Physical network

Biotelemetry is a commonly applied technique to investigate the behavioural ecology of aquatic animals in the wild. These animals are equipped with electronic tags, implanted internally or attached externally by means of a minor surgery. In LifeWatch Belgium we use acoustic telemetry and archival tags.  

Acoustic telemetry is the most widely applicable and flexible form of active tracking in aquatic environments. The acoustic tags transmit acoustic signals which can be detected by a network of receivers. Upon detection, the information of the unique ID-code of the transmitter is stored on the receiver together with an exact timing of the event. When applicable, data from incorporated sensors in the tags (e.g. temperature, pressure and acceleration) is also available. 

A national acoustic receiver network for fish tracking, called the Permanent Belgian Acoustic Receiver Network, was established in 2014 to track freshwater, marine and diadromous fish species.  

In contrast to acoustic transmitters, archival tags do not emit signals, but log and store sensor measurements (e.g. temperature and pressure) at a predefined time interval in the tag memory.