Can wild boar be surveyed using GPS?
The Global Positioning System (GPS) is an important new technology for spatial behaviour studies of terrestrial vertebrates. Although VHF telemetry has been substantially used, our study is the first report, to our knowledge, on GPS technology used to track free-ranging wild boars. Although the need...
| Summary: | The Global Positioning System (GPS) is an important new technology for spatial behaviour studies of terrestrial vertebrates. Although VHF telemetry has been substantially used, our study is the first report, to our knowledge, on GPS technology used to track free-ranging wild boars. Although the need for collars larger than those used for VHF tracking, the crowded vegetation of habitat and the particular features of social group behaviour of wild boars led to some technical difficulties, three adult sows were successfully fitted with two GPS collars and one dummy GPS. The collars remained on the wild boars for over 283 days without causing any injury to the animals. Forty-one daily cycles (24 hours), as well as daily locations over 142 days, could be recorded for a single animal. Detection efficiency and fixes were better during the night than during the day. In the light of these results, the GPS technique appears to be an efficient tool to study wild boar movements. Progress in the survey of animal movements at a fine scale is of prime interest for animal management programs in order to obtain and maintain a sustainable level of animal population regarding damage problems. |
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