At the first eLTER Science Conference held in Tampere, Finland (23–27 June 2025), MAMBO coordinator Toke Thomas Høye (AU) delivered a keynote on automated species monitoring. His talk, part of the session “Advancing long-term ecological observations: integrating novel technologies for whole-system insights,”focused on using sensor networks and deep learning models for biodiversity observation.

Prof. Høye presented how camera traps combined with computer vision can continuously and non-invasively monitor species across different times of day and seasons. He shared findings from national and European-scale monitoring programmes, including MAMBO, to demonstrate how such systems can estimate species abundance, biomass, and diversity.

The keynote addressed the potential of automated methods to improve the standardisation and scalability of biodiversity monitoring, while also outlining current limitations and areas for further research. The presentation contributed to ongoing discussions on integrating new technologies into long-term ecological observation networks.

Read more about the highlights from the conference here.