Orthomosaic of drone imagery (220 photos) of the 130-hectare wetland showing locations of study plots in which habitat analyses were conducted
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Small drone aircraft systems can provide convenient and timely monitoring of habitats that are challenging to survey on the ground. Furthermore, they can detect fine-scale features that are indiscernible in traditional aerial or satellite imagery. In this project, high-resolution imagery (9 cm/pixel) collected by a small drone in conjunction with automated image classification techniques proved instrumental in gaining a better understanding of the breeding habitat requirements of the least bittern — a small heron protected under Canada's Species at Risk Act — in a wetland impoundment in Baie-du-Febvre (Québec) that has been designated as critical habitat.
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Monitoring & automated classification
of threatened least bittern wetland habitat
D. Chabot, PhD thesis
Published in Wetlands & Journal of Unmanned Vehicle Systems
