Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral Observation
Recently, drone technology advanced, and its safety and operability markedly improved, leading to its increased application in animal research. This study demonstrated drone application in livestock management, using its technology to observe horse behavior and verify the appropriate horse–drone dis...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2021-07-01
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| Series: | Drones |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/5/3/71 |
| _version_ | 1797519600758292480 |
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| author | Tomoko Saitoh Moyu Kobayashi |
| author_facet | Tomoko Saitoh Moyu Kobayashi |
| author_sort | Tomoko Saitoh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Recently, drone technology advanced, and its safety and operability markedly improved, leading to its increased application in animal research. This study demonstrated drone application in livestock management, using its technology to observe horse behavior and verify the appropriate horse–drone distance for aerial behavioral observations. Recordings were conducted from September to October 2017 on 11 horses using the Phantom 4 Pro drone. Four flight altitudes were tested (60, 50, 40, and 30 m) to investigate the reactions of the horses to the drones and observe their behavior; the recording time at each altitude was 5 min. None of the horses displayed avoidance behavior at any flight altitude, and the observer was able to distinguish between any two horses. Recorded behaviors were foraging, moving, standing, recumbency, avoidance, and others. Foraging was the most common behavior observed both directly and in the drone videos. The correlation coefficients of all behavioral data from direct and drone video observations at all altitudes were significant (<i>p</i> < 0.01). These results indicate that horse behavior can be discerned with equal accuracy by both direct and recorded drone video observations. In conclusion, drones can be useful for recording and analyzing horse behavior. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T07:45:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0a8154bac0fa4496a089aefef8bab38f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2504-446X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T07:45:06Z |
| publishDate | 2021-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Drones |
| spelling | doaj.art-0a8154bac0fa4496a089aefef8bab38f2023-11-22T12:42:57ZengMDPI AGDrones2504-446X2021-07-01537110.3390/drones5030071Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral ObservationTomoko Saitoh0Moyu Kobayashi1Field Center of Animal Science and Agriculture, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro 080-8555, JapanField Center of Animal Science and Agriculture, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro 080-8555, JapanRecently, drone technology advanced, and its safety and operability markedly improved, leading to its increased application in animal research. This study demonstrated drone application in livestock management, using its technology to observe horse behavior and verify the appropriate horse–drone distance for aerial behavioral observations. Recordings were conducted from September to October 2017 on 11 horses using the Phantom 4 Pro drone. Four flight altitudes were tested (60, 50, 40, and 30 m) to investigate the reactions of the horses to the drones and observe their behavior; the recording time at each altitude was 5 min. None of the horses displayed avoidance behavior at any flight altitude, and the observer was able to distinguish between any two horses. Recorded behaviors were foraging, moving, standing, recumbency, avoidance, and others. Foraging was the most common behavior observed both directly and in the drone videos. The correlation coefficients of all behavioral data from direct and drone video observations at all altitudes were significant (<i>p</i> < 0.01). These results indicate that horse behavior can be discerned with equal accuracy by both direct and recorded drone video observations. In conclusion, drones can be useful for recording and analyzing horse behavior.https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/5/3/71horsedronebehavioral observationgrazingflight altitude |
| spellingShingle | Tomoko Saitoh Moyu Kobayashi Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral Observation Drones horse drone behavioral observation grazing flight altitude |
| title | Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral Observation |
| title_full | Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral Observation |
| title_fullStr | Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral Observation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral Observation |
| title_short | Appropriate Drone Flight Altitude for Horse Behavioral Observation |
| title_sort | appropriate drone flight altitude for horse behavioral observation |
| topic | horse drone behavioral observation grazing flight altitude |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2504-446X/5/3/71 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT tomokosaitoh appropriatedroneflightaltitudeforhorsebehavioralobservation AT moyukobayashi appropriatedroneflightaltitudeforhorsebehavioralobservation |