Radio telemetry of wild animals using battery-free transmitters (RFID tags)

Abstract

Over the last few years, monitoring wild animals using radiotelemetry has become one of the most important and most used tools in conservation biology studies. The present project aims to develop a new methodology for animal telemetry, using a technology currently present in the identification of different types of objects called Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). The development of transmiters and receptors using RFID will significantly reduce several problems faced by currently available telemetry technologies, such as the weight of the transmitters (we will develop transmitters with insignificant weight in relation to to the weight of the animals due to the lack of battery), and the time of operation of the same (we will develop transmitters that have continuous duration, allowing the monitoring of the individual until the end of its life). Another advantage is the remote monitoring, as the receivers will be installed systematically throughout the area to be sampled and will be powered by solar batteries. We therefore hope to revolutionize the animal telemetry market in Brazil, offering a technology that, compared to currently available alternatives, has less impact on animals and has a lower cost. (AU)