Sample report · simulated data
Parcel 7 deer density survey
This is the format every census report follows. The numbers here are simulated for illustration; your report covers your land, your flight, and your conditions.
1 · Summary
About five times the forest-health benchmark
We observed 23 deer on 142 acres, a density of 104 per square mile. Adjusted for deer the camera likely missed, the herd is 110 to 125 per square mile.
2 · Where the deer were
Detection map
Reading the map
Each dot is one confirmed deer. Lines are the flight transects, spaced so the thermal camera's view overlaps between passes. Eleven of 23 deer were within 500 ft of the old field.
- Survey date
- Jan 14 (sample)
- Flight window
- 05:10–06:40
- Sunrise
- 07:21
- Air temperature
- 21 °F
- Wind
- 3 mph NW
- Sky · ground
- Clear · frozen, no snow
- Canopy
- Leaf-off; ~20% conifer
3 · Classification
Groups, counts, and confidence
| Area | Deer | Antlered | Antlerless | Unknown | Detection confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hemlock draw (bedding) | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0.74–0.96 |
| Old field (feeding) | 6 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0.93–0.98 |
| East woods edge | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0.88–0.97 |
| Creek bottom | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0.81–0.95 |
| South hedgerow | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0.86–0.94 |
| Total | 23 | 5 | 14 | 4 | — |
Antlered deer are counted only when antlers are visible on the zoom camera. By late winter many bucks have shed, so some are counted as antlerless or unknown.
4 · Flight log
Every transect, timed
| Transect | Start | End | Altitude | New detections |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | 05:10 | 05:19 | 330 ft | 2 |
| T2 | 05:20 | 05:30 | 330 ft | 4 |
| T3 | 05:31 | 05:41 | 330 ft | 5 |
| T4 | 05:44 | 05:54 | 330 ft | 3 |
| T5 | 05:55 | 06:05 | 330 ft | 4 |
| T6 | 06:06 | 06:16 | 330 ft | 2 |
| T7 | 06:19 | 06:29 | 330 ft | 2 |
| T8 | 06:30 | 06:40 | 330 ft | 1 |
5 · Detection adjustment
Why the range is higher than the count
Thermal surveys miss some deer. Published field studies put detection at roughly 56% to 92%, depending mostly on cover and temperature. For this parcel's leaf-off hardwood with about 20% conifer cover, cold ground, and a repeat-pass check on two transects, we used a detection rate of 83% to 94%.
23 observed ÷ 0.94 = 24.5 deer, or 110 per mi². 23 ÷ 0.83 = 27.7 deer, or 125 per mi².
A repeat flight within 14 days narrows this range.
6 · What the camera couldn't see
Known limits on this flight
- Hemlock draw, about 6 acres. Dense conifer blocked part of the view. Three detections there are marked “verify.”
- Neighboring parcel. Four deer seen across the east boundary were not counted.
- Movement. One group moved between T3 and T4; matched by GPS and counted once.
7 · Trend (returning clients)
Three winters on the same transects
After a second year, every report includes the trend. Here the herd is falling, but it is still well above the goal.
Bars show observed density per mi²; whiskers show the detection-adjusted range. Simulated data.
8 · Recommendations
What we'd tell this landowner
Focus near the old field
Nearly half the herd was within 500 ft of it. That is where management effort will reach the most deer.
Protect regeneration
Add fenced exclosures in the east woods to measure browse damage against an unbrowsed plot.
Tighten the range
A repeat flight within 14 days would narrow 110–125 to a tighter band before the board vote.
Count again next winter
Same transects, same window, so next year's change is real.
Reserve a winter count window.
Counts fly Dec 1 – Mar 15, on cold, clear nights. Windows fill in order of request, and townships often need the numbers before spring board meetings.