Networked Animal Telemetry in the Northwest Atlantic and Caribbean Waters

Abstract

AbstractAcoustic telemetry, in which transmitters projecting ultrasonic signals carrying unique identification codes are deployed on marine and aquatic animals and detected and logged by acoustic receivers, is becoming a common tool in fisheries science. Collaboration among researchers using this technology has led to the development of telemetry networks that are capable of detecting transmitters at coastwide and even continental scales through the combined coverage of all members’ receivers. Two grassroots telemetry networks in the northwest Atlantic and Caribbean, the Atlantic Cooperative Telemetry (ACT) Network and the FACT Network, began as small‐scale efforts among neighboring researchers and have expanded to include shared databases of tagged animals along entire coastlines. A third telemetry network, the Ocean Tracking Network (OTN), has brought additional capacity to the ACT and FACT networks and has provided a focus for telemetry activities in Canadian waters. It has also improved the power and efficiency of telemetry research globally through collaborative, standardized methods for storing, sharing, and processing data. When used in combination with other data collected by traditional fishery research methods and emerging technologies, such as remote sensing and autonomous vehicles, data collected through acoustic telemetry networks can address fundamental but previously unanswered questions about key habitat areas and data‐poor species and can yield new insights into the ecology of species that are thought to be well known. Here, we provide an overview of acoustic telemetry networks, including a history of the ACT Network, FACT Network, and OTN and a review of recent and current research that has been made possible through the connections enabled by these networks.