- Rich in forests and biodiversity, the Central African country of Gabon has long proved a fruitful testing ground for camera-trap technology.
- Snapshots of species once thought extinct in the country, such as lions, have helped inform conservation policy, including the establishment of national parks and protection of vast swaths of forest.
- The wealth of data generated means there are large data sets from various projects that researchers just don’t have the resources or time to sift through — which is why Gabon has also become a testing ground for artificial intelligence tools to aid in that task.
- Key limitations remain the cost of camera traps and the fact that many forms of data capture and analysis simply can’t be done by camera traps or AI, and still require human involvement.
“Gabon in relation to the Congo Basin … first off, we’re a country that has never faced conflict,” said Brice Roxan Momboua of the National Agency of National Parks (ANPN). “The other strong point is that we have an 80% forest cover. There are zones where humans have never set foot. The majority is intact.”
Camera traps have been around for 130 years, but their usefulness in research has picked up sharply in the past two decades. Development of the technology has allowed researchers like Momboua, who leads biomonitoring projects using camera traps in Lopé National Park, to spot species they hadn’t previously seen in some of Gabon’s national parks, like honey badgers (Mellivora capensis) and aardvarks (Orycteropus afer).
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