Long range wireless devices for high-resolution monitoring of animal movement

Tracking studies where individual animals are tracked individually is increasingly common due to new technologies becoming availability. The data collected from these studies enable researchers, consultants and conservation practitioners to better understand animal ecology, evolution and physiology. This data has many practical applications and societal benefits, for example it enables the identification of animal migratory routes, stopover sites and priority areas for conservation of migratory species, the monitoring livestock health and the detection of livestock diseases).

Long range (LoRa) remote download devices can collect information remotely with minimum supervision and send the information via wireless communication. This technology is an exciting development of low power, long-range wireless transmissions which has been used in urban settings to control a range of sensors in buildings and vehicles (smart buildings, smart cities and vehicle tracking) but has yet to be used to track animal movement and behaviour. Due to its low-weight and low-cost this technology can revolutionize the study of animal movements.

This proof-of-concept aims use the new Long Range LoRa remote download technology to create low-weight and low-cost GPS tracking devices that can be safely deployed on animals. We aim to demonstrate that a solution originally conceived for the Internet of Things (IoT) can be used to track animal movement. This solution will be especially attractive for projects located in remote locations where the GSM network is not available and the use of satellite devices is constrained due to its high cost. Our project will develop solar-powered solutions that will include a variety of on-board sensors (accelerometer, temperature, barometer) which can be used to monitor environmental variables and animal behaviour parameters. All components of the tracking device (PCB module, battery, solar cell and harvester, housing) will be tested separately and the feasibility and capabilities of the assembled prototypes will be assessed.

The demand for smaller and lighter tracking devices is considerable. The lightest GPS/GSM devices on the market are 17g. Lighter GPS devices are available but require re-capturing the animals to retrieve the information on the tag and, often, this is difficult or impossible. Satellite tags are light-weight but require projects with generous budgets as they cost >£2,500 each + monthly data costs. If validated, the low-cost low-weight long range devices that will be developed in this proof-of-concept project will be very attractive as they will be in the order of £300-500 each.

Our long-term vision is that the research community working on animal movement projects will benefit from the Internet of Things (IoT). This network of physical objects, devices, vehicles, buildings and other items which are embedded with electronics, software, sensors, and network connectivity, enables these objects to collect and exchange data. The IoT is becoming more common and our project aims to create animal tracking devices that will be part of the IoT, enabling researchers to take advantage of existing network grids, used for other purposes, to track animal movement. If our devices can be safely deployed on wildlife it will be possible to track animal moment and migration with high spatial and temporal resolution.