White-tailed Eagle Monitoring – Raptor Protection with POISuite and Thermal Imaging Drone
POISuite enables effective and efficient monitoring of raptor nests
When monitoring the white-tailed eagle – Germany’s largest bird of prey – the monitoring of known nest trees, territories and feeding places also plays a very important role when it comes to the protection and conservation of this species. Thanks to modern technology and smart software solutions, such tasks can now be carried out more efficiently and with greater conservation of resources than ever before. The combination of high-quality DJI Enterprise thermal imaging drones with our special software POISuite enables data collection with the least possible disturbance and the highest precision.
Warning
White-tailed eagles are sensitive wild animals – especially during the breeding season between February and June, improper use of drones can endanger breeding success! The use of drones may therefore only be carried out by competent persons responsible under nature conservation law or under their supervision.
The White-tailed Eagle
The largest representative of birds of prey in Germany is primarily found in the northern federal states, where it inhabits wooded areas near coasts, lakes or rivers. It is one of the resident birds, so it can be observed in the distribution areas all year round. Its board-shaped arm wings with the characteristic fingers as well as the white butt (in adult birds) make the white-tailed eagle virtually unmistakable in flight. The plumage with its dark brown color is otherwise rather inconspicuous. As the name suggests, fish are the main food of the bird of prey. But mammals, other birds and carrion are also on its menu.
The nests, which can often be up to 4 meters high, 2 meters wide and 1 ton in weight, are often visited by the same breeding pair over several years and used to incubate up to 3 eggs per clutch. The female takes over the incubation, while the male is constantly looking for food.
Scientific name
Haliaeetus albicilla
Size
Body length: 76-92 cm
Wingspan: 180-240 cm
Endangerment
not endangered
Stock
approx. 1000 breeding pairs (as of 2024)
Endangerment and Protection
Despite the high number of breeding pairs in Germany, there are still a large number of risk factors, which primarily originate from us humans. In addition to active persecution (shooting, poisoning, nest destruction), these include the decline in suitable habitats and the loss of breeding sites. This is partly due to an increasing intensification of use and the steadily advancing fragmentation of the habitat. Losses often occur due to collisions with power poles, power lines or wind turbines. Accidents in road and rail traffic are also not uncommon and the disturbance of breeding and feeding areas leads to a restriction in breeding success and a burden on individual individuals.
However, the white-tailed eagle in Germany was almost extinct just a few hundred years ago and there were only a very small number of breeding pairs. Thanks to comprehensive protection measures, the populations have been secured over the years and the species is now considered to be not endangered throughout Germany. Successful and comprehensive monitoring of the target species plays a decisive role for many protection measures.
Challenges and previous approach
The traditional approach to white-tailed eagle monitoring is to check known nest locations twice a year (March and June) from the ground using binoculars and a spotting scope. Attention is paid to whether the nest is occupied by a breeding pair or not. In June, a check is then carried out to determine the success of the breeding and the number of young animals that have hatched.
For tracking purposes, the young animals are then ringed and/or fitted with GPS transmitters. These tasks are primarily carried out by nature park rangers who are responsible for nest monitoring or volunteers who work with the responsible institutions.
Finding new nest locations in particular could be a challenge. Most nests are already known from the uses in previous years. However, if new nesting sites are built, finding new nests involves a lot of searching and long observation times.
In the case of young animals that have been fitted with a GPS transmitter, the search is probably somewhat easier, as the position of the bird can be easily tracked and thus also the location of a possible new eagle nest.
Another problem in the future could be the lack of trained personnel and the availability of financial resources for regular monitoring.
Objective
Reduce time
when finding new nests.
Make checks of known nest sites more efficient.
Optimize coordination
for searches, checks and protection measures.
Relieve staff
and facilitate access.
Reduce disturbance
during nest monitoring.
Connect actors
to plan and implement measures in the best possible way.
POISuite with networked thermal imaging drone as a solution
POISuite has been fully available since 2024. In recent years, drone technology and software have continued to develop rapidly and so today we are able to use state-of-the-art drones and specially adapted software with cloud connectivity, artificial intelligence and precise location to make the protection of the white-tailed eagle more efficient than ever before.
