Interpreting diel activity patterns from acoustic telemetry: the need for controls

Marine Ecology Progress Series

Jayson M. Semmens¹  Nicholas L. Payne¹  Bronwyn M. Gillanders¹  Dale M. Webber¹ 

关键词: Acoustic telemetry;    Rhythmicity;    Behaviour;    Diel;    Activity;    Temporal;   

DOI  :  10.3354/meps08864

学科分类：海洋学与技术

来源: Inter-Research

【 摘 要 】

ABSTRACT: Acoustic telemetry has emerged as a leading approach to infer diel, tidal and lunar rhythmicity in the movements of aquatic organisms in a range of taxa. Typically, studies examine the relative frequency of detections from individuals tagged with acoustic transmitters, and then infer patterns in the species’ behaviour, but studies to date have not controlled for factors that may influence tag detection patterns in the absence of animal behaviour. We compared patterns in acoustic detections from tagged cuttlefish Sepia apama and several fixed-location control tags, and used these data to highlight the danger of misinterpreting patterns in the absence of adequate controls. Cuttlefish and control tags displayed similar detection patterns, and correcting cuttlefish-detection data for the influence of environmental factors resulted in the opposite pattern of cuttlefish activity displayed prior to correction. This study highlights the danger of using acoustic data to infer animal behaviour in the absence of adequate controls.

【 授权许可】

Unknown