Abstract
Wildlife monitoring using passive telemetry has become a robust method for investigating animal migration. With increased use, this method progressively pollutes the environment with technological waste represented by so called ghost tags (PIT tags ending in the environment due to reproductive expulsions, shedding or animal mortality). However, their presence in the environment may lead to failed detections of living individuals. We used tagging data from studies of the asp Leuciscus aspius and the bleak Alburnus alburnus collected from 2014 to 2018 and located ghost tag positions on the monitored spawning site using portable backpack reader for their detection. We modelled virtual river-wide flat-bed antennas (widths 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8 m) representing monitoring effort and estimated the probability of the presence of ghost tags within the antenna field. Of 3724 PIT tags used in the study, we detected on the spawning ground 173 ghost tags originating from long-term monitoring. The ghost tags accumulated in the environment in time, suggesting insufficient degradation rate or shift downstream from the research site. Number of ghost tags present on the spawning ground led to high probability of disabled readings of tagged fish passing through the antenna electro-magnetic field. We demonstrate how accumulated ghost tags may cause detection failures for focal species and incomplete data acquisition. We infer that intensive long-term monitoring using PIT tag technology may encumber future data acquisition or entail additional costs for clean-up.
Highlights
Over the past century, waste production has become increasingly problematic, in particular anthropogenic wastes that are toxic and/or persistent in the environment [1,2,3]
Of PIT tags used in the study, we detected on the spawning ground 129 ghost tags originating from
The generalized additive model (GAM) model demonstrated that the number of ghost tags was much higher in the first 50 metres from the weir, suggesting a high probability of PIT tag collision, especially with an antenna design with a high reading range
Summary
Waste production has become increasingly problematic, in particular anthropogenic wastes that are toxic and/or persistent in the environment [1,2,3]. Environmental recovery from anthropogenic pollution is often difficult and expensive [4]. Scientific research is not usually seen as an important source of contaminants but can contribute to waste pollution [5]. Awareness of the possible impacts of laboratory waste is long established. Negative feedback concept in tagging environment” (No TJ02000012) and by the project “Biomanipulation as a tool for improving water quality of dam reservoirs” (No CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/ 16_025/0007417). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
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