Scientists count elephants from space using AI

High-resolution imagery from the satellite Worldview 3 was processed using an algorithm developed by Dr Olga Isupova, a computer scientist at Bath University. Published in the Journal of Zoology, the project was a collaboration with Oxford University and the University of Twente in the Netherlands, and part of conservation efforts to more accurately gauge African elephant populations in the wake of declining numbers. There are estimated to be just 40,000-50,0000 of the species remaining in the wild, largely due to poaching and loss of habitat over the past century.

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According to Dr Isupova, the new technique allows vast areas of land to be scanned in a matter of minutes, offering a much-needed alternative to human observers counting individual animals from low-flying aircraft. As it sweeps across the land, a satellite can collect over 5,000 km² of imagery every few minutes, eliminating the risk of double counting. If there is extensive cloud coverage, the process can simply be repeated the following day using imagery from the satellite's next orbit of Earth.