Improving Attachments of Non-Invasive (Type III) Electronic Data Loggers to Cetaceans - Year Two Progress Report.

摘要

The overall goal of this project is to increase the longevity of suction cup attachments for short term archival tags such as the DTAG. Specifically, we are working to extend the routine attachment duration for suction-cup tags to multiple days, if not weeks. Our approach is divided into four subtasks: Task 1: Forces and failure modes in suction cup attachments. Define assays to investigate cup failure modes. Task II: Assessing the impact of tags and surface attachments on cetaceans. Using Computational Fluid Dynamics we will assess the drag forces created by various suction cup and tag housing combinations. Task III: Engineered suction cups and surface treatments for improved attachment. In the light of Tasks I and II we will engineer suction cups with longer duration using selected materials and molding techniques, cup surface treatments, and investigate the use of adhesives. Task IV: On-animal performance of engineered attachments and tags. Using free swimming animals, first in captivity and then on stranded releases and animals tagged at sea, we will attach the engineered system with an instrumented cup to test cup behavior and longevity.