Establishing bio-logging data collections as dynamic archives of animal life on Earth

Rapid growth in bio-logging—the use of animal-borne electronic tags to document the movements, behaviour, physiology and environments of wildlife—offers opportunities to mitigate biodiversity threats and expand digital natural history archives. Here we present a vision to achieve such benefits by accounting for the heterogeneity inherent to bio-logging data and the concerns of those who collect and use them. First, we can enable data integration through standard vocabularies, transfer protocols and aggregation protocols, and drive their wide adoption. Second, we need to develop integrated data collections on standardized data platforms that support data preservation through public archiving and strategies that ensure long-term access. We outline pathways to reach these goals, highlighting the need for resources to govern community data standards and guide data mobilization efforts. We propose the launch of a community-led coordinating body and provide recommendations for how stakeholders—including government data centres, museums and those who fund, permit and publish bio-logging work—can support these efforts.

DAVIDSON Sarah;  CAGNACCI Francesca;  NEWMAN Peggy;  DETTKI Holger;  URBANO Ferdinando;  DESMET Peter;  BAJONA Lenore;  BRYANT Edmund;  CARNEIRO Ana;  DIAS Maria;  FUJIOKA Ei;  GAMBIN David;  HOENNER Xavier;  HUNTER Colin;  KATO Akiko;  KOT Connie;  KRANSTAUBER Bart;  HIN LAM Chi;  LEPAGE Denis;  NAIK Hemal;  PYE Jonathan;  SEQUEIRA Ana;  TSONTOS Vardis;  VAN LOON Emiel;  VO Danny;  RUTZ Christian; 

2024-10-01

NATURE PORTFOLIO

JRC138444

2397-334X (online),   

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-024-02585-4,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC138444,   

10.1038/s41559-024-02585-4 (online),