Aerial and ground surveys
The aerial survey was plagued by bad weather, high winds, then sun which is not good for using a thermal camera, then heavy rain. Nevertheless we managed to get some flights in and we are currently working with the data to check if any collared wallabies were detected. About 40-50 wallabies were sighted during the aerial surveys. On three days following the aerial surveys a contractor (Ross Chilton) with two dogs surveyed the area, with Oscar (a Landcare Research technician) following behind recording GPS locations and directions and distances to all wallabies detected. On these days about 70 wallabies were seen. Grant Morriss (another Landcare Research technician) radio-tracked the wallabies with Ross and shot them to recover the collars.
