Monitoring Pine Marten Den Boxes: Guidance for Camera Trap Set Ups

This guide provides recommendations for using camera traps effectively and responsibly to monitor pine marten den boxes for volunteers and professionals.

There is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ camera trap setup for monitoring a den box, yet there are steps that can be taken to ensure a camera trap setup works at its best to reliably capture the footage needed with minimal disturbance to pine martens. Recommendations in this guide consider the technical aspects of how camera traps work and reflect on the experiences of surveyors in the field. This guide has been developed by NatureSpy, in collaboration with Johnny Birks, John Martin and Vincent Wildlife Trust.

The following topics are covered:

• Precautions with monitoring a protected species

• Types of pine marten den boxes

• Applications of camera trap footage

• Choosing equipment and recommended settings

• Checks to determine den box occupancy

• Minimising disturbance to denning pine martens

• Setting up a camera trap to monitor a den box

Download the PDF here:

Monitoring Pine Marten Den Boxes: Guidance for Effective Camera Trap Set Ups

Recommended Equipment 

Below we list our current recommendations and most popular equipment for monitoring pine marten den boxes. 

Browning Recon Force Elite HP5

Browning Recon Force trail cameras, including past models like the Advantage, Edge, and Elite HP4, have long been a popular choice for pine marten conservation projects due to their outstanding video quality and versatility. The current model in this range is the Browning Recon Force Elite HP5, which offers the best video quality yet and a slightly wider field of view.

• Detailed, high quality video (1080p at 60fps).

• Highly responsive and reliable detection circuit for fast triggers (0.3s for video, 0.02s for photo). 

• Efficient with batteries, expect 3+ months on video mode with 8x lithium AA batteries. 

• Easy to install with a forward facing preview screen for aiming the camera effectively.

Browning Recon Force Advantage sample footage

NatureSpy Ursus Trail Camera

The NatureSpy Ursus trail camera combines our field experience from conservation projects with customer demand for a more affordable, robust, and reliable trail camera. 

• Clear video footage (1080p at 30fps). 

• Extra durable, with an IP67 rated housing for outstanding performance in higher humidity conditions.

• Responsive detection circuit (0.6s video trigger, 0.3s photo trigger).

• Good battery life, expect 3 months on video mode with 6x lithium AA batteries.

 NatureSpy Ursus sample footage

Camojojo Trace 4G trail camera

The Camojojo Trace features wireless 4G connectivity, allowing instant control of the camera and access to footage through the Camojojo smartphone app. Compared to the traditional trail cameras listed above, this model is well-suited for more specific applications, such as monitoring pine marten den boxes in real time or in hard-to-reach locations. Paired with a solar panel and rechargeable battery pack, the Camojojo Trace is also a good choice for longer-term deployments. 

• Clear video footage (1080p at 30fps).

• Remote control, footage notifications and live view via a smartphone app.

• Ongoing running cost of a mobile data plan (around £5 - £15 per month, depending on tier).

• Responsive detection circuit (0.6s video trigger, 0.3s photo trigger).

Camojojo Trace sample footage

Pulsar Thermal Imaging Cameras

Pulsar thermal imaging cameras are a reliable choice for checking den box occupancy prior to the installation of a trail camera. A current popular model for den box monitoring is the entry-level Pulsar Axion XM30F. More advanced Pulsar models will produce clearer thermal images out to longer ranges, however, this is not essential for den box monitoring.

Occupied pine marten den box, viewed through the Pulsar XP50 Pro

For further advice on suitable equipment for monitoring pine marten den boxes, please get in touch.