Dropping tags from drones holds promise for non-invasive, effective, efficient deployment under challenging conditions.
Dropping tags from drones holds promise for non-invasive, effective, efficient deployment under challenging conditions.
On a recent NOAA Fisheries whale research cruise off New England, whale researcher Lisa Conger and her team tried a new twist on a developing field technique: using an uncrewed aerial system—a drone—to tag whales.
In this case the target was an endangered North Atlantic right whale, and Lisa was using a tag that sticks to the animal with suction cups. Two words that best describe the drone test: “Game changer,” said Conger. “Deploying tags using the drone has opened a lot of eyes and doors.”
Researchers have been testing drones to deploy suction cup tags on different species of whales around the world. In fact, colleagues at the nearby Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary have been testing this drone technique with sei whales for the past 2 years.
Read more at NOAA Fisheries
Image:A suction cup tag just dropped onto the back of a North Atlantic right whale. The photo was taken by the drone that deployed the tag (Permit #24359). (Credit: NOAA Fisheries, Ocean Alliance/Chris Zadra)
