With biodiversity loss escalating globally, a step change is needed in our capacity to accurately monitor species populations across ecosystems. Robotic and autonomous systems (RAS) offer technological solutions that may substantially advance terrestrial biodiversity monitoring, but this potential is yet to be considered systematically. We used a modified Delphi technique to synthesize knowledge from 98 biodiversity experts and 31 RAS experts, who identified the major methodological barriers that currently hinder monitoring, and explored the opportunities and challenges that RAS offer in overcoming these barriers. Biodiversity experts identified four barrier categories: site access, species and individual identification, data handling and storage, and power and network availability. Robotics experts highlighted technologies that could overcome these barriers and identified the developments needed to facilitate RAS-based autonomous biodiversity monitoring. Some existing RAS could be optimized relatively easily to survey species but would require development to be suitable for monitoring of more 'difficult' taxa and robust enough to work under uncontrolled conditions within ecosystems. Other nascent technologies (for instance, new sensors and biodegradable robots) need accelerated research. Overall, it was felt that RAS could lead to major progress in monitoring of terrestrial biodiversity by supplementing rather than supplanting existing methods. Transdisciplinarity needs to be fostered between biodiversity and RAS experts so that future ideas and technologies can be codeveloped effectively.

Acoustics Group Department of Electronic Systems Norwegian University of Science and Technology Trondheim Norway

AI Lab ApS Maden 3 Aarhus 5 Denmark

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Boscombe UK

Animal Rural and Environmental Sciences Nottingham Trent University Nottinghamshire UK

Applied Ecology Research Group School of Life Sciences Anglia Ruskin University Cambridge UK

Biomorphic Intelligence Lab Department of Control and Operations Faculty of Aerospace Engineering TU Delft Delft The Netherlands

Bristol Robotics Laboratory UWE Bristol Bristol UK

British Antarctic Survey Natural Environment Research Council High Cross Cambridge UK

Butterfly Conservation Manor Yard East Lulworth UK

Center for Ecology Evolution and Environmental Changes Departamento de Biologia Animal Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa Lisboa Portugal

Centre for Agri Environmental Research School of Agriculture Policy and Development Reading University Reading UK

Centre for Conservation and Restoration Science Edinburgh Napier University Edinburgh UK

Centre for Conservation Science University of Newcastle Callaghan Newcastle New South Wales Australia

Centre for Ecology and Hydrology Penicuik UK

Centre for Environmental Policy Imperial College London London UK

Centre for Robotics and Assembly School of Aerospace Transport and Manufacturing Cranfield University Bedford UK

Centre for Sustainable Planning and Environments University of the West of England Bristol Bristol UK

Conservation Ecology Group Department of Biosciences Durham University Durham UK

Departamento de Biodiversidad Ecología y Evolución Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas Universidad Complutense Madrid Spain

Department of Biological Sciences Royal Holloway University of London Egham UK

Department of Biological Sciences University of New Hampshire Durham NH USA

Department of Biology and Centre d'Études Nordiques University of Moncton Moncton Canada

Department of Computing Imperial College London London UK

Department of Ecological Dynamics Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research IZW Berlin Germany

Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Colorado Boulder CO USA

Department of Engineering Harper Adams University Newport UK

Department of Environmental Management Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences Bayero University Kano Nigeria

Department of Environmental Science and Policy College of Science George Mason University Fairfax VA USA

Department of Forest Botany Dendrology and Geobiocoenology Mendel University in Brno Brno Czech Republic

Department of Geography and Environmental Sciences Northumbria University Newcastle upon Tyne UK

Department of Geoinformatics Cartography and Remote Sensing Faculty of Geography and Regional Studies University of Warsaw Warsaw Poland

Department of Integrative Biology University of South Florida St Petersburg FL USA

Department of Integrative Biology University of Texas at Austin Austin TX USA

Department of Life Sciences Imperial College London London UK

Department of Life Sciences Imperial College London Silwood Park Campus Ascot UK

Department of Plant Sciences and Centre for Global Wood Security University of Cambridge Cambridge UK

Department of Plant Sciences University of California Davis Davis CA USA

Department of Urban and Regional Planning Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences Bayero University Kano Nigeria

