Animal Biometrics: quantifying and detecting phenotypic appearance

Animal biometrics is an emerging field that develops quantified approaches for representing and detecting phenotypic appearance of species, individuals, behaviours and morphological traits. It operates at the intersection between pattern recognition, ecology and information sciences, producing computerized systems for phenotypic measurement and interpretation. Animal biometrics can benefit a wide range of disciplines including biogeography, population ecology and behavioural research. Currently, real-world applications are gaining momentum, augmenting the quantity and quality of ecological data collection and processing. However, advancing animal biometrics further will require integration of methodologies among the scientific disciplines involved. Such efforts will be worthwhile as great potential of this approach rests with the formal abstraction of phenomics, to create tractable interfaces between different organisational levels of life.