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World Wildlife Conservation Day: How technology helps conserve wildlife

World Wildlife Conservation Day: How technology helps conserve wildlife

The statistics are staggering. And terrifying. Globally, more than 45,000 species are threatened with extinction, including 26% mammals, 41% amphibians, 12% birds, 37% sharks and rays, 21% reptiles, 34% conifers, 28% selected crustaceans, and 71% cycads, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species (2024-1), the world’s most comprehensive source of information on the global conservation status of animal, fungal, and plant species. And that’s why there’s so much buzz around conservation efforts aimed at protecting plant and animal species as human populations deplete their resources. (Also read: World Nature Conservation Day: What’s the theme for 2024? From history to meaning, see all the details inside )

More than 45,000 species are threatened with extinction worldwide. (Pixabay)

Globally, advanced technology – drones, camera traps, satellites, acoustic monitoring, remote sensing methods that use lasers to estimate the 3D structure of the target area, be it a forest canopy or a cliff face – is now being used for conservation. Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) have the potential to revolutionize the field of conservation. The importance of technology can be gauged by the fact that the market for environmental, conservation and wildlife organizations has grown significantly in recent years, and is set to grow from $26.22 billion in 2023 to $36.65 billion in 2028.

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In India, conservation through technology is gaining ground. In September 2022, E-Gravity, an engineering company, launched a GPS-based radio collar for tracking wild elephants; The Habitats Trust is using geospatial data to understand India’s grassland cover, using undersea robotics to improve and accelerate coral reef monitoring, and using machine intelligence (ML, AI, DL) to optimize conservation efforts. The Wildlife Tech Incubator is focused on nurturing India-specific innovations in conservation, the Indian Institute of Science has been working to improve technology that helps wildlife researchers and forest departments, while the Tree Foundation has used satellite tags to monitor turtles – feeding information about their feeding grounds and collection paths to commercial fishermen so that the turtles don’t get entangled and killed.

Leopard Tech Labs, a Kanjirappally (Kottayam, Kerala) based company, is at the forefront of conservation technology in India and was founded in 2017 by two faculty members and two alumni of Amal Jyothi College of Engineering, Kanjirappally. The Conservation Technology Division has developed several applications (both for Android and iOS) that are designed to help both conservationists and the general public in their efforts to protect wildlife. Here are a few apps/tools from Leopard Tech Labs that can be downloaded and used for conservation and awareness.

HAWK: HAWK is a wildlife crime intelligence system to prevent illegal wildlife trade. Using the latest digital technology, the system consolidates all information to monitor criminal networks and criminal activities and provide actionable information to law enforcement officials to take preventive measures against a wildlife trafficking crime. or potential crime scenario. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), wildlife trafficking is the fourth largest form of transnational organised crime, with an estimated value of £15 billion per year.

This app assumes greater importance as India is not only a major source but also a transit and destination country for traded wildlife and wildlife products – the most common wildlife and wildlife products seized from smuggling out of India are ivory, tortoises and turtles (particularly the Indian star tortoise), and red sandalwood. India is also fast becoming a major hub for the pangolin trade and the trade in tiger parts continues unabated (Source: Smuggling in India report 2020-2021).

Jumbo radar: Jumbo Radar is a comprehensive tool to monitor elephant movements outside protected areas and enable seamless data collection and analysis, which in turn can minimize negative human-elephant interactions. The app is based on three years of extensive monitoring and profiling of individual elephants in the Gudalur Forest Division by The Shola Trust and the Tamil Nadu Forest Department respectively.

Wildwatch: WildWatch is an integrated human-wildlife conflict mitigation system consisting of multiple modules that work together to provide a streamlined and stable working environment. When an Informer (a registered user of the Wild Watch app) witnesses a human-wildlife conflict, they can use this app to report the incident. This alert is received by the nearest observer with an accurate GPS location and other information.

Sarpa: Sarpa (Snake Awareness, Rescue & Protection App) aims to streamline the rescue of snakes from human settlements and helps minimize threats to snakes and humans. It creates awareness among the public about snakes and their important role in the ecosystem. So far, more than 40,000 snakes have been rescued through this app in Kerala alone.

Anti-trap walk monitoring app: This is used to report and remove details of snares in the forest area. With this app, forest rangers can report any snare they find while walking through the forest.

Save trees: This app aims to connect people all over the world to save trees. If you see a tree being cut down, you can post it on the app and inform like-minded people nearby.

Whale Shark Rescue App: Reporting of whale sharks and other marine megafauna can be done. Users can take photos and videos of whale sharks or marine megafauna accidentally caught in the net or observed while sailing. The app also works offline.

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