GEORGE NEWS - CapeNature, who manages conservation efforts on Dyer Island, started using drone technology for aerial counting of birds this year.
The drone project was first investigated several years ago, but funding only recently became available through the Leiden Conservation Foundation. Collecting data through drone technology is regarded as a ground-breaking project for Cape Nature's threatened bird surveys. The conservation manager for the Dyer Island nature reserve complex, Deon Geldenhuys, says the drone project enables them to count the breeding birds from the aerial images.
"It is quicker and less intrusive than walking around the islands counting the birds. It also provides a means to view areas on the island that are either difficult to access, or if accessed, have the potential to cause disturbance to the birds." He says the aerial counts have the potential to provide an improved count accuracy.
"This initiative is in its infancy and there is still a lot to learn, but I think that it will be a ground-breaking project for Cape Nature's threatened bird surveys."
Bird counting is important because the process provides real numbers to track the population trends of threatened species. Geldenhuys mentions the shocking decrease in numbers of the African penguin as example. In the 1800s, Dassen Island had over a million penguins, and Dyer Island had up to 70 000 penguins breeding in the 1970s. The numbers have dropped so drastically that the African penguin was listed as an endangered species in 2010, and remains so to this day.
Dyer Island is the most southern of the 14 islands found off the South African coastline, roughly 8,5km off the coast of Gansbaai. It is only 15,67ha in size, but is considered as one of the country's 101 Important Bird Areas (IBAs) by Birdlife South Africa.
The island and surrounding waters are home to fifteen species of seabird, one species of seal and one species of Southern African endemic shorebird. The marine region harbours a number of shark and other fish species, as well as whales and dolphins.
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