Drones in New Zealand to Study Threatened Insects
2021-06-14
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1Scientists in New Zealand are developing drones and small radars to follow insects to try to protect threatened species.
2The new technology involves attaching radars to the insects to follow their movements.
3The devices connect electronically to drones that will track the insects in real-time.
4The scientists are with the University of Canterbury on New Zealand's South Island.
5The team says it hopes the technology will lead to a deeper understanding of the country's troubled insect populations.
6The research builds on years of experience in the area of bird conservation, in which radio tracking methods have helped to protect many threatened species.
7But that technology had to be made much smaller for use on insects.
8The researchers have now made about 20 small "harmonic" devices that can be attached to insects.
9The insects can then be tracked over wide areas by drones.
10Steve Pawson, from the university's College of Engineering, told VOA that bird-tracking technology is what made the researchers start looking for a similar solution to follow insects.
11The information from tagged birds, Pawson said, "really informs conservation management."
12The same system can help scientists learn more about many different insect behaviors, he added, like how far they move, where they look for food, and even, how long they live.
13"If we have that knowledge, then we can incorporate it into our decision making and our planning for conservation management operations," Pawson added.
14The researchers plan to begin tests of the system on ground-based insects before moving to the greater complexities of tracking insects in flight.
15They hope to begin field testing by 2023.
16The team says the research could possibly be useful in other scientific fields as well, such as biosecurity or medical imaging.
17Among New Zealand's endangered insects is the widely recognized Wētā.
18The creatures -- native to the South Pacific --have large bodies, legs with sharp points and rounded tusks.
19Several species of Wētā are under threat from animals that eat them and destruction of the places where they live.
20I'm Bryan Lynn.
1Scientists in New Zealand are developing drones and small radars to follow insects to try to protect threatened species. 2The new technology involves attaching radars to the insects to follow their movements. The devices connect electronically to drones that will track the insects in real-time. The scientists are with the University of Canterbury on New Zealand's South Island. 3The team says it hopes the technology will lead to a deeper understanding of the country's troubled insect populations. 4The research builds on years of experience in the area of bird conservation, in which radio tracking methods have helped to protect many threatened species. But that technology had to be made much smaller for use on insects. 5The researchers have now made about 20 small "harmonic" devices that can be attached to insects. The insects can then be tracked over wide areas by drones. 6Steve Pawson, from the university's College of Engineering, told VOA that bird-tracking technology is what made the researchers start looking for a similar solution to follow insects. 7The information from tagged birds, Pawson said, "really informs conservation management." 8The same system can help scientists learn more about many different insect behaviors, he added, like how far they move, where they look for food, and even, how long they live. 9"If we have that knowledge, then we can incorporate it into our decision making and our planning for conservation management operations," Pawson added. 10The researchers plan to begin tests of the system on ground-based insects before moving to the greater complexities of tracking insects in flight. They hope to begin field testing by 2023. 11The team says the research could possibly be useful in other scientific fields as well, such as biosecurity or medical imaging. 12Among New Zealand's endangered insects is the widely recognized Wētā. The creatures -- native to the South Pacific --have large bodies, legs with sharp points and rounded tusks. 13Several species of Wētā are under threat from animals that eat them and destruction of the places where they live. 14I'm Bryan Lynn. 15Phil Mercer from VOA News reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 16We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 17____________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19drone - n. a small, unmanned plane 20species - n. biology : a group of animals or plants that are similar and can produce young animals or plants : a group of related animals or plants that is smaller than a genus 21track - v. to follow 22conservation - n. the act of keeping something safe from harm or from being damaged or destroyed 23incorporate - v. to include something as part of another thing 24habitat - n. the natural environment of plant or animal