Population monitoring
Designing and using innovative technologies and techniques for the survey and monitoring of priority threatened populations
The assessment of threatened populations, including population size, distribution and health, is an important first step in conservation.
It is crucial to establish baseline species information as this provides a foundation for comparing changing trends, both negative and positive, over time. In addition, continued assessment is vital in evaluating the effectiveness of conservation interventions.
Chester Zoo is at the forefront of designing new techniques for population monitoring, such as testing the efficacy of wearable tracking equipment for birds and small reptiles, testing marking methods for recapture, the use of Artificial Intelligence software for analysing large datasets such as images from camera traps and the use of recordings from passive acoustic monitoring.
These methods are often applicable both in ex situ and wild environments, and zoo populations can provide a useful referent for future interventions in the wild, informing conservation best practice in the field, for instance, when monitoring animals released in the course of reintroduction projects.
Case study: Bioacoustics - exploring a different dimension of the natural world
The Problem:
Monitoring species in situ can be challenging due to environmental factors and the finite nature of conservation resources.
Meanwhile, though zoo bioacoustics studies have the potential to improve both zoo best practice and in-field conservation monitoring methods, soundscapes in zoos are a relatively untapped realm of research.
The Solution:
Chester Zoo researchers are building on the small but important body of work in zoo bioacoustics, trailblazing methods and making major inroads into the field.
Their work spans both in situ acoustic research and ex situ studies of zoo sound environments.
Population monitoring can be labour intensive and difficult to undertake in some environments. For instance, visual survey methods can be challenging in areas of dense foliage or in contexts where camera trapping or visual surveillance may be inappropriate: e.g., when monitoring fast-moving species that perch in high, slender branches.
Acoustic monitoring offers an important alternative source of data, allowing conservationists to observe species through sound recordings and analysis, informing a better understanding of species populations in their wild habitats.
Our scholars have been working in the field to produce research, including contributions to multiple papers on bioacoustics methodologies and primate vocalisations, including the calls of indri lemurs.
Sound also plays a role in ex situ conservation, as it shapes the experiences of both zoo animals and visitors. An understanding of animal responses to sound can influence habitat design best practice. However, a tiny fraction of acoustics studies focus on zoo environments.
Among the current projects undertaken by scientists at the zoo, our researchers have authored to a number of papers on bird, mammal and amphibian bioacoustics.
These include "Hullabaloo at the zoo: aligning acoustic research with the goals of the conservation zoo" published in Bioacoustics, "Assessing the effect of zoo closure on the soundscape using multiple acoustic indicators" published in Ecological Indicators and "Evaluating the influencers of acoustic indices in a zoo soundscape" published in Bioacoustics. Researchers are currently verifying links between animal behaviour and previously undescribed vocalisations,