Diving into the analysis of time–depth recorder and behavioural data records: A workshop summary

Directlyobservingtheforagingbehaviorofanimalsinthemarineenvironmentcanbeextremely challenging,ifnotimpossible,assuchbehavioroftentakesplacebeneaththesurfaceoftheoceanand in extremelyremoteareas.Inlieuofdirectlyobservingforagingbehavior,datafromtime–depth recordersandothertypesofbehavioraldatarecordingdevicesarecommonlyusedtodescribeand quantifythebehavioroffish,squid,seabirds,seaturtles,pinnipeds,andcetaceans.Oftenthedefinitions of actualbehavioralunitsandanalyticalapproachesmayvarysubstantiallywhichmayinfluence results andlimitourabilitytocomparebehaviorsofinterestacrosstaxonomicgroupsandgeographic regions.AworkshopwasconvenedinassociationwiththeFourthInternationalSymposiumon Bio-logginginHobart,Tasmaniaon8March2011,withthegoalofprovidingaforumforthe presentation,review,anddiscussionofvariousmethodsandapproachesthatareusedtodescribe and analyzetime–depthrecorderandassociatedbehavioraldatarecords.Theinternationalmeeting broughttogether36participantsfrom14countriesfromadiversityofbackgroundsincludingscientists from academiaandgovernment,graduatestudents,post-doctoralfellows,anddevelopersofelectronic taggingtechnologyandanalysissoftware.Thespecificobjectivesoftheworkshopweretohostaseries of invitedpresentationsfollowedbydiscussionsessionsfocusedon(1)identifyingbehavioralunitsand metricsthataresuitableforempiricalstudies,(2)reviewinganalyticalapproachesandtechniquesthat can beusedtoobjectivelyclassifybehavior,and(3)identifyingcaseswhentemporalautocorrelation structureisusefulforidentifyingbehaviorsofinterest.Outcomesoftheworkshopincludedhigh- lightingtheneedtobetterdefinebehavioralunitsandtodevisemorestandardizedprocessingand analyticaltechniquesinordertoensurethatresultsarecomparableacrossstudiesandtaxonomic groups.