Dronewild
Ben and Katie Harrower were successful at getting through the Scottish Governments Civtech process to work with Forestry and Land Scotland developing a microdrone that could be used by their rangers to identify any mammal over 5kg in real time.
The newly formed company DroneWild will now spend the next few years developing the concept working alongside Forestry and Land Scotland.
To find out more visit www.dronewild.co.uk
The Concept
The latest generation of drones are becoming increasingly lighter, more compact, and packed with cutting-edge technology — ideal for those working on foot in challenging environments.
When paired with customised software and integrated AI, these drones can connect to centralised dashboards to provide real-time data, intelligent insights, and automated workflows. This combination is transforming how conservation and wildlife projects are managed, delivering speed, accuracy, and efficiency in the field.
Machine Learning
Part of the DroneWild project is to develop a machine learning model that will have the ability to identify all UK mammals in real time. It will also be able to identify the sex of the six UK deer species.
The examples below show how the model detects the different species and gives a probability rating of what the animal is based on the image quality and if the view of the animal is partly obstructed.
This model will eventually be built into the drone but will also be sold as a separate package.
