Russ et al,
LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology is showing great potential as a
technology for hands off research on birds (plus many other fields). It is
still fairly early days, but the number of applications is growing incredibly
rapidly. The hand held bird ID device is looking more and more possible.
Here are a few links to sites about the application of LIDAR in research
involving birds.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20733624
http://www.atomic.physics.lu.se/research/applied_molecular_spectroscopy_and_remote_sensing/research_overview/fluorescence_lidar/
http://silvis.forest.wisc.edu/research/story/lasers-forests-birds-and-collaboration-using-LiDAR-predict-forest-structure-and
Cheers,
Carl Clifford
On 25/02/2013, at 22:45, Russ <> wrote:
> I entered the library profession when technologies like RFID were already
> established, so I'm not as awe-struck by things like self-check kiosks and
> smart return chutes as many career librarians. What I do know is that this
> technology has had a huge impact on how RFID-equipped libraries handle most
> day-to-day business.
>
> It's likely that RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) can have a similar
> impact on bird research. It's already happening in some types of study.
>
> Is your cat or dog microchipped? Than it has an RFID tag. The tag can be
> read by a reader passed over the animal. Do you have a tollway transponder
> in your vehicle? That uses the same technology - except that your dog has a
> passive tag, and your car has an active (powered) one. Passive tags need to
> be near the reader, while active tags can be some distance away, and even
> not in line of sight. Currently, active tags are usually a bit big to fit
> on birds, although geese and albatross can carry them.
>
> Once we have the technology to power a tiny RFID tag so it can be read from
> a greater distance, this seems to be the logical technology to replace
> banding. Currently, you need to be holding your local Red-necked Stint to
> read all the data from the leg band. With improved RFID technology,
> researchers will scan a flock of nearby waders and get a readout of tagged
> birds - along with all their previous data. Of course, some data can't be
> recorded without the bird in the hand (weight, measurements) but as laser
> measurement becomes more sophisticated, don't be surprised if a hand-held
> scanner can estimate weight and other data for a bird it measures from a
> distance.
>
> We'll also have to find more humane ways of catching birds and attaching
> tiny RFID tags. 50 years ago it was acceptable to shoot a few birds or
> steal their eggs to study them closer. 20 years ago it was unthinkable to
> study species like waders without netting and banding (two separate issues,
> by the way!). Within the next decade or so, I predict that some of the
> current practices will be deemed abhorrent and inhumane (some already are
> by many people) so researchers will have to be smarter, use smarter
> technology, and find new ways of collecting the data needed to fill the
> multiple gaps in our knowledge of birds, their movements, their habitats,
> their diets, their relationships with other species, including us.
>
> Russell Woodford
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