Right on track? : performance of satellite telemetry in terrestrial wildlife research

Hofman, M. P. G (author), Jerina, Klemen (author)

Satellite telemetry is an increasingly utilized technology in wildlife research, and current devices can track individual animal movements at unprecedented spatial and temporal resolutions. However, as we enter the golden age of satellite telemetry, we need an in-depth understanding of the main technological, species-specific and environmental factors that determine the success and failure of satellite tracking devices across species and habitats. Here, we assess the relative influence of such factors on the ability of satellite telemetry units to provide the expected amount and quality of data by analyzing data from over 3,000 devices deployed on 62 terrestrial species in 167 projects worldwide. We evaluate the success rate in obtaining GPS fixes as well as in transferring these fixes to the user and we evaluate failure rates. Average fix success and data transfer rates were high and were generally better predicted by species and unit characteristics, while environmental characteristics influenced the variability of performance. However, 48% of the unit deployments ended prematurely, half of them due to technical failure. Nonetheless, this study shows that the performance of satellite telemetry applications has shown improvements over time, and based on our findings, we provide further recommendations for both users and manufacturers.

• Language: English
• Keywords: forests, data acquisition, wildlife, temperate forests, questionnaires, animal performance, animal behavior, data reduction, global positioning system, gps
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2019
• Number of pages: 26 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 14, iss. 5, art. e0216223
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-114194
• UDC: 630*1
• ISSN on article: 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0216223
• COBISS.SI-ID: 5373862
• Publication date in RUL: 19.02.2020

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: PloS one
• Publisher: Public Library of Science
• ISSN: 1932-6203
• COBISS.SI-ID: 2005896

Licences

• License: CC0 1.0, Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal
• Link: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en
• Description: CC Zero enables scientists, educators, artists and other creators and owners of copyright- or database-protected content to waive those interests in their works and thereby place them as completely as possible in the public domain, so that others may freely build upon, enhance and reuse the works for any purposes without restriction under copyright or database law.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: satelitska telemetrija, zanesljivost, uspeh snemanja, okoljski dejavniki, sesalci

Projects

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Funding programme: Erasmus Mundus, Joint Doctorate programme
• Project number: 2013–09
• Name: Forest and Nature for Society
• Acronym: FONASO

• Funder: Other - Other funder or multiple funders