An unmanned aircraft is being used in a trial in Western Australia to see if it is an effective weapon in the fight to monitor and conserve marine mammals.

Murdoch University’s Amanda Hodgson, funded by the Australian Marine Mammal Centre to the tune of over $400,000, has enlisted the help of Insitu Pacific and its ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicle for the project.

Hodgson said the drone should allow more accurate detection, location and identification of species.

“During this first trial we’ve focused on dugongs and collected images of them with various camera adjustments. We have been flying the vehicle at various heights and air speeds to assess the best way to use this technology to survey dugongs,” she said.

The other animals surveyed by the drone will be humpback whales.

The conservation and management of many marine mammal species is largely dependent on monitoring habitat use and population status by conducting aerial surveys from manned aircraft.

 “Eventually we hope UAVs will allow us to survey large and remote areas where manned surveys are logistically challenging,” said Hodgson.

“Large areas of the Australian coastline have never been surveyed for dugongs or humpback whales and UAVs capable of flying long distances may allow us to access these remote areas.”

The ScanEagle can operate up to an altitude of 20,000 feet for up to 28 hours at a time, and has a camera system adapted especially for marine mammal monitoring.