Unmanned aerial vehicles for automated forest restoration
ABSTRACT: Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been gaining in popularity and are used in many fields, including biodiversity conservation. They are currently available in many sizes and forms, and they can be used for aerial photography, mapping and monitoring natural resources. To use UAVs for automated forest restoration (AFR), technologies involved must be advanced and adapted, to perform the specific tasks required, particularly aerial seeding and maintenance procedures, such as weed control and fertilizer application. Getting UAVs to function fully autonomously, when performing such tasks, will be challenging. Integrative research, among engineers, computer scientists and ecologists, is needed to advance the AFR concept and the drone-based tools needed, to bring the concept to fruition.