I am looking for some kind of technology to re-locate seedlings in a dense forest environment. At first, I thought of using PIT tags, but the maximum range for reading the tags is < 30 inches, which is far too short for this environment. To elaborate, we collect annual data on seedlings in the Brazilian Amazon. Each year, we re-locate seedlings that have been approximately mapped in a 100 m x 100 m plot. It is like finding a needle in a haystack, as the smaller plants are numerous and many species look very similar. Flagging with bright colours or shiny metal does not work because these tags are eaten by ants or stolen by monkeys. Optimally, we would like to bury some sort of tag that could be read ~3-5 meters away. The tag should last for at least two years, and of course not be too costly... Does this kind of technology exist? Thanks in advance for any advice you all may have!
christie ------------------------------------------------ Christina Staudhammer, PhD Assistant Professor, Forest Biometrics School of Forest Resources and Conservation University of Florida PO Box 110410 Gainesville, FL 32611-0410 (352) 846-3503
