Wildlife photo-identification

Photo-identification is a technique used to identify and track individuals of a wild animal study population over time.

It relies on capturing photographs of distinctive characteristics such as skin or pelage patterns or scars from the animal.

Photo-identification is generally used as an alternative to other, invasive methods of tagging that require attaching a device to each individual.

The technique enables precise counting, rather than rough estimation, of the number of animals in a population.

It also allows researchers to perform longitudinal studies of individuals over many years, yielding data about the lifecycle, lifespan, migration patterns, and social relationships of the animals.