Trade-Offs in Telemetry Tag Programming for Deep-Diving Cetaceans: Data Longevity, Resolution, and Continuity

Animal-borne telemetry instruments (tags) have greatly advanced our understanding of species that are challenging to observe. Recently, non-recoverable instruments attached to cetaceans have increased in use, but these devices have limitations in data transmission bandwidth. We analyze trade-offs in the longevity, resolution, and continuity of data records from non-recoverable satellite-linked tags on deep-diving Ziphius cavirostris in the context of a behavioral response study of acute noise exposure. We present one data collection programming scheme that balances resolution and continuity against longevity to address specific questions about the behavioral responses of animals to noise exposure in experimental contexts. We compare outputs between two programming regimes on a commercially available satellite-linked tag: (1) dive behavior summary defined by conductivity thresholds and (2) depth time-series at various temporal resolutions.

Citation:

Cioffi, W.R., N.J. Quick, Z.T. Swaim, H.J. Foley, D.M. Waples, D.L. Webster, R.W. Baird, B.L. Southall, D.P. Nowacek, and A.J. Read. 2023. Trade-Offs in Telemetry Tag Programming for Deep-Diving Cetaceans: Data Longevity, Resolution, and Continuity. Animal Biotelemetry 11: 223. doi: 10.1186/s40317-023-00334-1