TECHNOLOGY AND CODE article
Front. Amphib. Reptile Sci.
Sec. Behavior and Ecology
Volume 3 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/famrs.2025.1599382
This article is part of the Research TopicGlobal Human-Snake Conflicts and Ethno-OphidiologyView all articles
Using Livestreaming Technology to Promote Public Engagement with Secretive and Maligned Animals
Provisionally accepted
Owen M. Bachhuber1*
Max C Roberts1*
Ryan M. Singer1
Doug R. Brewster2Rob A. Brewster2Kevin K. Dunham2
Scott M. Boback3
Emily N. Taylor1*- 1Biological Sciences Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, United States
- 2Bailey College of Science and Mathematics Design and Fabrication Facility, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, United States
- 3Biology Department, Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, United States
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As people become increasingly disconnected from nature, novel approaches are needed to facilitate empathy and conservation action for wildlife. Recent advances in livestreaming cameras enable the public’s observation of wild animals in real time and facilitate engagement community science. In 2024, we launched an off-grid livestreaming camera at a rattlesnake mega-den in Colorado, where hundreds of snakes emerge in the spring and dozens of females rest for the summer and prepare to give birth in the fall. This paper provides the first detailed description of the equipment and setup needed for remote, off-grid camera livestreaming. The camera continually streamed live to YouTube over the snakes' active season (May 15 through November 5). During this time, a group of students and volunteers operated the camera and moderated a live-chat by interacting with viewers and answering questions. YouTube comments reflected a feeling of community among the viewers, and many of them contributed to data collection from the livestream as community scientists. Media coverage of the livestream resulted in increased viewership. Livestreaming technology shows great potential for showcasing animal aggregations, connecting the public with nature and scientific research, and improving the public perceptions of unpopular animals like rattlesnakes.
Keywords: Wildlife camera, Human-snake relationship, Human-wildlife coexistence, Rattlesnake, Livestream, Virtual nature experiences, wildlife monitoring, Environmental Education
Received: 24 Mar 2025; Accepted: 26 May 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Bachhuber, Roberts, Singer, Brewster, Brewster, Dunham, Boback and Taylor. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Owen M. Bachhuber, Biological Sciences Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, United States
Max C Roberts, Biological Sciences Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, United States
Emily N. Taylor, Biological Sciences Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, United States
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.