The modern digital camera trap is simply a digital compact camera sensor wired up to a passive infrared sensor, which is able to “see” the infrared radiation given out by warm-blooded animals. This sensor looks for sudden changes in the surface temperature of the environment in front of it, which could indicate the presence of an animal.

These are sometimes called “remote cameras”; remote cameras are triggered in the absence of human operators but not necessarily by an animal. Other names for camera traps include scouting cameras or trail cameras.

Camera traps have a unique set of advantages over other rival tools for conservation. A single camera trap deployed in the field can collect vast amounts of data, and over a very long time period, relative to many other sampling methods.

Camera traps are also considered to be a “non-invasive” method: they do not physically capture or harm animals. Deployed correctly, they allow a window into the behaviour of animals relatively undisturbed by humans. Camera traps are also a highly effective way of sampling nocturnal species, which usually make up the majority of mammal communities. Since camera traps work around the clock unhindered, they also offer a unique window into the activity patterns of a species.