Instruct: Identify the main category of Biorxiv papers based on the titles and abstracts
Query: A guide to using GPS-based tracking to study animal societies GPS-based tracking is a widely used automated data collection method for studying wild animals. Much like traditional observational methods, using GPS devices to study social animals requires making a number of decisions about sampling that can affect the robustness of a studys conclusions. For example, sampling fewer individuals per group across many distinct social groups may not be informative enough for inferring behavioural patterns at a finer social organizational scale, while sampling more individuals per group across fewer groups limits the ability to draw conclusions about populations. Here, we integrate previous insights from animal social network analysis with simulated and empirical data to provide quantitative recommendations when designing GPS-based tracking studies of animal societies. We outline the trade-offs faced by researchers, and how these trade-offs should vary across social organizational scales and social systems in relation to questions of interest, such as those defined within versus among groups, and spanning from cohesive, stable groups through to more open societies. We discuss three fundamental axes of sampling effort requiring consideration when deploying GPS devices to study animal societies: 1) Sampling coverage--the number and allocation of GPS devices among individuals in one or more social groups; 2) Sampling duration-- the total amount of time over which devices collect data; 3) Sampling frequency--the temporal resolution at which GPS devices record data. Exploring each axis, we quantify the relationship between sampling effort and sampling error, giving recommendations on GPS sampling design to address research questions across social organizational scales and social systems--from group movement to social network structure and collective decision-making. In doing so, we also highlight practical limitations on deploying GPS tracking. Our study provides practical advice for empiricists to navigate their decision-making processes when designing GPS-based field studies of animal social behaviours, and highlights the importance of identifying the optimal deployment decisions for drawing informative and robust conclusions.
19
The categories of this paper are: epidemiology
3
The categories of this paper are: evolutionary
20
The categories of this paper are: pharmacology
24
The categories of this paper are: cancer
21
The categories of this paper are: toxicology
0
The categories of this paper are: genetics
22
The categories of this paper are: physiology
23
The categories of this paper are: immunology
7
The categories of this paper are: ecology
4
The categories of this paper are: neuroscience
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The categories of this paper are: molecular
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The categories of this paper are: systems
1
The categories of this paper are: bioinformatics
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The categories of this paper are: scientific
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The categories of this paper are: synthetic
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The categories of this paper are: developmental