Field Deployment of BiodivX Drones in the Amazon Rainforest for Biodiversity Monitoring

Tropical rainforests are among the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth, and also among the most threatened by anthropogenic pressures such as deforestation and climate change. Understanding human impact and the efficacy of conservation and preservation efforts requires scalable and comprehensive biodiversity monitoring solutions. As a winning finalist of the XPRIZE Rainforest Competition, ETH BiodivX collected biodiversity data from 100 ha of rainforest in the Amazon, in 24 hours. A suite of complementary data types were captured, from remote sensing maps and close-up images to surface and water environmental DNA (eDNA), along with canopy rafts which collect specimens, close-up images, and bioacoustic recordings. A distributed mesh communication network allows for a persistent link to the drone, up to the edges of the competition area. Optimized workflows allow for a full RGB and digital surface map (DSM) after only one-and-a-half hours. The captured DSM was then used to collect surface eDNA fully autonomously, and using the communication network, surface eDNA was collected at distances up to 1.4 km from the base station. Pre-processed multispectral satellite remote sensing provides indicators of water locations, which were then sampled for water eDNA. The canopy rafts can act as communication nodes or data collection stations, providing long-term bioacoustic recordings, insect images, and specimens. By utilizing a commercial drone platform with modular payloads for diverse tasks, the solutions are robust and easy to use. These field-proven systems mark a major step towards scalable biodiversity monitoring, including in some of the world’s most remote and biodiverse regions: tropical rainforests.

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Publication Details

Journal
IEEE transactions on field robotics.
Published
2025-01-01
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1109/tfr.2025.3574945
Citations
9
Primary Topic
Remote Sensing and LiDAR Applications
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
7.19

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article

Field Deployment of BiodivX Drones in the Amazon Rainforest for Biodiversity Monitoring

Nicolás D. Franco‐Sierra, Toke T. Høye, Steffen Kirchgeorg, Martina N. Lüthi et al.
9 citations
IEEE transactions on field robotics.
Remote Sensing and LiDAR Applications
7.19
article

Field Deployment of BiodivX Drones in the Amazon Rainforest for Biodiversity Monitoring

Nicolás D. Franco‐Sierra, Toke T. Høye, Steffen Kirchgeorg, Martina N. Lüthi, Stefano Mintchev, Claus Melvad, Salua Hamaza, Meret Jucker, Florencia Sangermano, Paola Pulido‐Santacruz, Andrea Desiderato, Kristy Deiner, Jia Jin Marc Chang, Loïc Pellissier, G Mougeot, Yin Cheong Aden Ip, Fabian Fopp, Elvira Mächler, Christian Geckeler, Asger Svenning, Mailyn Adriana Gonzalez Herrera, Georg Strunck, Frederik Bendix Thostrup, David Dao
article en
9 citations

Abstract

Tropical rainforests are among the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth, and also among the most threatened by anthropogenic pressures such as deforestation and climate change. Understanding human impact and the efficacy of conservation and preservation efforts requires scalable and comprehensive biodiversity monitoring solutions. As a winning finalist of the XPRIZE Rainforest Competition, ETH BiodivX collected biodiversity data from 100 ha of rainforest in the Amazon, in 24 hours. A suite of complementary data types were captured, from remote sensing maps and close-up images to surface and water environmental DNA (eDNA), along with canopy rafts which collect specimens, close-up images, and bioacoustic recordings. A distributed mesh communication network allows for a persistent link to the drone, up to the edges of the competition area. Optimized workflows allow for a full RGB and digital surface map (DSM) after only one-and-a-half hours. The captured DSM was then used to collect surface eDNA fully autonomously, and using the communication network, surface eDNA was collected at distances up to 1.4 km from the base station. Pre-processed multispectral satellite remote sensing provides indicators of water locations, which were then sampled for water eDNA. The canopy rafts can act as communication nodes or data collection stations, providing long-term bioacoustic recordings, insect images, and specimens. By utilizing a commercial drone platform with modular payloads for diverse tasks, the solutions are robust and easy to use. These field-proven systems mark a major step towards scalable biodiversity monitoring, including in some of the world’s most remote and biodiverse regions: tropical rainforests.

IEEE transactions on field robotics.Vol. 2
Clark University (US), Rainforest Alliance (US), National University of Singapore (SG), University of Washington (US), Aarhus University (DK), Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute (CO), Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (CH), University of Łódź (PL), ETH Zurich (CH), Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center (US), Robotics Research (United States) (US), Universidad del Rosario (CO), Delft University of Technology (NL)
Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung
Climate action
Openalex Percentile: Top 3%
Remote Sensing and LiDAR Applications
7.19
DOISourceOpenAlex
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