Mapping out bare-nosed wombat (Vombatus ursinus) burrows with the use of a drone. 2019

Julie M Old, and Simon H Lin, and Michael J M Franklin
School of Science and Health, Western Sydney University, Hawkesbury Campus, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW, 2751, Australia. j.old@westernsydney.edu.au.

Wombats are large, nocturnal herbivores that build burrows in a variety of habitats, including grassland communities, and can come into conflict with people. Counting the number of active burrows provides information on the local distribution and abundance of wombats and could prove to be an important management tool to monitor population numbers over time. We compared traditional ground surveys and a new method employing drones, to determine if drones could be used to effectively identify and monitor bare-nosed wombat burrows. We surveyed burrows using both methods in eight 5-ha transects in grassland, that was interspersed with patches of tussock grassland. Ground surveys were conducted by systematically walking transects and searching for burrows. Drone surveys involved programming flights over transects to capture multiple images, from which an orthomosaic image of each transect was produced. These were subsequently viewed using ArcMap to detect burrows. A total of 204 individual burrows were recorded by drone and/or ground survey methods. In grassland, the methods were equally effective in terms of the numbers of burrows detected in transects. In the smaller areas of tussock grassland, ground surveys detected significantly more burrows, because burrow openings were obscured in orthomosaic images by overhanging grasses. There was agreement between the methods as to whether burrows were potentially active or inactive for most burrows in both vegetation communities. However, image interpretation tended to classify grassland burrows as potentially active. Overall time taken to conduct surveys was similar for both methods, but ground surveys utilised three observers and more time in the field. Drones provide an effective means to survey bare-nosed wombat burrows that are visible from the air, particularly in areas not accessible to observers and vehicles. Furthermore, drones provide alternative options for monitoring burrows at the landscape level, and for monitoring wombat populations based on observable changes in burrow appearance over time.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D006109 Poaceae A large family of narrow-leaved herbaceous grasses of the order Cyperales, subclass Commelinidae, class Liliopsida (monocotyledons). Food grains (EDIBLE GRAIN) come from members of this family. RHINITIS, ALLERGIC, SEASONAL can be induced by POLLEN of many of the grasses. Alopecurus,Arundo,Gramineae,Grasses,Imperata,Grass,Imperata cylindrica
D017753 Ecosystem A functional system which includes the organisms of a natural community together with their environment. (McGraw Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed) Ecosystems,Biome,Ecologic System,Ecologic Systems,Ecological System,Habitat,Niche, Ecological,System, Ecological,Systems, Ecological,Biomes,Ecological Niche,Ecological Systems,Habitats,System, Ecologic,Systems, Ecologic

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