For Good Measure
Exploring the world of nature data, and the picks and shovels used to gather it
🪸 We’re Superorganism, the first VC for startups that benefit biodiversity. Each month we publish thoughts from the frontline, company updates, and a round-up of new happenings in the nature tech world.
If we never hear “you can’t manage what you don’t measure” again, it’ll be too soon. But that doesn’t make it untrue, and doubly so for biodiversity.
Measuring biodiversity has historically had its fair share of challenges. As we enter a new era with increasing corporate interest in measuring the biodiversity within their supply chains (both impacts and risks), those challenges are becoming more apparent and pressing.
This month, we’re tackling the big nature data questions: what is it, why do we need it, and how do we measure biodiversity?
A Wild Challenge
Conservationists have been measuring biodiversity for centuries.
The Western scientific basis of biodiversity came from samples gathered in the field by naturalists. Field expeditions like Charles Darwin’s journey on The Beagle and Alfred Russell Wallace’s travels in the Malay archipelago resulted in thousands of new species known to science, and to the birth of the theory of evolution by natural selection (by both men independently).
Today, both the monitoring of nature and the study of ecology has been more decentralized. New technologies like camera traps, eDNA, acoustic sensors, remote sensing, and even cell phones have made data collection cheaper, less invasive, more distributed, and higher quality and quantity. Millions of conservationists and land managers, and hundreds of millions of citizen scientists with cameras, can now collect data anywhere.
But even with our new applied use of technology, monitoring still has its challenges.
Access to the field is hard. Getting data from the furthest reaches of inaccessible jungle or the deepest oceans is a real logistical challenge.
Nature is hard on tech. Gear needs to resist weather, salt damage, low service, and a veritable ark of wildlife from monkeys to hyenas that seem to enjoy destroying weird boxes. Long-duration field tech needs to be rugged.
It’s expensive. Due in part to the above, getting the right gear, with the right team, and getting it to the right place is often more costly than many budgets can manage.
It’s never the full picture. If you deploy a bunch of camera traps on an island and don’t record your target species, is it not present or did it just not walk in front of your trap?
Beyond the logistic difficulties, what you collect matters. Biodiversity can mean something different at the genetic, species, and ecosystem levels, and different data matters at each level.
The Nature Monitoring Renaissance
We’re at a turning point in the history of biodiversity monitoring. Several forces are conspiring that could lead to a renaissance in how we track the natural world. Technology is making it increasingly possible to collect nature data at an unprecedented scale.
Costs of sensing technology are decreasing, while quality is improving. Cheaper device and cloud storage are enabling an avalanche of new data, from which increasingly powerful AI models are distilling insights. And with access to data and developer talent, platforms and dashboards to visualize this biodiversity data are becoming increasingly simpler to build.
Put simply: for the first time, it’s becoming possible to imagine measuring all nature, everywhere.
This is coming at a time when interest in measuring nature data is at an all-time high. Whether due to compliance with regulations like the EU Deforestation Regulation or CSRD, or voluntary disclosures through the CDP or TNFD, corporations are slowly beginning to address biodiversity.
It’s not just feel-good corporate commitments, either – there is real opportunity. Asset managers of $17.7 trillion AUM and corporations with over $6.5 trillion in market cap have committed to reporting on nature. Tools that were previously the purview of techy conservationists, now have a multi-billion opportunity to help corporations gather primary data, provide insights, and report on impacts.
Key to this is the willingness to pay (and budget to back it up), plus new investment interest in nature tech, pouring oxygen on the R&D flame. It’s a new day for biodiversity monitoring.
Several tech tools come up as the “picks and shovels” of biodiversity monitoring, mainstays used by conservationists and corporations alike.
📸 Imaging and Camera Traps
These automated systems provide crucial visual data on species presence, behaviors, and habitat use. Camera traps are particularly effective for tracking elusive or nocturnal species, a passive yet powerful way to detect rare species. Platforms like Wildlife Insights, GBIF, and iNaturalist allow users to store and manage their image data, while also contributing to open science and benefitting from AI species classification like WildMe or SpeciesNet.
