ProxLogs: Miniaturised proximity loggers for monitoring association behaviour in small animals

Abstract

The ability to monitor associations between wild animals is essential for understanding the processes governing gene transfer, information transfer, competition, predation and disease transmission. Until recently, such insights have been confined to large, visible or captive animals. However, the rapid development of miniature sensors for consumer electronics is allowing ecologists to monitor the natural world in ways previously considered impossible. Here we describe miniature (<1 g) proximity loggers we have developed that use Bluetooth Low Energy transmission to register contacts between individuals. Our loggers are open source, low cost, rechargeable, able to store up to 2000 contacts, can be programmed in situ and can download data remotely or through a mobile phone application, increasing their utility in remote areas or with species which are challenging to recapture. We successfully trialled our loggers in a range of field realistic conditions, demonstrating that Bluetooth Low Energy is capable of logging associations in structurally complex habitats, and that changes in received signal strength can be equated to short range changes in distance between loggers. Furthermore, we tested the system on captive European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) and captive multimammate mice (Mastomys natalensis). The ability to include other sensors is retained in our prototypes, allowing for the potential integration of physiological and behavioural inference into social networks derived from our approach. Due to its open source nature, small size, flexibility of use and the active research currently being undertaken with Bluetooth Low Energy, our approach is a valuable addition to the biologging toolkit. Data accessibility Logging data and the R code used to download and manipulate the data will be made available as example data for R functions / R package to manipulate logger data.