Quantitative investigation of insect activity in their natural habitat is a challenging task for entomologist. It is difficult to address questions such as flight direction, predation strength and overall activities using the current techniques such as traps and sweep nets. A multi-spectral kHz remote detection system using sunlight as an illumination source is presented. We explore possibilities of remote optical classification of insects based on their wing-beat frequencies and iridescence features. It is shown that the wing-beat frequency of the fast insect events can be resolved by implementing high sampling frequency. The iridescence features generated from the change of color in two channels (visible and near infrared) during wing-beat cycle is presented. We show that the shape of the wing-beat trajectory is different for different insects. The flight direction of atmospheric insect is also determined using silicon quadrant detector.

Date Published: 8 October 2014
PDF: 17 pages
Proc. SPIE 9221, Remote Sensing and Modeling of Ecosystems for Sustainability XI, 922106 (8 October 2014); doi: 10.1117/12.2060827

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9221:
Remote Sensing and Modeling of Ecosystems for Sustainability XI
Wei Gao; Ni-Bin Chang; Jinnian Wang, Editor(s)