World Wildlife Day (3 March)

Celebrating and advocating for the incalculable value of wildlife, World Wildlife Day (3 March) is an opportunity to consider the hundreds of species that share this planet with us and raise awareness of organisations that protect our environments from manmade threats.

In Scotland, wildlife protection is an integral mission to the conservation of native species and habitats. Scotland houses protected areas, like Cairngorms National Park and National Trust wildlife reserves, which have the resources to support fragile ecosystems and protect the biodiversity of the surrounding environment.

One project we wanted to highlight for World Wildlife Day was the inspirational contribution being made by University of Stirling in partnership with Dutch tech start-up Hack The Planet .

Working in Gabon, the project has achieved a world first, and is using AI powered wildlife cameras to track, monitor and identify different animal species.

Remote trail cameras are regularly used in wildlife surveys to detect ecosystem threats but are often hampered in remote regions due to a lack of broadband connectivity. Using AI-powered wildlife cameras could fix this issue by providing instant alerts without the need for Wi-Fi, long-range radio or cellular coverage, helping better conserve, protect and restore ecosystems as a result.

Find out more about this ground-breaking project here .