Camera trap data to estimate wildlife census and habitat use: preliminary results in the Dynamo Oasis (Pistoia, Italy)

Camera trapping has been a popular wildlife monitoring method since the 1990s and has been increasingly used to study elusive species indirectly and non-invasively. Camera trapping data can provide helpful information regarding population estimates, behavioural aspects and habitat use. This practical, reliable, and low-cost method allows management and conservation assessments to be made on the target species. Pursuing these objectives, a study was conducted within the Dynamo Oasis in the Municipality of San Marcello-Piteglio (Province of Pistoia). Thirteen georeferenced camera traps were placed opportunistically in a study area of approximately 1000 ha for four months. Through video analysis and the use of the QGIS software, the Python libraries GeoPandas and PySal, the presence (Catch per unit of effort) and spatial distribution of the target species (roe deer, mouflon, fox, wolf, fallow deer, deer, wild boar) based on land use were identified. Species distribution based on land use was carried out by calculating the Moran index, which represents the level of clustering for each species concerning a specific land use.