Rapid Wildlife Reporter
Report wildlife observations and measure wildlife populations with ArcGIS QuickCapture.
Wildlife management is the management process influencing interactions among and between wildlife, its habitats, and people to achieve predefined impacts. Conserving wildlife is important not only for animals found in an area but also for humans and our natural resources.
An essential part of wildlife management is knowledge about the population dynamics and distribution of wild species. This kind of knowledge is a vital tool for setting conservation goals and priorities. Wildlife monitoring—principally counting and recording species—provides valuable information to assess population demographics and make decisions on whether action is needed to control or recover the species.
Herd of elephants standing on the dry dusty African plains in Hwange National Park dusting themselves to keep cool.
Counting animals is deceptively simple. Conservationists usually rely on animal track surveys as an indispensable tool. While paper-based surveys seem easy and inexpensive, transferring and sharing such data (with other organizations) can be a laborious task. The paper method of data collection also makes it difficult to further process data and interpret it.
Conservationists are trying to count every single animal in Kenya. (Photo: Saskya Vandoorne)
"Emerging technologies are increasingly being adopted by wildlife ecologists to improve data collection and capture novel data."
For more effective work, technical applications such as ArcGIS are used to help better collect, visualize, and manage wildlife observations. The work of counting animals is normally carried out by rangers along a certain route on foot, on vehicles, or using technical means, such as helicopters or aircraft in the conservation areas. The ease of data collection with a mobile app allows those doing the counting to report observations more effectively, accurately, and versatilely.
Project overview
Rapid Wildlife Reporter is a sample project designed to demonstrate how to use ArcGIS QuickCapture to report wildlife observations and measure wildlife populations.
The sample project consists of big buttons that represent major animal species to be counted. Each tap of a button captures the geographic coordinates as well as the observed number of the species.
You can also use the sample project to record each ranger's patrol tracks, report additional field notes such as human-wildlife conflicts that are observed along the patrolled route, and other information such as the capture time and patrol distance that is automatically calculated by the QuickCapture app.
Dynamic data interpretation
Captured data is sent back to ArcGIS (immediately, or later on) for data visualization and interpretation.
You will achieve the following:
- Organized and synchronized field data that's ready to share.
- Use map and ArcGIS Dashboards to monitor wildlife and personnel.
- Data-derived insights into the status of wildlife population for analysis and research.
Try it yourself!
To get this sample project, follow these steps:
Step 1: Download the QuickCapture mobile app (it's free).
Step 2: Get the sample project.
Tap Continue without signing in on the launch page, and tap BROWSE PROJECTS.
Step 3: Start capturing.
Use ArcGIS QuickCapture to report observations from the field. To see submitted event data, view this dashboard .
Thanks to David Smetana for his contribution to this sample.
Read more
Case Study | Conservation
Need more than this sample project?
Wildlife Management is a ready-to-use and comprehensive conservation solution. This ArcGIS Solution item includes a collection of data capture methods and information presentation tools, that help you capture wildlife observations, monitor wildlife populations, and analyze trends in protected areas. Learn how to deploy this solution to your organization.
Warning: This sample project is public and submitted observations will be viewable for 7 days (after which they will be automatically hidden).
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