Simultaneous monitoring of the same animals with PIT-tags and sensor nodes causes no system interference

Recent technological advances have multiplied the variety of biologgers used in wildlife research, particularly with small-bodied animals. PIT-tags have been used for decades to log visits of tagged animals at reader-equipped artificial feeders or roost boxes. More recently, novel miniaturized sensor nodes can collect data on social encounters among tagged individuals in any location. Combining these systems allows researchers to gather high-resolution foraging data on certain individuals from their long-term PIT-tagged animal populations. However, there can be a risk of interference among tracking systems. Here we tested whether radio-frequency identification (RFID) is hampered when an additional biologging sensor node is attached to the same animal, and whether data transmission by the sensor node is affected by the RFID antenna. The combination of this RFID-system and a wireless biologging network works without error, suggesting that systems using similar mechanisms should also work together properly. The combination of long-term monitoring with PIT tags and short-term tracking with biologging sensor nodes creates exciting new opportunities to gather rich social data from individuals not present at RFID reader stations.View Full Text