That faint buzzing you can hear is the sound of endangered animals being saved from extinction. It’s the sound of invasive species being turned back from a damaging incursion. And it’s the sound of livestock being monitored across the farmlands of the future. 

It’s the sound of one tool that has revolutionised the art of animal radio-tracking. The delivery of radio-tracking technology via drones is a budding concept whose full impact is still unfolding. But already, drones have allowed unprecedented wildlife conservation efforts, benefiting both the animals under surveillance and the researchers behind it.

This world-first technology developed by Wildlife Drones to radio-track wildlife disrupts decades of established manual radio-tracking practice. Instead of spending hours tracking signals one at a time on foot or from manned aircraft, drones can cover vast areas in a fraction of the time whilst tracking up to 40 animals simultaneously.

Already, Wildlife Drones successfully located one-fifth of the world’s remaining Kakapo population in New Zealand. Similarly, Wildlife Drones aided researchers to track Sunda pangolins in the rugged tropical forests of Vietnam.

This same technology has a major role to play in managing invasive species that pose a threat to native fauna. In Australia alone, invasive species threaten the survival of more than 80% of vulnerable native plants and animals. Drones are already visually mapping invasive flora. But having the ability to track non-native animals is vital to understanding where they are spreading and how we can counter them.

Similarly, the possibilities for how drones can aid in livestock management are beginning to permeate the agricultural industry. When the unit cost of livestock is so high, drones can help producers keep their animals safe and secure. This includes tag surveillance in the context of preventing theft, the ability to remotely monitor livestock wherever they are on the property and much more.

Just in the past couple of years, decades of established practice with wildlife telemetry receivers have been turned on their head through technology that is literally on the rise.

As world leaders in the use of drones in animal tracking, Wildlife Drones would love to help with your project or discuss ways we can assist you in research projects, practical work in the field or on your farm.