Drones could be used to bolster efforts to monitor wildlife near airport runways and to help prevent wildlife strikes, according to a student research team at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU).
Current methods of wildlife monitoring could be enhanced by the use of drones, which could “access hard-to-reach areas, cover ground quickly, and use various camera sensors to gather information about local environments,” ERAU said in a November statement that summarized the students’ work. Their project received first place honors in the Airport Cooperative Research Program’s Student Research Design Competition earlier this year.
Anna Golendukhina, an ERAU aviation master’s student, added, “Drones not only make the process more cost-effective but also significantly enhance the ability to identify different wildlife species simultaneously. This is especially important because it helps us better understand how these animals interact with their habitats, wh…
