Biologging

Biologging is the action of tracking a specimen through their natural habitat, thus providing information about their typical foraging patches, their social habits, and overall behavior. It traditionally involves data recording devices, from something as straightforward as strapping a camera onto a bird to an array of sensors and beacons to measure earth observation data. This is particularly useful in environmental studies like Foraging.

With the recent miniaturization of electronic devices, scientists have access to an ever greater range of data, which might reveal critical for understanding and protecting endangered species. The most common of the current sensors enable measuring:

• 3D GPS position
• 3D-accelerometry
• Light-level information
• Conductivity
• Salinity
• External temperature
• Body temperature
• Heart rate

However, a drawback of this technology is its autonomy. All the sensors require power to function, which comes in limited supply once strapped onto an animal. Therefore, scientists usually plan a specific time period for their experiments based on the study objectives and animal behavior, rather than recording telemetric data constantly.