Test of unmanned surface vehicles to conduct remote focal follow studies of a marine predator

We tested the feasibility of using Saildrone unmanned wind- and solar-powered surface vehicles to conduct remote focal follow studies of northern fur seals Callorhinus ursinus. Using Argos satellite and transmitted GPS locations, the Saildrones followed a fur seal while recording oceanographic condi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine ecology. Progress series (Halstenbek) 2020-02, Vol.635, p.1-7
Main Authors: Kuhn, Carey E., De Robertis, Alex, Sterling, Jeremy, Mordy, Calvin W., Meinig, Christian, Lawrence-Slavas, Noah, Cokelet, Edward, Levine, Mike, Tabisola, Heather, Jenkins, Richard, Peacock, David, Vo, Danny
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal behavior
Aquatic mammals
Behaviour
Data collection
Distance
Echo sounding
Echosounders
Feasibility studies
FEATURE ARTICLE: NOTE
Foraging
Global positioning systems
GPS
Mapping
Marine mammals
Oceanographic data
Predators
Prey
Satellite navigation systems
Satellite tracking
Satellites
Seals
Separation
Solar energy
Solar power
Surface vehicles
Unmanned vehicles
Vehicles
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Summary:We tested the feasibility of using Saildrone unmanned wind- and solar-powered surface vehicles to conduct remote focal follow studies of northern fur seals Callorhinus ursinus. Using Argos satellite and transmitted GPS locations, the Saildrones followed a fur seal while recording oceanographic conditions and mapping prey abundance and depth distribution using a scientific echosounder. The Saildrones successfully followed 6 fur seals over 2.4 ± 0.2 d (mean ± SE) and 149.7 ± 16.3 km of the foraging path. Median separation distance between the Saildrone and fur seal path was 0.65 ± 0.1 km and average time separation was 9.9 ± 1.4 h, with minimum time separations ranging from 1.9–4.9 h. Time and distance separation were a function of both animal behavior and study design. Our results show that Saildrones can approach satellite tracked marine predators from long distances and follow them over extended periods while collecting oceanographic and prey data. These successful focal follows demonstrate that unmanned surface vehicles are a valuable tool for collecting data on fine-scale relationships between marine predators, their prey, and the environment.
ISSN:0171-8630
1616-1599
DOI:10.3354/meps13224