What kinds of data can Wildlife Computers tags collect and transmit?

Updated

Wildlife Computers tags collect four main categories of data—locations, environmental conditions, behavior, and activity/time series—and transmit them primarily through the Argos satellite system, with Fastloc® GPS for high-resolution positions and light-based geolocation as a fallback. The company also separates its output into archiving and transmitting data products, and delivers them through an online data portal that supports automatic retrieval by government-mandated data systems. Which combination you get depends on the tag model and the taxa it was built for.

Data types collected

The site organizes data products into four groups, each answering a different research question:

Data product What it captures Typical use
Locations Where the animal is Movement, migration, home range
Environmental Conditions the tag senses (e.g., water properties) Habitat context around the animal
Behavior What the animal is doing Diving, haul-out, foraging patterns
Activity Movement intensity over time Effort, energy proxies
Time series Continuous sensor records Fine-scale change over the deployment

Tags are grouped by taxa—Avian, Pinniped, Hard-Shell Turtle, Leatherback Turtle, Cetacean (LIMPET, Finmount, Transdermal), Shark, Fish, and Penguin—so the data a tag collects is tied to the animal group it was designed for. For example, a seabird tag and a cetacean tag will not offer the same behavior or attachment options.

How the data gets transmitted

Three technologies appear in the site's Technologies section, and they are not interchangeable:

  • Argos Satellite System — the primary transmission path for tags that report remotely.
  • Fastloc® GPS — high-accuracy positioning, used where precise locations matter.
  • Light-Based Geolocation — position estimates derived from light levels, useful when GPS or Argos fixes are limited.

The tag lineup reflects this split. SPOT, SPOT-F, SPLASH, SPLASH-F, SPLASH10, SPLASH10-BF, and SPLASH10-F are listed under Transmitting Tags, while models like TDR10 and the microPAT/MiniPAT/sPAT family sit in the pop-up and archival side of the catalog. The Denali-S7, described as a next-generation solar-powered Argos transmitter, is an example of a transmitting tag built for seabirds.

Archiving vs. transmitting data

This is the distinction that most affects your study design:

  • Archiving tags store data on the tag itself, so you recover the full record only when the tag is recovered. The site lists Asset Recovery and PRD-RP Floats as supporting extras, which matters because archival data depends on getting the device back.
  • Transmitting tags send data via Argos while the animal is at large, so you get data without recapture—but you receive what the transmission budget allows, not necessarily every sensor reading.

If your project cannot guarantee tag recovery, the transmitting path is the one that keeps data flowing. If you need complete time series, archival recovery is the route, and recovery logistics become part of your plan.

Getting the data

Data lands in the Online Data Portal, which the site says captures, decodes, and stores data online and supports automatic data retrieval by government-mandated data systems. Portal access covers My Tags and My Data, and there is a Tag Agent plus a Project Information Form for setting up a project. IGOR is listed under Tools, and a Document Repository and Downloads section hold supporting material.

One practical note: the site does not publish pricing or state that portal access is free or open. Treat access as something to confirm with Wildlife Computers through the contact or project information channels rather than assuming.

Choosing based on data needs

Work backward from the question you need answered:

  1. Decide whether you need real-time remote data (transmitting) or complete records (archiving with recovery).
  2. Match the taxa page to your study animal—Avian, Pinniped, turtle, cetacean, shark, fish, or penguin—since attachment and sensor options differ.
  3. Pick the positioning technology: Fastloc® GPS for precision, light-based geolocation where GPS fixes are impractical, Argos as the transmission backbone.
  4. Confirm the data products you need (locations, environmental, behavior, activity, time series) are supported by that model.
  5. Plan retrieval: for archival tags, build recovery into the project; for transmitting tags, account for the fact that you receive transmitted summaries, not the raw continuous record.

The site's "Which Tag is Right for Your Project" page and the 200-plus shape and technology combinations are the intended starting points for step 2 and 3.