Thermal mapping within the MonitAnt project

Thermal mapping within the MonitAnt project

m

August 4, 2024

In collaboration with Prof. Heike Feldhaar from the University of Bayreuth we explored the potential of UAS data to map ant mounds within forests automatically. Such an approach would help ecologists to analyse the spatial pattern of mounds and also its changes over time within larger areas.

The UAS team performed the field work in a forest area close to Haßfurt, Lower Franconia, within the scope of the project MonitAnt. MonitAnt aims to develop a harmonized, efficient, and cost-effective monitoring strategy that is freely available to various stakeholders to enable long-term monitoring of population trends of mound-building Formica ants and associated myrmecophiles across Europe.

Within the project we are collecting and processing the geospatial data; thus, analysing if the ant mounds can be detected within different data sets. Our team members operated various drones by mounting multispectral and thermal cameras as well as LIDAR instruments. Besides, the study is supported by ground-truth data to test the accuracy of the aerial images. The ground in-situ data, in particular, revealed important insights about the reflectance characteristics of the ant mounds.

On the long run the main aim is to develop an European-level Monitoring strategy for mound-building Formica Ants and symbiont communities residing in nest mounds.

follow us and share it on:

you may also like:

A reply to the Programming Hero Syndrome post

A reply to the Programming Hero Syndrome post

A while back there was a post about the "Programming Hero Syndrome." This is a small extension to it, from a female perspective to provide a different view. When I started EAGLE, in those first weeks and months, I'd join internship talks or MSc defenses, listen to...

Getting Ready for 25 + 10

Getting Ready for 25 + 10

Next week's the big one. Twenty five years of EORC and ten years of EAGLE, all in one event, and we're expecting around 250 people through the door. Sabine Oppmann's been leading the prep meetings, and we've split things into clear teams: setup, catering, AV and...

Dr. Ariane Droin in front of the camera: RTL reports on HABITRACK

Dr. Ariane Droin in front of the camera: RTL reports on HABITRACK

A film crew from RTL showed up in the Oberpfalz this spring, and joint a field campaign by the Habitrack BMFTR funded project. Dr. Ariane Droin, who leads the Würzburg side of the MONID HABITRACK project at EORC, walked the RTL team through what the project is...

A Weekend together: Where the Institute Talks About Itself

A Weekend together: Where the Institute Talks About Itself

Once a year, or at least that's the idea, the Institute of Geography packs up and heads out to a remote place, this time Burg Rothenfels, an old castle not far from Würzburg, to spend a weekend doing something that almost never happens in the day to day grind:...

Graduation Day: EORC and EAGLE Celebrate at the Faculty Ceremony

Graduation Day: EORC and EAGLE Celebrate at the Faculty Ceremony

Last week the faculty held its formal graduation ceremony, and EORC and EAGLE were well represented on stage. Two of our PhD students, Dr. Ariane Droin and Dr. Johannes Mast, both joint the ceremony for their doctoral degrees, and it was great to see them walk across...

Share This