Tracking Turtles, An Overview of SnapperGPS and Potential Applications for Turtle Research and Conservation

Understanding how animals use their environment is an important component of understanding their ecology, and tracking systems are a vital tool to help us study these movements. Perhaps the most common tracking system for turtles is radio and acoustic telemetry, but satellite systems such as GPS are becoming more common. However, many of these tags are too large, too expensive, and are simply not feasible for use on smaller species of turtles and tortoises. Recently, researchers in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Oxford developed a small, affordable, low-power tracking system called “SnapperGPS”. This novel receiver employs “snapshot” GNSS technology that takes advantage of multiple satellite constellations (e.g., GPS, Galileo, BeiDou) to obtain accurate positional data. In addition, the unit can operate for a year on a tiny 40 mAh LiPo battery. We believe this open-source technology possesses enormous potential for better understanding freshwater turtle and tortoise ecology. Here, we present a review of this technology, some modifications for use on turtles, and discuss potential applications for turtle research and conservation.

August 3, 2023

12:00 AM

Charleston, South Carolina, USA

International Symposium on the Conservation and Biology of Tortoises and Freshwater Turtles