Remote Sensing, Simplified: Air, Land & Sea
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Pinniped Monitoring Program
Pinniped Monitoring Program
Training and protocol development for community-led wildlife monitoring.
Client:
Pacific Salmon Foundation
Location:
East Vancouver Island
Partners
Cowichan Tribes, Snuneymuxw First Nation, K'ómoks First Nation, A-Tlegay Fisheries Society
Scope of Work
Aeria's primary role was developing the technical foundation and delivering hands-on training to partner First Nations communities. We designed a comprehensive two-day training program tailored for each of the partner communities, focusing on methodologies for photogrammetric data collection in estuarine and riverine environments and techniques for collecting data at pinniped haul-out sites, integrating drone operations with broader Marine Mammal Observation strategies.
Protocol and standardization work included developing and providing a drone applications protocol document for pinniped monitoring to establish standardized procedures for high-quality, versatile data collection. Aeria also offered regulatory consulting to PSF for applying for necessary drone-related permits.
Operational Standards and Disturbance Mitigation
The developed protocol emphasizes minimizing disturbance to breeding colonies. The program utilizes small RPAS such as the DJI Mini 4 Pro and Autel Evo II Pro. The concept of operations outlines two standard mission types: haul-out mapping flights and river mapping flights. Flights maintain a minimum altitude of 30 metres above the animals to reduce noise and visual disturbance. A disturbance ranking system is used, and the Pilot in Command is required to cease operation in the event of High or Extreme disturbance levels, such as animals moving away from origin or a stampede. Survey methods include drone imagery, shore-based counts, wildlife cameras, side-scanning sonar, and sound traps.
Services:
Wildlife monitoring protocol development, drone training programs, Indigenous community partnerships, regulatory consulting, marine mammal surveys
Aeria Solutions partnered with the Pacific Salmon Foundation (PSF) on their Bottlenecks to Survival Program to develop and implement a standardized pinniped monitoring component using Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems. The project's goal is creating a cost-effective baseline of pinniped utilization of estuary and lower river habitats along the east coast of Vancouver Island.
The program is a collaboration with four partner communities: Cowichan Tribes, Snuneymuxw First Nation, K'ómoks First Nation, and the A-Tlegay Fisheries Society.
