Thanks to the Nature Conservancy’s blog for this addition to our growing file of stories about non-intrusive filming of wild animals in remote places:

Camera Trapping in the Australian Desert

BY JUSTINE E. HAUSHEER

When trying to drink out of a tiny waterhole, camels hit approximately a 9.5 on a scale from 1 to Exceptionally Awkward.And now thanks to camera trap data, you can watch camels, kangaroos, dingoes and emus from the heart of Australia take a drink at remote desert waterholes.

In July 2016, scientists from The Nature Conservancy traveled to Martu country in Western Australia as part of a waterhole health monitoring study. Led by Eddie Game, the lead scientist for Asia Pacific, they worked with rangers from the cultural organization Kanyirninpa Jukurrpa to deploy camera traps next to remote desert waterholes to better understand how non-native camels affect waterhole health and water availability.

Check out the video above to watch the best camera trap data from three waterholes on country, and read more about the science behind the images here.