Wildlife monitoring is an essential part of keeping track of animal movement patterns, habitat utilisation, breeding programmes and more. Mainly used by large organisations such as animal trusts and wildlife parks, there is a steady rise in the use of CCTV technology for wildlife monitoring.

Wildlife monitoring is traditionally carried out using what are known as a Trail Cameras. Often the disadvantages of using these Trail Cameras would be the night time images, with poor detail and clarity due to the lack of IR. The user often ends up having to compromise the picture quality for its portable feature. In hindsight it is suitable for portable monitoring for short periods, but CCTV cameras are professional equipment designed to provide high quality images in various environments.

Genie supplied Susan Young with the Compact SD-DVR single channel digital video recorder which provides high resolution video and audio recording. The DVRs were configured for motion triggered recording with prerecording enabled to ensure that the desired footage was captured. As both the DVR and cameras are low voltage with very low current draw it as an ideal solution for the needs of a battery powered system. In conjunction to the DVR’s Susan used a Genie high resolution low voltage IP67 rated camera to capture the required footage both during the day and at night.

With the combination of the Genie ZD2812IR/ACW analogue camera, power consumption, quality images, noise reduction, smart IR and other advanced features were also valuable. The system coped well with the UK weather and conditions. Working almost continuously from Spring to Autumn on the first deployment and then from Spring to Summer the following year. The system proved to be most useful when capturing fast moving wildlife reducing the loss of motion. Young solved the weather problems by putting the DVR and battery in a waterproof case. The box was securely chained to a tree and covered with camouflage, keeping it hidden and secure within a public park.

Susan successfully completed her research for her book, CCTV for Wildlife Monitoring. Concluding the many advantages of CCTV. Primarily being that there’s a higher quality imagery compared to the traditional remote camera setup. Her work has not only highlighted the limitless scale of CCTV used to capture animals in their habitats but, its availability to all wildlife enthusiasts whether they are an amateur, ecologist or animal conservation institution.