Can camera traps count game?

Abstract

Game counts provide essential information for the management of wildlife populations. On Ongava Game Reserve we assessed whether camera traps could assist in the count process. We found that camera traps not only can substitute for human observers for nocturnal counts, they record more events and hence count more animals.  We also found that traps record cryptic and small species that are often missed by observers. In contrast, we found that camera traps cannot substitute for observers for diurnal observations when animal group sizes of more than 10 animals are present.