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Robot drone could protect Great Barrier Reef by killing crown-of-thorns starfish
An underwater drone that can keep watch over the Great Barrier Reef's health and kill invading species is ready to be put to the test.
Researchers from Queensland University of Technology say their robot reef protector can monitor coral bleaching, water quality, pest species, pollution and sediment buildup. It has also been trained to detect crown-of-thorns starfish with 99% accuracy and can inject the coral-eating starfish with vinegar or bile salts, both deadly to the invasive predator.
Professor Matthew Dunbabin said RangerBot was not only autonomous but could also stay under water three times longer than a human diver and operate in all weather conditions. "It's an impressive piece of technology, [it's] also deliberately low cost to allow production to be scaled up once the next level of operational testing is completed and all the necessary approvals are in place," he said on Friday.
Dunbabin said the team hoped to eventually launch the drones up the length of the 2,300-kilometre long reef.
Also at Digital Trends.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by bradley13 on Monday September 10 2018, @05:27PM (5 children)
Despite what TFA implies, this starfish is native to the area. In the last few decades, there have been several population surges. While not entirely understood, there seem to be two primary causes: (1) a lack of predators, due to overfishing), and (2) high concentrations of nutrients in the water, leading to survival of more larvae, due to agricultural runoff polluted with fertilizers.
The idea of sending robots down to kill of large numbers of a native species? Seems like an idea pre-programmed to backfire. How about addressing the primary causes, instead?
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.
(Score: 2) by archfeld on Monday September 10 2018, @06:26PM
Simply put that is not what corporations do. They address the symptoms so there is an ongoing market for financially enriching 'treatment' program. I wonder if starfish taste good ? That would quickly solve the problem.
For the NSA : Explosives, guns, assassination, conspiracy, primers, detonators, initiators, main charge, nuclear charge
(Score: 2) by acid andy on Monday September 10 2018, @09:46PM (1 child)
If it doesn't involving killing some innocent creature, they just won't take the idea seriously.
If a cat has kittens, does a rat have rittens, a bat bittens and a mat mittens?
(Score: 2) by archfeld on Monday September 10 2018, @10:37PM
They'd take the idea of saving some creature seriously too, IF you could show them how to make a profit doing it. Take eco-tourism for example. If having an elephant around makes them a buck then there will be elephants around.
For the NSA : Explosives, guns, assassination, conspiracy, primers, detonators, initiators, main charge, nuclear charge
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 10 2018, @10:01PM
If a lack of predators is a primary cause, how do you figure introducing robopredators is not addressing that cause?
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Fluffeh on Monday September 10 2018, @10:16PM
Look, I agree that spilling the milk is a bad idea, and in retrospect, we shouldn't have been hopping on one foot while trying to rub out belly and pat our head all while trying to get the milk out of the fridge - but I am pretty sure we can agree that once the milk is spilled, it needs to be cleaned up off the floor.
Yes, of course fixing runoff that these things love is a good idea. Of course restoring the natural food chain back to it's original state is a good idea. As is taking an extra moment to try to restore balance in a system that has very clearly destabilised and is literally eating itself apart.