Subcutaneous implantation of satellite transmitters with percutaneous antennae into male polar bears (Ursus maritimus)
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Abstract
Male polar bears (Ursus maritimus) have not been successfully instrumented with satellite transmitters because they readily shed collar-mounted transmitters. Seven male polar bears were captured on the pack ice off the northern coast of Alaska and surgically implanted with satellite transmitters with percutaneous antennae into the subcutaneous space of the dorsal cervical region. Transmitters failed prematurely with lifetimes of 30-161 days (x̄ = 97 days). Efforts to relocate implanted bears after transmitters failed were not successful. The mean number of location solutions per transmitter was 204 (range 118-369). An average of 10% and 19% of the locations were accurate to <150 m and to 150-350 m, respectively. Our successful tracking of male polar bears, the high quality of locations obtained from transmitters with percutaneous antennae implanted in the subcutaneous space, and the low visibility of such units make further technical development worthwhile if the reason for premature failure of the transmitters can be determined.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Subcutaneous implantation of satellite transmitters with percutaneous antennae into male polar bears (Ursus maritimus) |
| Series title | Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Year Published | 1999 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | The American Association of Zoo Veterinarians, the European Association of Zoo and Wildlife Veterinarians, and the American College of Zoological Medicine |
| Contributing office(s) | Alaska Science Center |
| Description | 6 p. |
| First page | 510 |
| Last page | 515 |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
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