Jaguars and ocelots in southern Arizona are being tracked by cameras equipped with motion-detectors.
On land or in water, devices with advanced sensors detect the whereabouts of endangered species
The endangered whales were out there, but the question was where. Researchers from the University of New Hampshire sent robots out into the central Gulf of Maine, just south of Nova Scotia, to find out. The robots are known as gliders: self-driving vehicles in the shape of torpedoes, six-feet long and powered by batteries. They're quiet enough not to let the whales know they're looking for them.
Equipped with sound-detection systems and software that allows the vehicles to classify calls from four species of baleen whales, the gliders are a lower-cost alternative to scouting for whales from ships or airplanes, methods that are limited by rough winds and seas.
Within hours of entering the water, the gliders detected whales and, surfacing to beam information via satellite, reported their findings to researchers on the shore. The information later prompted a U.S. federal agency to create a protection zone for the endangered whales, in which boaters would be asked to slow down to avoid collisions with the animals.
Wildlife cameras with motion detectors and specialized software are enabling researchers to identify and help protect endangered jaguars and ocelots (wild spotted cats also known as "dwarf leopards" for their small size) in the rugged mountain ranges of southern Arizona.
The cameras, placed by University of Arizona researchers, can do what researchers cannot do: stay motionless and quiet for weeks on end until needed. It's a non-invasive system of detection. Over time, up to 240 paired cameras will be set up to take photos of both sides of animals.
The purpose is not only to add to the body of knowledge about the distribution and ecology of these spotted cats, but to help protect endangered species from the effects of enforcement activities along the U.S.-Mexico border — a surprising benefit of the next frontier in technology known as the Industrial Internet.
For more innovation insights, visit www.gereports.ca
This content was produced by The Globe and Mail's advertising department, in consultation with GE. The Globe's editorial department was not involved in its creation.