BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA — A $10,000 grant from the DSC Foundation, a charitable arm of the Dallas Safari Club, will boost Delta Waterfowl’s breakthrough research into using drone-mounted, thermal-imaging cameras to locate nesting ducks and other wildlife.
The grant will fund Delta Waterfowl studies aiming to use drone technology to find over-water nesting ducks such as canvasbacks, monitor densities of waterfowl predators, and detect the nests of upland-nesting birds such as mallards, pintails, teal, pheasants, songbirds and piping plovers.
“DSC Foundation and the Dallas Safari Club are proud to support Delta Waterfowl’s drone research, as well as its Predator Management program,” said Richard Cheatham, president of the DSC Foundation. “Delta Waterfowl’s willingness to commit time and money to study emerging technology with the goal of integrating that technology into waterfowl research is both admirable and exactly the type of forward thinking that wildlife management needs.”
In 2016, a team led by Dr. Frank Rohwer, Delta’s president and chief scientist, performed an initial test-flight using a drone carrying a thermal-imaging camera over grassland cover. Rohwer was able to pinpoint nesting ducks indicated by the camera’s heat signature. The discovery led to formal research that could revolutionize the way ducks are studied and surveyed.
“Even in the digital age, waterfowl researchers are required to painstakingly search for duck nests,” said Joel Brice, Delta’s vice president of waterfowl and hunter recruitment programs. “Drones are an innovative, potential game-changer. Delta is pleased to have the backing of the DSC Foundation, whose shared goals include supporting science-based research, conserving wildlife and securing the future of hunting in North America.”
The DSC Foundation was formed by the Dallas Safari Club in 2015, with a mission to ensure the conservation of wildlife through youth-hunter recruitment, public education and advocating for hunting-based policy initiatives. Additionally, the DSC Foundation funds doctoral and graduate research studies that sustain the North American Model of Conservation. Its grants are made possible by convention revenues, fundraising events and private donations to the Dallas Safari Club.
To learn more about the DSC Foundation, visit dscf.org. For more information on Delta Waterfowl research projects, contact Joel Brice at (888) 987-3695 or jbrice@deltawaterfowl.org.
Delta Waterfowl Foundation is The Duck Hunters Organization, a leading conservation group working to produce ducks and ensure the tradition of duck hunting in North America. Visit deltawaterfowl.org.
