Scandcam 2

Scandcam 2: towards a collaborative monitoring of game species using a network of camera traps

Monitoring is an essential part of adaptive wildlife management. Constantly changing environments due to global warming and changes in land use have increased the need for short implementation times in wildlife management and monitoring. Camera traps are increasingly suggested as such a monitoring tool. Although camera traps are increasingly used by wildlife managers and other stakeholders in Sweden, a general approach or protocols are lacking. Thus, the purpose of Scandcam 2 is to develop a system (including a set of protocols) for collaborative monitoring of wildlife communities at relevant management scales, with a special focus on ungulates, lynx, and small game species. We specifically aim to determine which metrics can be used to track population presence and abundance over time, how we can improve precision and coverage by integrating multiple data sources, and if we can estimate parameters related to population performance. To do this, we will utilize a long-term camera trapping effort by the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, as well as starting up a camera trap-based monitoring in several sites in Sweden. We will develop and use state-of-the-art statistical models to reach the above described aims. At the same time, we will organise several workshops and interview local, regional and national stakeholders to explore the monitoring needs of wildlife managers in Sweden and Norway, and if camera traps can be used to fulfil these needs. Ultimately, we aim to develop a set of protocols that are easy to perform by wildlife managers and other practitioners in the field. With the help of the right digital infrastructure, such protocols should lead to estimates of species presence, population size or population performance that can directly be implemented into (adaptive) management of diverse game species in both forested and agricultural landscapes. Furthermore, we aim to delimit what can, and what cannot, be done with the use of camera traps.

Tim Hofmeester, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

3  120  000 SEK