Modern thermal imaging drones for raptor protection
thermal DRONES relies on thermal imaging drones from DJI Enterprise. In raptor protection, especially for nest monitoring, the Mavic 3T and Matrice 4TD models are suitable. The drones have a high-resolution thermal imaging camera that enables the detection of nests even from a greater distance. The 7x telecamera enables low-disturbance monitoring of the nest.
POISuite – Functional extension specifically for white-tailed eagle protection
Connecting the drones to the thermal DRONES POICloud enables the targeted approach to known nest locations and the precise measurement of the coordinates with the drone as well as the return flight for monitoring the breeding success and the number of individuals. The recorded information can be exported directly from the POICloud to GIS programs for further processing.
DJI Enterprise Mavic 3T
Compact Thermal Drone
with POICloud Connectivity
Location from the air
The POICloud connection and the georeferencing function enable the transfer of the nest position directly and in real time to the smartphones of all actors.
DJI Enterprise Matrice 4TD
Weather-Resistant High-tech Drone with Cloud Connectivity
Precise, low-disturbance recording
The laser rangefinder in combination with the RTK-GPS of the device enables the precise measurement of the white-tailed eagle nest from a distance of over 100 m and reduces the disturbance.
Efficiency through digitization – a place for all work steps
The POISuite supports the work in raptor protection by bringing together all work steps in one place. This enables organizations and other actors to map all the steps necessary for the successful use of the thermal imaging drone in breeding bird protection in one software solution.
Recording and bundling of nest locations
The search for nest locations is based on the evaluation of observations by volunteers, rangers and other actors as well as the examination of information from outsiders and any reports via www.ornitho.de. The POICloud offers the possibility to record and bundle all this information in one place:
Thanks to the POICloud and the POIApp, all members are always informed in real time about the current status of sightings and can quickly and easily verify information from outsiders and add new findings. The POIApp guides the organization members/volunteers/rangers to the locations of the information and enables the coordination of the work by assigning test orders to verify them.
Precise localization of the nests with the thermal imaging drone
The POICloud transfers the nest locations directly to the drone and makes it possible to fly to them quickly and accurately. The estimated location is projected directly into the live image of the camera – in many cases, the location of the nest can be located within minutes. For more complex cases, the POICloud automatically creates flight plans with which the drone can systematically search the area. After the eagle’s nest has been located, it can be measured from the air with the drone.
Centimeter-accurate measurement of the nest location
In the case of the Matrice models of the DJI Enterprise series, the laser rangefinder enables centimeter-accurate localization of the nest locations. All it takes is a single press of a button on the remote control of the DJI Matrice 4TD. POIConnect transmits the set marking in real time directly to the POICloud and to the POIApp on the smartphone of the nature and species conservationists.
Documentation of breeding status, creation of conservation areas and data export
After recording the location of the nest, the POIApp enables the documentation of the possible breeding status and image data recorded with the drone can be transferred directly to the POICloud. The POICloud automatically creates a conservation area of adaptable size for the nest location, which can be exported together with the nest location for use in GIS programs and other external software.
The nest locations and boundaries of the conservation areas transferred to the POICloud can be approached with the smartphones of the helpers with the help of the POIApp in order to implement protection measures and set markings.
Coordinate and track the measures
The POICloud enables the tracking and coordination of protection measures via an order system. The progress of the protection measures can be documented via the POIApp. The POICloud provides central and clear information about the current status of all finds and thus significantly reduces the effort required to coordinate white-tailed eagle protection.
Low-disturbance nest and success monitoring with the drone
The monitoring of breeding success is usually carried out from the ground with the help of binoculars and a spotting scope. By using the thermal imaging drone and the POICloud for raptor protection, the time-consuming observation on the ground can be replaced by a short flight with the drone.
The disturbance factor is kept as low as possible and the telephoto lens enables the nest to be monitored from a great height. This guarantees efficient monitoring and significantly reduces the time required for nest monitoring.
The drone also provides insights into the breeding process, hatching and the development of the young birds, which have not been possible before.
POICloud data as a basis for statistical evaluations
Through the central recording of all data on white-tailed eagle sightings, the nest locations and the breeding process, data for later statistical evaluations are recorded in the POICloud without additional effort. Over several years, a comprehensive data set is collected, which can help to protect the white-tailed eagle in the best possible way in the future.
Related topics:
If you want to find out how the POISuite is used to protect another bird of prey, click here for the article on the success story of the Wiesenweihen- und Naturschutz Nordostdeutschland e.V. association!
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