DOI: 10.5061/dryad.vq83bk3sm
title: Data from: Telemetry tails: A practical method for attaching animal-borne devices to small vertebrates in the field

description: Context. Continued miniaturisation of tracking technology increases its
 utility in animal applications. However, species morphology often dictates
 the type of animal-borne device (ABD) that can be used, and how it is
 attached. The morphology of species within Peramelemorphia
 preclude them from the standard collar attachment of ABDs for terrestrial
 mammals. Aims. This paper describes a method for the tail-mount attachment
 of ABDs, and deployment results for Peramelemorphia across arid,
 semi-arid, and temperate Australia to (a) test the performance of
 attachments and ABDs in the field, and, (b) discuss the animal
 welfare considerations for this attachment
 method.  Methods. Tail-mount attachment of ABDs were field-tested
 on a total of 80 greater bilbies (Macrotis lagotis), and 14
 long-nosed bandicoots (Perameles nasuta).  Key results. Time to
 natural detachment (TTND) was between 2 and 52 days with
 65.74% (142 of 216) remaining on until manual removal.
 For ABDs that were manually removed, attachments were retained for up to
 94 days. The method used for tail-mount attachment of ABDs to
 long-nosed bandicoots resulted in significantly shorter TTND
 compared to the method used for bilbies, and environmental factors (high
 temperatures and rainfall) had a negative effect on TTND. Tail-mount
 attached global positioning system (GPS) sensors collected large
 quantities of accurate data with a maximum fix success rate of 83.38%.
 Damage to GPS (antenna breakage and water ingress) during deployment,
 however, impacted performance. In environments with frequent rainfall and
 waterlogged soils, the tape on a small proportion (6.25%) of
 (n = 192) attachments to bilbies caused tail
 injury. All injuries were resolvable with most requiring minimal to no
 veterinary intervention.  Key conclusions. Attachment
 longevity can be affected by how the ABD is mounted to the tail, the
 species, and the deployment environment. The environment
 can also affect which adhesive tapes are suitable for ABD attachment.
 However, this method is highly modifiable, practical for field
 application, and can have long retention times relative to other temporary
 methods. Implications. This ABD tail-mount attachment method adds
 another tool to the telemetry tool-kit, with all the benefits of a
 low-tech, low-cost, passive drop-off type attachment. This method has
 demonstrated practicality for Peramelemorphia, with potential application
 to other suitable small vertebrates.
description: Information on methods for data collection are included in the
 readme.pdf file and associated paper.
description: This data concerns animal body and device weights, attachment
 longevity and associated weather data, and animal capture-recapture
 records. Annotated R code is provided to replicate the attachment
 performance analyses, and the video can be used to support the
 method description for bilby tail-mount attachments in the associated
 paper.  Further information on this data can be found in the readme.pdf
 file.