Revolutionary Bluetooth Beacons: A New Era for Animal Tracking

**A new study from The Australian National University (ANU) introduces a cutting-edge method for animal tracking using low-cost Bluetooth beacons,** which leverage the widespread network of mobile phones. Traditional tracking methods, often prohibitively expensive and requiring close proximity to the technology, faced limitations that the ANU researchers aimed to overcome. The innovative **Bluetooth beacon** is both lightweight and inexpensive, capable of providing updates through the network of personal smartphones and smartwatches in areas frequented by people. **Associate Professor Damien Farine, leading the study, emphasized the potential of this technology to explore urban wildlife's movements and social structures more economically and reliably than traditional methods.** By utilizing the global network of mobile devices, the beacon can collect data without compromising the privacy of the phone carriers, focusing solely on the tagged animal's identity and location. The **beacon is expected to have a battery life lasting between one to two years** and is particularly effective in areas with a medium to high human density. This advancement, outlined in the journal *Methods in Ecology and Evolution*, positions itself as a significant tool for ecologists aiming to unlock the mysteries of urban wildlife adaptation.