Department of Urban and Rural Development Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Uppsala Sweden

Department of Zoology University of Cambridge Cambridge UK

Digital Ecology Limited Bristol UK

Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology School of Natural Sciences University of Kent Canterbury UK

Ecology and Biodiversity Utrecht University Utrecht The Netherlands

Edinburgh Centre for Robotics School of Mathematical and Computer Sciences Heriot Watt University Edinburgh UK

Faculty of Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics The Open University Walton Hall Milton Keynes UK

Fauna and Flora The David Attenborough Building Cambridge UK

Greenhood Nepal Kathmandu Nepal

HUTAN SWD Kota Kinabalu Malaysia

Insect Robotics Group School of Informatics University of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK

Institute for Sustainability School of Mechanical Engineering Sciences University of Surrey Guildford UK

Institute of Design Robotics and Optimisation School of Mechanical Engineering University of Leeds Leeds UK

Institute of Science and Environment University of Cumbria Carlisle UK

Institute of Zoology Zoological Society of London Regent's Park London UK

Intelligent Robotics Group Department of Computer Science Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth UK

Interdisciplinary Centre for Conservation Biology Department of Biology University of Oxford Oxford UK

Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia Bioinspired Soft Robotics Laboratory Genoa Italy

IUCN SSC Species Monitoring Specialist Group Laboratory for Conservation Biology Department of Ecology and Evolution University of Lausanne Lausanne Switzerland

Lincoln Centre for Autonomous Systems University of Lincoln Lincoln UK

Mechanical Engineering Department University College London London UK

Natural Resources and Environmental Studies Institute University of Northern British Columbia Prince George British Columbia Canada

Palaeogenomics Group Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Ludwig Maximilian University Munich Munich Germany

Physical AI Laboratory Department of Mechanical Engineering Ben Gurion University of the Negev Beer Sheva Israel

Programa de Pós Graduação em Gestão e Tecnologia Ambiental da Universidade Federal de Rondonópolis Rondonópolis Brasil

Research Department of Genetics Evolution and Environment University College London London UK

Rothamsted Research Harpenden UK

Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh Edinburgh UK

Royal Botanic Gardens Kew Millennium Seed Bank Wakehurst Place Ardingly UK

RSPB Centre for Conservation Science Cambridge UK

Sabah Landscape Programme WWF Malaysia Kota Kinabalu Malaysia

School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences Queen Mary University of London London UK

School of Biological and Environmental Sciences Liverpool John Moores University Liverpool UK

School of Biological Sciences University of Bristol Bristol UK

School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich Research Park Norwich UK

School of Biological Sciences University of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK

School of Biological Sciences University of Reading Reading UK

School of Biological Sciences Waipapa Taumata Rau University of Auckland Auckland New Zealand

School of Computing Engineering and the Built Environment Edinburgh Napier University Edinburgh UK

School of Computing University of Kent Canterbury UK

School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering University of Leeds Leeds UK

School of Engineering Mathematics and Physics University of Kent Canterbury UK

School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology University of Bristol Bristol UK

School of Environmental Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich UK

School of Environmental Sciences University of Liverpool Liverpool UK

School of Geography Earth and Environmental Sciences University of Birmingham Birmingham UK

School of Geography University of Nottingham Nottingham UK

School of Life and Environmental Sciences Deakin University Melbourne Burwood Campus Australia

School of Life Sciences University of Sussex Brighton UK

School of Mathematical and Computer Sciences Heriot Watt University Edinburgh UK

School of Natural and Environmental Sciences Newcastle University Newcastle UK

School of Natural Sciences University of Lincoln Lincoln UK

School of Science Western Sydney University Penrith New South Wales Australia

Scotland's Rural College Aberdeen UK

Southeast Asia Rainforest Research Partnerships Kota Kinabalu Malaysia

Synthotech Ltd Milner Court Hornbeam Square Harrogate UK

UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology Wallingford UK

UKCEH Lancaster Environment Centre Bailrigg UK

Wageningen Environmental Research Wageningen University and Research Wageningen The Netherlands

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