Keeping an eye on things
THE thought of buying a wildlife camera for use on your boat might seem ridiculous, but before you dismiss the idea, it might be worth giving the suggestion a second thought.
Over the past few years, trail cameras, as they are sometimes called, have, like almost every other piece of technology, developed and reduced in size. As a result, they are not only smaller but also significantly cheaper.
In the past, these rather bulky and often costly boxes were the domain of wildlife enthusiasts who would rig them up to see what was living in a given area of woodland. This was to either record the findings or check to see what could potentially provide next Sunday's dinner! But today, many more nature lovers are using these devices to provide them with a fascinating insight into the animals that live close by, and this is just what boat owners can also do.
Not so long ago, Ltl Acorn brought out what had to be one of the smallest wildlife cameras to date. The Mini30 was not only very small but also shot very high-quality, 30 MP stills and video. They also broke new ground by enabling you to capture video in colour in the dark, something few, if any, of the competitors could do. But what makes this device of great interest to the boating community is that it is so small.
The Mini30 is only 13 x 8 x 5 cm and needs just 4 x AA batteries to operate. What’s more, the latest version now sports a far more subtle colour scheme in darker camo colours that help it blend into a woodland setting. Even if being able to blend into woodland isn’t the most useful feature on a narrowboat, the new colour scheme does make the units far less obvious, which is good if you want to use them for the surveillance of both the animal and human life around your boat.
The Mini30 provides an excellent 130-degree field of view and is able to record between preset times throughout the day if required, or simply left to run. The images can have a time stamp on them, and all of the files are recorded on to a micro SD card. So if you are interested in what is scuttling along the towpath during the night, or what may be swimming past on the other side, a trail camera like this would be ideal.
But quite apart from the wildlife, a trail camera can also provide you with images and/or footage of anyone who might be taking an interest in your boat. There are boat CCTV systems on offer, and I would be the last to suggest that a trail camera like this is just as good but, if your budget can’t stretch to a complete CCTV system, maybe a low-cost trail camera might be worth considering. Fitted inside or out, a camera like the Mini30 can record even in the dark without (in the case of the no glow version) alerting anyone to the fact they are being recorded.
So if you do love your wildlife and would be fascinated to learn more about what is around your boat, then a wildlife camera like the Mini30 might be a worthwhile investment. And, should the worst happen, it could also provide valuable evidence as to who, rather than what, was in the area!
The Ltl Acorn Mini30 costs from £149.99 to £169.99 depending on which model and configuration you choose, and they are available from the UK importer Pakatak at www. pakatak.co.uk