Why the province wants your trail camera photos of deer and bears
Richard Woodbury | CBC News | Posted: September 13, 2017 10:18 PM | Last Updated: September 13, 2017
3 trail cameras up for grabs in Department of Natural Resources contest
The province is using a photo contest as bait to get people with trail cameras to share images they've captured of deer and bears so officials can better understand the populations of these species.
Trail cameras are set up in wooded areas and take pictures when triggered by movement.
The information collected from the photos will complement other work done by the Department of Natural Resources. The department already learns about the deer population by examining deer feces in the spring, and information about the reproductive rate of the species is gathered by examining roadkill.
"That's giving us half of the picture, but the other half is how many of those fawns are surviving," said Emma Vost, a biologist with DNR.
Location information needed
This is where the trail camera photos come in handy.
Besides submitting photos from trail cameras taken between Sept. 1 and Dec. 10, 2017, people must complete a survey providing information about where the photos were taken and what was observed in them.
Vost said the photo locations won't be revealed to the public.
"We don't make that information public. The area is really more for us on our end to have an idea of how well the trail cameras are spread out and what kind of coverage we're getting over the province," she said.
Hunters and anglers are notorious for being protective of their favourite spots.
'Cool images'
"I wouldn't like for other hunters to know where I'm hunting," said Dave Jensen, a hunter who lives in Musquodoboit Harbour, N.S.
He has eight trail cameras and uses them to find bucks and learn about their patterns so he has the best shot at success.
"I'm like a kid in a candy store when I go to collect my memory cards out of my trail cameras. I can't get to them quick enough and I love seeing the deer," said Jensen.
"I don't just love hunting them and killing them. I love taking the pictures and seeing what's there and seeing what type of cool images I can gather."
Jensen said he's considering entering the contest if he has a great photo to submit.
His trail cameras have captured more than deer and bears in the past. He's also seen bobcats, coyotes, eagles, rabbits, porcupines and even the odd human.
Unusual insight
Dave MacLeod, who owns Farmland Outfitters in Millbrook First Nation in the town of Truro, said he thinks the contest is a good idea, as it will give officials a better idea of what animals are in which areas.
Trail cameras can provide some unusual insight into the populations of species. Vost said DNR officials have sometimes heard from people in the past that there are no bucks in their area — just does and fawns.
"One of the things that came out of this trail camera survey was that a lot of the bucks just are nocturnal during hunting season, when you aren't allowed to hunt them at night," she said.
"So that's interesting. It's telling us a little bit about behaviour and answers that question about why some hunters weren't seeing bucks."