Conservation of the world’s rarest primates is an urgent task; the estimated population of Hainan gibbons (Nomascus hainanus) has fallen to only 35 or 36 individuals, limited to Bawangling National Nature Reserve in China’s Hainan province. To help save the species from extinction, experts have deployed a big toolbox of technological solutions, from machine learning to computer vision.
Emmanuel Dufourq, a resident researcher at the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences, lead a 2019 project to process audio data collected from the reserve. Working with a team from the Zoological Society of London, Dufourq trained a machine learning algorithm to identify gibbon calls with 79% accuracy. In a later study published in 2022, Dufourq was able to improve his model to correctly identify false positives such as calls made at night by inputting human insights from multiple years of field research.
The IUCN, the global wildlife conservation authority, has also teamed up with the Chinese technology giant Huawei. Their joint research project uses acoustic monitoring and AI identification to detect the endangered Hainan gibbons with an accuracy of 89.2%. They are currently working to develop a voice ID system for individual gibbons. Machine learning and computer vision are also used to more accurately detect the black and yellow fur color of Hainan gibbons, particularly in the foggy conditions of the forest.
Paul A. Garber, professor emeritus at the University of Illinois, has been working with a team of researchers in China to study Hainan gibbons for years using tools such as infrared cameras and DNA testing. Garber also advocates using technology to raise awareness of the need to conserve such a rare species.
Huawei is a Chinese tech company that focuses on 5G technology, cloud computing, AI and IoT. Founded in 1987, Huawei is the largest supplier of telecoms equipment in the world and the leader in 5G technology. The collaboration with IUCN is one of its many initiatives to help conserve the environment and biodiversity.
Emmanuel Dufourq is a resident researcher at the African Institute of Mathematical Sciences. He is well-versed in machine learning, bioacoustics, and artificial intelligence, and uses these skills to develop algorithms that detect wildlife, particularly Hainan gibbons. His projects help researchers automate more tedious processes and analyze more data with more accuracy.
