Drones could soon be deployed to keep an eye on wild animals and poachers in forest areas with officials successfully carrying out field trials with five miniature unmanned aerial vehicles in the Muthunga forest in neighbouring Wayanad district.
A team of scientists from Aeronautical Development Establishment, National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) along with officials of the National Programme on Micro Aerial Vehicles (NPMICAV), Bengaluru, and forest personnel conducted the trials on May 18, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary Wildlife Warden P Dhaneshkumar said in a statement.
The five drones -- three fixed wing and two quadcopters -- fitted with cameras and transmitters were used in the Muthanga forest.
Ordinary cameras beamed back colour videos of the forest underneath while the infra red cameras that can see living things through foliage at night sent black and white visuals.
"The day is not far away when a drone can fly and keep an eye from the sky on animal movements across the forest or when they stray into human habitat," the statement said.
They could also monitor movements of unauthorised people using normal camera during day-time and IR camera for night vision, it said.
The deployment of drones keep an eye on wild animals and poachers in forest areas, it added.
