MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin scientists have launched an ambitious new project that uses trail cameras to inventory wildlife and tamp down simmering questions about how many deer really roam the state. University of Wisconsin-Madison and Department of Natural Resources researchers hope to place as many as 6,000 trail cameras across the state within the next two years. Photos will be uploaded to the Zooniverse website, where people from around the world can view them and classify creatures captured in them. Scientists already have deployed about 500 cameras in Sawyer and Iowa counties and hope to have as many as 1,500 in place by the end of 2016. DNR officials say the project, dubbed Snapshot Wisconsin, should provide a better sense of how many animals populate certain regions and when they’re most abundant.