The next generation of camera traps tech includes:
Edge processing units for existing hardware like The Sentinel
Miniaturized, AI-enabled units like Nightjar
💧 Environmental DNA (eDNA)
Samples from the environment reveal DNA that has been shed by the many organisms that live there, revealing the presence of hundreds of species. This non-invasive method is particularly useful for monitoring aquatic and microbial biodiversity, providing insights into species that might otherwise be difficult to observe. Companies like NatureMetrics use eDNA to detect species presence through genetic material collected from water, soil, or air samples.
The next generation of genetic field sensing includes:
Pollinator DNA tools like The Best Bees Company or Beeodiversity
Field sequencers like Oxford Nanopore
Rugged field detection tools like the NABIT
🎙️ Acoustic Monitoring
By monitoring natural soundscapes, businesses and conservationists can detect biodiversity changes and assess the health of ecosystems in real time, especially in dense habitats where visual observation is limited. Acoustic tools like Rainforest Connection and AudioMoth capture soundscapes to analyze vocal species such as birds, amphibians, and insects.
The next generation of acoustic monitors includes:
Miniaturized, low-cost monitors like the Birdweather PUC
Next-gen full-platform acoustic tools like Synature
🛰️ Remote Sensing and Geospatial Analysis
These technologies can help businesses to track deforestation, measure carbon sequestration, and monitor ecosystem health with high precision. Remote sensing is invaluable for industries like agriculture and urban planning, where large-scale land use decisions must be made with environmental considerations in mind. Firms such as Planet and Maxar provide satellite imagery and hyperspectral data for large-scale environmental monitoring. Meanwhile, drone flights can image with sub-centimeter resolution, and AI tools help to classify land cover, species types, even invasive species.
The next generation of remote sensors includes:
High-quality hyperspectral providers like Matter
Drone-based telemetry and monitoring like Wildlife Drones or Bioverse
Land classification tools like Understory or Gentian
But What To Measure?
Ask an ecologist how to measure biodiversity and they’ll say, “define biodiversity.” Even the word “biodiversity” is debated as a catch-all with no true scientific meaning (and don’t get us started on “species”).
Biodiversity is more than a single metric: it’s a tapestry of native and non-native species, their interactions that form populations and ecosystems, and the change in those ecosystems and species over time. It’s part of why there’s no universally accepted, catch-all metric like the climate movement has in CO2e: the very things that make biodiversity special, can make it quite tricky to measure and compare.
That’s not to say we don’t know how to measure it. We do - it’s how we know there’s an extinction crisis in the first place. Efforts like the Living Planet Index show that wildlife populations have declined 73% since 1970.
In fact, there are many things to measure, and many indicators that can tell you about different aspects of an ecosystem. What works for an ecologist may not work for a corporation. Before we pick the tools, the critical first step is to understand what data you want, based on what you want to track. Ecologists look at a myriad of data such as…
🧬 Genetic Composition: the genetic diversity within species, determining their ability to adapt to changing environments and overall evolutionary fitness. Such as:
Genetic diversity: The variation in DNA within a species.
Genetic differentiation: The variation in DNA between populations.
Effective population size: How the number of individuals affect genetic diversity.
Inbreeding: Mating between related individuals.
🐟 Species Populations: tracking species by the range, type, and count of individual species to detect trends and interactions among populations. Such as:
Species distributions: Where a species is likely to be found over time and space.
Species abundances: How many individuals of a species are in an area.
🐩 Species Traits: Within-species variation. Think, the difference between a Doberman and a poodle. Such as:
Morphology: Physical differences within a species.
Physiology: How an organism's body functions and adapts.
Phenology: Seasonal patterns in an organism's life.
Movement: How and where organisms travel.
Reproduction: How organisms create offspring.
