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Mu¤oz, D.; Kapfer, J.; Olfenbuttel, C.
Do available products to mask human scent influence camera trap survey results?
2014 Wildlife Biology (20): 246-252
Our goal was to ascertain if the number of wildlife detections differ when human scent is masked versus unmasked while researchers perform regular camera maintenance. We hypothesized that wildlife capture rates would differ based on the presence of researcher scent, and we predicted captures would be higher on cameras where human scent was masked. We also believed that if no treatment effect was observed, two possible conclusions could be made: 1) the target species in the study region does not alter behavior due to human scent at camera trap stations and/or 2) employing available scent-masking products does not improve capture rates during camera trap surveys. The results of this study have potentially broad implications for the utility of this increasingly common survey technique.
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