Monitoring Threatened Species and Ecological Communities

(Ben Green) #1

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The technology revolution:


improving species detection and


monitoring using new tools and


statistical methods


José J. Lahoz-Monfort and Reid Tingley

Summary

New and emerging technologies offer great promise to improve our capacity to
monitor threatened species, their habitats and the processes that threaten them.
New technologies may enable more efficient and informative data collection, as
well as improve the way we handle and analyse data. New technologies do,
however, come with associated challenges, including, for example, supplying power
and wireless connectivity and the technical know-how required to design, build, or
maintain these devices. The ultimate test of any new approach is whether it is more
cost-efficient at performing its task than well-tested traditional monitoring
methods. Field pilot studies followed by data analysis are the best way to ascertain

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