Long-wave infrared imaging for non-invasive beehive population assessment.
Long-wave infrared imaging is used for non-invasive assessment of the internal population of honey bee colonies. The radiometrically calibrated camera signal is related to the number of frames that are populated by bees inside each hive. This enables rapid measurement of population without opening the hive, which disturbs the bees and can endanger the queen. The best results are obtained just before sunrise, when there is maximum thermal contrast between the hive and the background. This technique can be important for bee hive monitoring or for applications requiring frequent hive assessment, such as the use of bees for detecting chemicals or explosives.
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana 59717, USA. jshaw@montana.edu
Joseph A
JA
Shaw
Paul W
PW
Nugent
Jennifer
J
Johnson
Jerry J
JJ
Bromenshenk
Colin B
CB
Henderson
Scott
S
Debnam
D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees / Q000502:physiology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D007259:Infrared Rays; D055620:Optical Phenomena; D010781:Photography; D011156:Population Density; D012919:Social Behavior