AI-powered conservation project ends

A project combining artificial intelligence with conservation has come to an end.

Space4Nature - a collaboration between Buglife, Surrey Wildlife Trust, the University of Surrey and Painshill Park - said it had spent three years working with new technologies and approaches to nature recovery.

It added it had combined high-resolution satellite imagery, citizen science and machine learning to "revolutionise how we understand and monitor habitats".

Space4Nature said it had also restored more than 60 hectares of pollinator habitat at 22 sites across Surrey, including wildflower meadows, heathlands, wetlands and hedgerows.

More than £100,000 had been deployed to connect network insect pathways, it added.

Space4Nature said some 350 volunteers had been trained in ecological surveys for both invertebrates and vegetation.

It explained that the data collected by volunteers was fed into machine learning models, alongside satellite imagery.

This allowed the Space4Nature team to develop a predictive model for grassland and lowland heathland habitats.

"Once peer-reviewed findings are published in scientific journals, the resulting habitat maps will be freely available via the LandApp platform – putting powerful conservation intelligence into the hands of anyone who needs it," according to Space4Nature.

"Space4Nature has advanced our ability to deploy the most cutting-edge satellite and machine learning technology for conservation purposes," said Zoe Channon from Surrey Wildlife Trust.

"But it has also put boots on the ground to deliver immediate improvements for pollinators in habitats.

"It's a perfect example of how local and strategic action can and must combine to deliver nature's recovery."

The project also engaged with local communities, partnering with schools, landowners, community groups and Surrey Nature Partnership in more than 150 events, Space4Nature added.

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