🪸 Community Composition: the mix of species that form a specific ecosystem. Not just forest, but the difference between pine forest and mangrove forest. Such as:
Community abundance: Relative numbers of organisms in a habitat.
Taxonomic diversity: Variety of species and their evolutionary relationships.
Trait diversity: Range of characteristics these organisms have.
Interaction diversity: Variety of ways these organisms interact in the habitat.
🍄 Ecosystem Functioning: a healthy ecosystem has functions like nutrient cycling and carbon sequestration that keep the whole system in balance. Such as:
Primary productivity: How quickly energy turns into organic matter (photosynthesis).
Ecosystem phenology : Seasonal cycles in ecosystem activity.
Ecosystem disturbances: Sudden disruptions in ecosystem function, like wildfires.
🌲 Ecosystem Structure: how ecosystems are physically arranged in three dimensions, like forest canopies or coral reefs. Such as:
Live cover fraction: Area covered by living organisms.
Ecosystem distribution: How ecosystems are spread across land or ocean.
Ecosystem vertical profile: How an ecosystem is spread vertically, such as forest canopy vs. underbrush.
Keen eyes will recognize these as the Essential Biodiversity Variables, but of course they aren’t the only nature data framework, and recently corporations have been looking for more concise methods to track their progress on biodiversity. Mean Species Abundance (MSA), the Biodiversity Intactness Index (BII), and Potentially Disappeared Fraction (PDF) are some metrics in use today.
In fact, with over 600 ways to measure nature, it’s hard to know where to start. Fortunately the Nature Positive Initiative has been putting together a set of draft metrics to align to a core set of indicators (currently 9) hoping to become the global standard, with a particular focus on ecosystem extent and ecosystem condition.
The Tip Of The Iceberg
Like nature itself, this topic is so complex and deep that we’ve only just scratched the surface.
At Superorganism, we believe the trend of biodiversity monitoring is rapidly creating new billion-dollar opportunities across industries. We are moving towards a world where miniaturized, low-cost sensors combined with AI and remote sensing will be able to provide a time series of all biodiversity variables, and communicate it clearly and quickly on dashboards like you would expect from any modern product.
So what are we doing? We’re funding nature tech startups at the cutting edge of biodiversity monitoring, particularly ones that can drive bottom-line value within industry while creating tools that will benefit conservationists too. Some of our investments so far:
Array Labs - microsatellites using synthetic aperture radar to create ultra-high-quality full-Earth 3D maps at 100x lower cost
Cecil - a nature data platform for consistent, joinable, and harmonized spatial datasets and scientific variables
… and a few more we can’t talk about yet 🤫
As excited as we get about new technology, it’s not lost on us that this is happening against a backdrop of 1000x higher extinction rates than the geologic norm. Better monitoring technology means the Anthropocene extinction is being understood and measured in real time.
But unlike a rogue meteor strike, this is an extinction event we can prevent. There are many actions we can take right away despite acting with imperfect information. Yes, they would be more informed decisions if we had better data, but we don’t need to wait, and we don’t have time to.
At Superorganism, we’re looking for startups building technologies to help our global civilization steward the planet better, today. If you’re building next-generation biodiversity monitoring tools, AI tools to help pull signal from noise, platforms for interoperability, or dashboards for insight - drop us a line.
Talk Nature Data with us at SFCW!
Interested in continuing the conversation? Join us at SF Climate Week for a panel on nature data featuring Alex Logan from Cecil and Kate Wing from Intertidal as we dive deep into the front line of biodiversity monitoring, public / private data usage, lowering barriers to accessing data, and the next generation of AI-driven insights on biodiversity.
Further reading
The Nature Data Newsletter - by Cecil
The Nature Intelligence Newsletter - by Joshua Berger
The potential for AI to revolutionize conservation: a horizon scan - Reynolds et al.
