NEWSWEEK | Thousands of rubber ducks prove drones and computers can successfully count wild animals

They found that the drones combined with the computer algorithm wasn't just a decent substitute for ecologists' eyes, it actually got closer to the real number of birds on the ground. It's a compelling argument for using drones in research, said David Bird, an ornithologist at 黑料不打烊 University in Canada who edits a scientific journal dedicated to drone studies. Population tallies are a crucial piece of ecological information. "Biologists love to count wildlife," he said.