Recently, Axis cameras have been used to perform a pivotal educational role on an important seabird island that’s helping to increase connectivity with nature and inspire next generation of conservationists.
The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales (WTSWW) has successfully implemented a remote monitoring solution using network cameras from Axis Communications to help educate the world about wildlife through livestream innovation.
On a remote island setting in changeable weather conditions, Axis cameras are helping to bring the lives of its Puffin population to YouTube.
View Puffin Bank Cam – Skomer Island Livestream: The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales – YouTube
Located off the coast of Pembrokeshire in West Wales, Skomer Island is a 720-acre National Nature Reserve designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and Special Protection Area, and critically, is one of the most important seabird islands in the world. It is home to more than 41,000 puffins and the largest colony of Manx shearwaters in the world – about 350,000 breeding pairs.
WTSWW initially upgraded its old analogue system which just sent footage to a monitoring station. The first upgrade, however, did not successfully endure the aggressive salt air conditions, and when the cameras malfunctioned, there was high demand to bring them back.
At that point, the Trust raised funds for the Axis cameras and set Pembrokeshire based systems integrator Dragon WiFi the challenge of connecting Skomer Island and its wildlife to the viewing public via livestream.
Seamless remote connectivity
Setting up camera hardware on Skomer has not always proved straightforward – burrowing by the island’s resident wildlife previously undermined an installation of a pole mounted on a concrete block, for example.
Guy Farley, Managing Director of Dragon WiFi, commented: “It’s not your typical site, it’s off-grid, which makes Wi-Fi critical for the island. But there’s no broadband connection under the water, and no fibre.
“We had to be creative, so we attached their visitor centre on the mainland to our wireless broadband mast, then set up a wireless link over to the island which is 2 miles away.”
While connectivity with the outside world was a challenge, establishing a running system with Axis hardware was straight forward. “For a task like this, where we were looking to establish YouTube streaming, it was perfect,” explained Guy. “We’re also partnered with livestreaming provider CamStreamer, and the integrations between that software and Axis hardware are excellent.
“Install the app, and we’ve got remote access to the cameras – no fiddling with routers or port forwarding. We’ve also fallen in love with AXIS Camera Station Edge: no quibble, no codecs needed. It just works.”
Accessing Skomer’s education value
Streamed free to YouTube during the breeding season between March and September, views on the new Skomer Island livestream exceeded 120,000 in its first season.
Grace Hunt, Communications Officer for WTSWW, custodian of over 100 reserves in Wales, said: “It’s a great customer experience and education tool, fantastic for inspiring the next generation of conservationists.”
There are numerous reasons to watch Skomer Island’s webcams, as Grace explains: “One is accessibility – the Trust is passionate about making sure people can connect with nature.
“Visiting Skomer can be difficult, for some people it’s just not possible, so a livestream is an attractive alternative. In addition, we use our Axis cameras for research and science, looking at the behaviour of the native wildlife and adding to our conservation work; and there’s a safety component – the cameras help us assess the state of the island remotely, and decide whether the weather is safe enough for us to make a boat landing.”
WTSWW hopes to promote livestream footage further in coming seasons, using it to raise the Trust’s profile and encourage new memberships.
You can read the full case study here.
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