1. Electronic Tagging and Tracking By Barbara Stickel SCM 330: Ocean Discovery through Technology

2. Background ► Fish tagging and recovery began in 1873 in Maine

3. Background ► Data retrieval depended on recapture ► Provided information on:  homing rates  ages  growth rates  migration routes ► But nothing about behavior or habitat needs

4. Electronic Tagging and Tracking ► Microchip technology developed early 1980s ► Cost Effective and Compact ► Two systems in use:  acoustic telemetry  archival (data storage) devices

5. Archival Tags ► Developed in 1990s ► Expensive ► Miniature computers, with clocks and various integrated sensors ► Data from sensors recorded at pre-set time intervals and stored in tag ► Physical recovery necessary to retrieve data

6. Archival tags ► Record and store:  Date  Time  Swim depth  Water temperature  Body temperature  Light levels (for estimate of approximate daily position) (CLICK HERE)CLICK HERE

7. Pop-Up Archival Tags ► Developed to improve data recovery ► Detach at pre-set time ► Rise to surface ► Transmit data via satellite

9. Listening: Hydrophones ► Retrieve and hold data ► Can be moored in arrays spanning thousands of miles ► Array spacing dependent on tag signal strength

10. Hydrophone Arrays ► Hundreds of animals being tracked in CINMS ► Learning community structure and how ecosystem works Anacapa Island is surrounded by two rings of hydrophones for continuous coverage

11. Acoustic Receivers ► Many sizes, shapes and models

12. Acoustic Tags ► Micro-controllers and low-power memory chips ► Record wide range of data over long period of time  physiological  behavioral  environmental

13. Acoustic Tags ► Ultrasonic (30 to 300 kHz) frequency range (optimum propagation in sea) ► Transmit data to satellites ► Some with external antenna that turn on when exposed to air

14. Acoustic Tags ► Sensors for:  body temperature  tail beat  heart rate  swimming depth  water temperature  minute-by-minute position  velocity  mortality

15. Pingers -- Simplest form of acoustic tags Simplest form of acoustic tags Transmit continuous sound Transmit continuous sound

16. New: Passive Integrated Transponder (“PIT”) Tags ► Rice-sized device with microchip ► Inexpensive ► Simple to insert ► Remote readout capabilities based on ultrasound waves

17. PIT Tags ► Developed as low-cost way to track escaped farm salmon ► Hydrophones detect tags in passing animals

18. Limitations ► Marine environment:  Battery and switch failure  Water damage ► Fouling: A.Acoustic tag attached to Caribbean leatherback turtle for 12 days – barnacle already settled near salt-water contact B.Acoustic tag attached to Mediterranean loggerhead turtle for 6 months

19. Limitations ► Biological challenges of free-ranging animals  Larger tunas and marlins feed in warm surface water then dive suddenly, undergoing extreme temperature and pressure changes  Predator may eat tag (or tagged fish)  Tag can be lost, if implanted improperly  Tagged fish may never again frequent area where hydrophones are located

20. Conclusion With the proper equipment and a little luck, we should be able to construct a comprehensive, community-based view of the underwater world