[MARMAM] New paper: Proximity loggers on amphibious mammals

[Kristine Meise]

Dear colleagues,

we are pleased to announce the publication of our paper:

Meise K, Krüger O, Piedrahita P, Müller A, Trillmich F (2013). Proximity 
loggers on amphibious mammals: a new method to study social relations in their 
terrestrial habitat. Aquatic Biology 18: 81-89

  
ABSTRACT. Amphibious
mammal species alternate between foraging at sea and attendance on land. Due to
thermoregulatory requirements, they often haul out during the night, making 
social
interactions difficult to observe. We tested the suitability of UHF-proximity
loggers for assessing social
relationships among Galápagos sea lions Zalophus wollebaeki. To survive
periods at sea, proximity loggers were embedded in epoxy. Automatic downloads
to receiving stations rendered logger recovery unnecessary. Encounters were
logged within a range of 10 m. Logs provided information about interacting 
individuals as well as time and duration of encounters. ‘Received signal
strength indicator’ values correlated with distance, but were influenced by
antenna angle and environmental factors. Laboratory tests and validation in the
field demonstrated that the spatial resolution corresponded to 2 m. Data needed
to be corrected, as single encounters were recorded as multiple logs and
reciprocity of loggings between animals was not always achieved. Digital data
correlated with observational data, but associations were 4 times more likely
to be detected using proximity loggers. Data revealed that non-territorial
males frequently associated for extended periods of time, especially during the
night and even outside the study colony. The modified proximity logger system
proves an excellent tool to determine social structure in situations where
direct observation is limited.
  
keywords: amphibious species, proximity logger, social structure

The article is available at: 
http://www.int-res.com/abstracts/ab/v18/n1/(http://www.aquaticmammalsjournal.org)

Best wishes,
Kristine Meise

University of Bielefeld
Department of Behavioural Biology
Morgenbreede 45
33615 Bielefeld, Germany
+ 49 521 106 2193
___
MARMAM mailing list
MARMAM@lists.uvic.ca
https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/marmam

[MARMAM] Field assistant needed for a behavioural ecology and demography project in spring 2012!

[Kristine Meise]

Field assistant needed for a behavioural ecology and demography project in 
spring 2012!

We   are currently looking for a highly motivated field assistant to   
participate in our international field project on behavioural ecology   and 
demography of Galápagos sea lions (Zalophus wollebaeki). The  field site is 
situated on a small (500m diameter), uninhabited   islet  off Santa Cruz. To 
investigate growth rates, suckling behaviour, reproductive success and  social  
structure we run a  regular recapture and resighting program. The field  
assistant will  participate in all aspects of this program.  
Field work will be demanding.   Participants have to live in tents the entire 
field season and share  in  all camp duties (cooking, cleaning, daily data 
entry, etc.). No   sanitary facilities are available and we provide sweet water 
only for   drinking and cooking. All gear needs to be transported to the islet 
via a   difficult landing and camp conditions are primitive, including mostly   
tinned food. Due to the long stay in this rough situation volunteers   need to 
be physically capable. Prior field work experience is required and preferences 
will be given to those candidates who have worked with   pinnipeds before 
(please specify your experiences in the application). 

Field assistants are expected to stay for  the entire field season (beginning 
of March until the end of April). We cover travel costs and living  expenses.

The language at the camp will be English and Spanish.

If  you are interested, please send an application in English  (including a  
letter of motivation, a reference and your curriculum  vitae) until 03.02.2012 
to the following address:

kristine.me...@uni-bielefeld.de

Kristine Meise

Galápagos Sea Lion Project
University of Bielefeld
Department of Behavioural Biology



___
MARMAM mailing list
MARMAM@lists.uvic.ca
https://lists.uvic.ca/mailman/listinfo/marmam