As drone use becomes more and more common, it should come as no surprise that many industries are employing the technology to simplify certain tasks. Researchers from Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences are among those exploring how drone technology can be used in the agricultural industry, concentrating on how the technology works, specifically, with sheep.

"We are looking at ways drones can be used on small farms," said Dan Swafford, project associate for Virginia Cooperative Extension. "Farms could use drones as a 'check-on' tool to ensure that sheep are where they are supposed to be."

Experts believe that drones will have a significant impact on the future of agriculture in terms of helping farmers locate injured or distressed animals and to simply check on the status of the entire farm. Likewise, a report from PricewaterhouseCoopers discovered that the market for agricultural drones could be as much as $32.4 billion, offering systems capable of monitoring crops and livestock, thereby reducing human error and saving both time and money.

Now, across the entire campus, drones are being employed in a variety of agricultural tasks, from monitoring crops to sampling microbes in the air. Researchers even determined that after a few fly-bys, sheep no longer took notice of the drones used to monitor them.

Capable of covering the span of two football fields from one aerial location, the drones are able to cover more ground in less time than farmers. Researchers also believe that hobby drones, with a price tag of roughly $500, would include all of the necessary technology required by a farmer and Swafford is attempting to get the technology into the hands of farmers through student 4-H members.

"We're targeting farm youth," he said. "They have an understanding of the practical nature of using drones with livestock, and they understand that it's more than just cool technology."