Draft State of Nature Metrics for Piloting - Nature Positive Initiative
Notes From The Field
Updates from our portfolio companies, and from us at Superorganism
🌍 Amini are looking to connect with someone early at Palantir working on Forward Deployed Software Engineering (FDSE). If you know someone (or are someone!) please reach out.
🌳 Cambium was featured on CNBC for their circular timber solutions for the built environment.
🌐 Cecil just released two new resources that provide access to +500 forest carbon project boundaries in a scalable cloud native format - a map and data repository. This leverages the amazing work of a publication in 2024 to support the community with scalable analysis opportunities.
🍄 Funga established more than 5,000 acres of inoculated loblolly pine in this year’s planting season, including eleven new trials, two of which were the first trials of longleaf pine.
🍫 Planet A Foods won the ISM Consumer Award for the 2nd time in a row with Treets Crunchy Corn. Plus, they relaunched their website!
🪴 Rosy Soil captured their 600th ton of CO2 with their biochar-based potting soil.
🦅 Spoor are partnering with Ørsted on Borssele 1&2, one of the Netherlands’ largest offshore wind farms, using high-resolution cameras to track bird activity at great distances. Read more.
🌱 Foray are enrolling beta users for their AI Plant Culture Co-Scientist tool, making plant culture processes easier, faster, and cheaper to develop for scientists. Apply for early access.
🪸 As for us at Superorganism in March…
We participated in the inaugural Nature Tech Week in London, organized by Nature4Climate and the Nature Tech Collective
Attended Skoll World Forum the week after
Attended our first Superorganism founder wedding, congratulations Aarav!
We’re looking forward to SF Climate Week in April! Let us know if you’ll be there.
Want to join a Superorganism company? Check out our Jobs Board, with 34 active jobs currently available. Start your nature tech career today!
Ecosystem News
🤝 Friends of the fund
Unveiling the Nature Tech Collective Sector Map for Biodiversity | Nature Tech Collective
2025 AI upskilling workshop for former US/state environmental scientists | Cal Tech
We Are Planetary Gardeners | Justin Mast
Applications are now open for the 2025 Ray of Hope Accelerator due April 25, 2025 | Biomimicry Institute
NatureTECH Observatory launches | NatureTECH Observatory
🦧 Conservation
Ping, You've Got Whale | bioGraphic
Last-minute deal to protect African penguins from extinction | BBC
This Octopus’s Other Car Is a Shark | The New York Times
Traffic noise triggers road rage among male Galápagos birds | The Guardian
Tracking Renewable Energy Adoption from Space with Global Renewables Watch | Planet
This is no world for an axolotl | EPS | EL PAÍS English
Counting whales by eavesdropping on their chatter, with help from machine learning | Mongabay
What the Dodo Tells Us, 300 Years After Its Extinction | The New York Times
These are the 1st images of humpbacks having sex, and they're both males | CBC Radio
Butterfly numbers have fallen by nearly a quarter since 2000 | NPR
See How Butterflies Are Surviving, or Not, Near You | The New York Times
‘I feel real hope’: historic beaver release marks conservation milestone in England | Wildlife | The Guardian
Grassland restoration is delivering peace for humans and wildlife in southern Kenya | Discover Wildlife
Keep an Invasive Species in Check: Eat a Big Rat-Like Rodent, U.S. Says | The New York Times
🛠️ Tech
Leveraging passive acoustic monitoring for result-based agri-environmental schemes: Opportunities, challenges and next steps | Science Direct
Evo 2 Can Design Entire Genomes | Asimov Press
The Resurrection Quest - Loss | CNA
How Philanthropy Built, Lost, and Could Reclaim the A.I. Race | Philanthropy
Our Journey with Edge Impulse: From Vision to Acquisition | Fika Ventures
