March 12, 2009 -- Tigers' enchanting stripe patterns and gorgeous fur are their downfall -- poachers and illegal traders have pushed many tiger species to the brink of extinction, slaughtering them for their coveted pelts. But conservation researchers have found a new weapon against trade, a code hidden in tigers' stripes. Each tiger's markings are unique, like a fingerprint, and a new computer-driven technique can match images of live animals with illegally traded skins, identifying when and where poachers made their kills. Photographs of live, wild tigers are hard to come by -- like most big cats, they're notoriously reclusive. With a new system developed by Lex Hiby of Conservation Research Limited, automated camera traps do most of the image collecting. Then computer software melds several pictures into a three-dimensional map of an animal's markings on both sides, from the neck to the base of the tail. Related Content:
The map is digitally flattened until it resembles a tiger skin, which can be compared to pictures of skins being traded on the black market. Out of a collection of between 264 and 298 tigers with known stripe patterns in the Nagarhole and Bandipur tiger reserves in India, the program correctly matched 95 percent of images that belonged to the same animal. In a study of six images taken from three skins between 2006 and 2008, the program matched five to pictures of live tigers. In the sixth image the right flank of the skin was folded, preventing a strong match. "If copies of camera trap images were accumulated in a central database, an image of a skin that had been taken from one of the tigers in that database could be traced within a few minutes to where and when the living animal was last recorded," the authors wrote in a paper published this week in the journal Biology Letters. Pattern recognition software of this kind has been around for some time, and has been used to identify gray seals, cheetahs and whale sharks, among other animals. Get More NewsSpiders, Scorpions Among World's Oldest CreaturesMany creepy crawlies have been on Earth much longer than previously believed.Blood-Sucking Vampire Bats Sing DuetsWhite-winged vampire bats "harmonize" with separated roost mates.Oldest Hebrew Writing Possibly FoundAncient inscriptions on a 3,000-year-old pottery shard could make history.Rare, Prehistoric-Age Reptile Found in N.Z.A tuatara has been spotted on the New Zealand mainland for the first time in 200 years.Iceman Has No Living RelativesOetzi, the 5,300 year-old frozen mummy, left no living genetic legacy.SLIDE SHOW: Landscapes of TerrorWhat makes a place feel scary? There are scientific explanations.It's Official: People Are Warming the PolesHumans are conclusively to blame for polar warming, say scientists.Eight-Armed Animal Preceded DinosaursWhat may be one of Earth's first animals was no bigger than a coaster and had eight arms.Phoenicians Live on in People's GenesOne in 17 Mediterranean men may be descended from ancient Phoenicians.Pesticides, Fertilizers Linked to Frog DeclineA pesticide is found to promote parasites among amphibians.Hubble Telescope Taking Photos AgainThe Hubble Space Telescope is once again snapping stunning photos of the universe.Andean Mummy Hairs Show Hallucinogen UseScientists find direct evidence of hallucinogenic drug use among ancient Andeans.Opals on Mars Reveal Planet's Long Wet PastOpals found on Mars suggest the planet has been wet for much longer. |
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