New Use for Drones in Whale Research Non Invasive Tagging

Snotbot’ creators develop new use for drones in whale research

The second in a trilogy of articles on innovative drones for conservation. Explore the first article, on drones saving island ecosystems here.

All images courtesy Ocean Alliance.

By DRONELIFE Features Editor Jim Magill

Ocean Alliance, the scientific research and conservation group that pioneered the use of UAVs in the study of whales with its breakthrough “Snotbot” technology, is finding a new way to use drones to learn about the underwater lives of these magnificent marine animals.

Since 2022, the Gloucester, Massachusetts-based non-profit organization has been using commercial DJI drones to tag whales with data-collecting sensors, which allow scientists to study the whales’ movements and behavior. Using UAVs to deliver the tags replaces older tagging methods, involving chasing the large mammals in boats and using long poles to attach the tags to the whale’s skin.

The unit is able to carry and deploy a so-called D tag, or a data tag, the main kind of tag used by whale scientists around the world. Small and lightweight, the tag uses suction cups to attach to the whale’s skin. The tag adheres to the whale, collecting data, for about 24 hours, before it detaches and floats to the surface where it emits a radio signal, which allows it to be located and retrieved by the scientists.

In the initial experiments the tags would wobble too much after being dropped to allow the tags to properly attach, particularly if they were being deployed by a drone from an altitude of about 20 feet. So, the team designed and 3D-printed a dropper, similar to a lawn dart, which stabilizes the vertical fall, allowing the tag to be in the correct position to adhere to the whale.

When deploying heavier camera-equipped tags, known as CATS [Customized Animal Tracking Solutions] tags, the drone pilot allows the UAV to descend to a lower height, about 10 feet above the animal, so the falling tag doesn’t have enough time to shift on its orientation.

Rogan said deploying the tags in this way is much less bothersome to the whales then the old pole-tagging method. “It’s certainly really important for us to monitor the behavior of the whales and how our activities are impacting the whales,” Rogan said. “Sometimes the whale will dive after we drop the tag on it and swim away. Sometimes they roll on their side to look up. I’d say for the most part, maybe 70 to 80 percent of the time, we see no reaction and the whale does not respond in any way that we can discern.”

However, these reactions are fairly mild, compared with those exhibited by animals tagged by the pole method, he said. “The boat is very loud … and potentially that acoustic disturbance is the main stressor on the whale. And you’re almost acting like a predator, right? You’re getting really close to that whale with a boat, chasing it down and the animals didn’t like it. So, they often exhibited quite strong reactions to the tagging procedure from the bow.”

Since developing the drone tagging system, Ocean Alliance’s services have been in high demand among other conservation groups and governmental agencies, wanting to learn how to adopt the technology for their own uses.

“At the moment, we’re actually focusing less on our own research programs and really just collaborating a lot with different researchers around the world, particularly when there’s an enormous demand and need for this data,” Rogan said. Last year, the organization worked with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on a program to deploy tags on North Atlantic right whales, one of the most endangered whales on the planet.

Although the drone tagging program is in its infancy, the organization has already traveled around the world on research and tagging expeditions. Last year, the group returned to Mexico, where it conducted its first drone tagging field testing experiments. More recently, in December, the Ocean Alliance team traveled to the Middle East to deploy tags on a critically endangered population of Arabian Sea humpback whales off the coast of Oman. Plans this year call for tagging expeditions in waters off the coasts of Hawaii, Canada and New England, near the organization’s home base.

Rogan said the drone tagging program has been instrumental in helping Ocean Alliance to achieve its ultimate goal of preserving whale species for future generations. “It’s not just a science and research tool, but it’s very good for conservation as well. It’s helping us better understand these whales in ways that helps us to better protect them,” he said.