavic 2 Enterprise Advanced drone with thermal imaging as a tool for monitoring the Danish hare population. Multiple test flights were conducted over agricultural areas in Denmark in spring 2022, testing various flight altitudes, camera settings, and recording methods. The test flights were used to suggest a method for identifying and counting hare. The applied use of this methodology was then evaluated through a case survey that had the aim of identifying and counting hare over an agricultural area of 242 ha. Hare could be detected with thermal imaging at flight altitudes up to 80 m and it was possible to fly as low as 40 m without observing direct behavior changes. Thermal images taken at these altitudes also provided enough detail to differentiate between species and animal body size proved to be a good species indicator. The case study confirmed the use of thermal imaging based drone surveys to identify hare and conduct population counts, thus, indicating the suggested methodology as a viable alternative to traditional counting methods.

Keywords

Wildlife monitoring; UAV; unmanned aerial vehicle; aerial survey; population ecology; conservation biology; animal behavior; wildlife management

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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