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Review summary

The golden age of bio-logging: how animal-borne sensors are advancing the frontiers of ecology

Christopher C. Wilmers, Barry Nickel, Caleb M. Bryce, Justine A. Smith, Rachel E. Wheat, Yiwei Wang · Ecology · 2015

This review argued that the proliferation of animal-borne sensors, including accelerometers, magnetometers, and physiological loggers, had ushered in a golden age in which ecologists could measure not just where animals go but what they do and how much energy it costs. Drawing on examples from the authors' puma research and the broader field, it showed how combined sensor suites reconstruct fine-scale behavior, energetics, and interactions invisible to GPS alone. The piece outlined analytical challenges of integrating high-frequency data with location streams and ecological theory. For carnivore biologists, it provided a roadmap for moving from describing movement paths to quantifying the mechanisms, costs, and consequences of those movements in real landscapes.

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