Drones for Good: Tech Helps Scientists Track Endangered Steller Sea Lions

Video: http://www.takepart.com/video/2015/01/02/good-drones-steller-sea-lions-seals-alaska?cmpid=longtailshare


http://www.takepart.com/video/2015/01/02/good-drones-steller-sea-lions-seals-alaska?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2015-01-02

January 02, 2015 By Emily Gertz

Emily Gertz is TakePart's associate editor for environment and wildlife.

is new video features gorgeous views of Steller sea lions and their adorable pups in the rugged Aleutian Islands of Alaska.

The video also shows off some tech that NOAA Fisheries scientists are using, alongside strenuous field observations, to better understand these endangered animals. A hexacopter drone penetrates summertime fog, gaining views of sea lions on land that would otherwise elude the observers. Weather-hardened remote cameras near beaches favored by sea lions take continuous photos, helping the researchers track individual animals across their vast North Pacific range.

As a bonus, the sea lions seem unbothered by either type of surveillance.

Steller sea lions are the largest of the “eared seals,” a branch of the seal family that includes fur seal and sea lion species. Adult males can weigh as much as two tons. Although they can swim more than 1,500 miles between land locations, Stellers tend to return annually to the same beaches, called haul-outs, to mate and bear young.

FULL story at link.