A file photo of a herd of adult and baby elephants walking in the dawn light in southern Kenya. Scientists are using AI and machine learning to help save endangered species around the world. — AP
“Whale mortality by ship collision is one of the top sources of endangered whale death, there’s nothing more tragic than seeing one of these whale-ship collision victims. These vocalisations can then be used to identify the species of whale and, when analysed by the AI algorithm alongside other data points like ocean conditions, recent sightings from trained naturalists, and location data from 104 satellite-tagged blue whales, can help predict the presence of whales in the area and the likelihood of an encounter.
Some initiatives use AI systems to observe changes in the environment – like Brazil’s loss of surface water – and others use it to manage the huge troves of data captured by trap cameras and microphones of endangered animals to identify and keep track of their populations. “But sifting through all that imagery can take weeks, even months. Tagging and analysing the photos requires extensive training, and uploading and sharing them is a file-transfer nightmare,” the WWF wrote on their website, adding that deploying Wildlife Insights would leverage AI to speed up the process, and allow conservationists to act faster to protect wildlife.
Using a machine learning algorithm, the PAWS system takes data from previous poaching activities and uses it to predict where poachers are likely to appear.