The short, strange history of gene de-extinction | MIT Technology Review
The Unignorable Economics of Turning Science Into Technology | Homeworld Collective
OpenForest: a data catalog for machine learning in forest monitoring | Cambridge Core
3 new ways we’re working to protect and restore nature using AI | Google
🔬 Humans and nature
The global human impact on biodiversity | Nature
Science Shows How Nature Can Help Both the Climate and Biodiversity Crises | The Nature Conservancy
Biodiversity loss in all species and every ecosystem linked to humans – report | The Guardian
Ecological disruptions are a risk to national security | The Conversation
Targeted conservation efforts pulled hundreds of species back from the brink, study finds | Down To Earth
Private finance for nature in 2024 | UNEP Finance Initiative
To Save the Planet, We Must Sacrifice Some of It | Bloomberg
🔬 Science
Animals in Translation: Imagining Criteria and Frameworks for Decoding Communication in Other Species | Interspecies Internet
Microbes can capture carbon and degrade plastic — why aren’t we using them more? | Nature
Climate warming and heatwaves accelerate global lake deoxygenation, study reveals | AAAS
It’s time to hit the reset button on GMOs | Fast Company
Microplastics hinder plant photosynthesis, study finds, threatening millions with starvation | Plastics | The Guardian
🌲 Climate and nature
Dynamic baselines close an offsets loophole, but we still need to know where the trees are | Carbonplan
What have we learned from 15 years of REDD+ policy research? (analysis) | Mongabay
Green larping | Keep Cool
Agroforestry stores less carbon than reforestation, but has many other benefits, study finds | Mongabay
Scaling investments in Nature-based Solutions for Climate Resilient Infrastructure | Global Center on Adaptation
🧑⚖️ Politics
‘Is it “woke” to care about the environment?’: how Trump’s cuts are dismantling global conservation work | Wildlife | The Guardian
Why Did Elon Musk Go After Bunkers Full of Seeds? | The New York Times
Wildlife and Conservation Scientists Are Next in Line for Trump’s Chopping Block | Mother Jones
President Trump's New Executive Orders on Domestic Timber Production, Explained for Private Forest Landowners | NCX
Supreme Court Deals Blow to E.P.A. in Dispute Over Federal Water Rules | The New York Times
👔 Corporates
The rise of greenhushing: embrace ESG, but don’t talk about it | The Times
A Quarter-Billion Dollars for Defamation: Inside Greenpeace’s Huge Loss | The New York Times
NASA, Yale, and Stanford Scientists Consider 'Scientific Exile,' French University Says | 404 Media
Goldman Sachs Launches Biodiversity Bond Fund to Strengthen Sustainable Investing | The Global Treasurer
Thank You!
Thanks for reading and for supporting Superorganism, and a special thank you to everyone who went above and beyond this month with introductions, diligence, advice, and help to founders:
Amanda Ackerman, Maex Ament, Jan Andersen, Beth Axelrod, Leone Baron, Maddy Behr, Esben Brandi, Justin Brodie-Kommit, Karl Burkart, Charlie Burrell, Ed Casabian, Seth Cochran, Hermione De Paula, Laura Francis, Dom Francks, Dani Gajardo, Sophie Gilbert, Elias Habbar-Baylac, Ben Hart, Ask Helseth, Katie Hoffman, Cheih Huang, Lucas Joppa, Marc Jordana, Jenny Kan, Sam Kelly, Nikki Klepper, Mark Lewis, Mike Lewis, Jocelyn Matyas, Kit McDonnell, Sou Miyake, Sarah Nolet, Peter Olivier, Meredith Palmer, Anton Pluschke, Alex Prather, Jeff Prosserman, Bailey Richardson, Greg Robson, Mitch Rubin, Matt Sechrest, Jeff Smith, Amoret Spooner, Shannon Staton, Philipp Staudacher, Maki Tazawa, Jerome Ternynck, Ed Thorne, Rafael Velazco, Tom Walker, Maynard Webb, Johanna Wolfson, and Daphne Yin.
And a MASSIVE thank you to all of you for sharing and making recommendations for our Head of Platform Role. We have been amazed by the response and will be in touch with candidates in the coming weeks.