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The information contained in these documents is confidential, privileged and only for the information of the intended recipient and may
not be used, published or redistributed without the prior written consent of Wildlife Computers.
o
Stays within 6m (+/- 3 meters) of a constant depth for more than 3 days.
o
Stays deeper than 400m for more than 3 days.
•
The tag will release if it reaches a depth of 1400 meters. This ensures that if the tag is sinking, it will not
reach its crush depth and become inoperable.
If your animal naturally remains at a constant depth for long durations consider disabling the Auto-detect
Mortality feature.
Adaptive Transmission Schedule on Conditional Release
In the case of early release, the MiniPAT transmits time-series data messages in addition to its scheduled
data products. This can help when investigating the cause of the conditional release event. The time-series
interval depends on deployment duration.
If the conditional release is:
•
Less than 15 days the MiniPAT will transmit 300 second time-series for depth and temperature
(unless the originally programmed interval was faster).
•
Between 15 and 30 days, the MiniPAT will transmit 600 second time-series for depth and
temperature.
•
Greater than 30 days AND no temperature or depth time-series were initially enabled, the MiniPAT
will create 600 second Time-Series messages for the two days leading up to release.
Ignore Wet/Dry After 45 Days
You can optionally choose to have the tag ignore its wet/dry condition 45 days after release. The tag will
then attempt transmissions at its scheduled repetition interval until the battery expires. This setting can be
useful if a tag is fouled or hung up on debris, in which case the wet/dry sensor may indicate wet, even when
the tag is at the surface. The longer a tag is at the surface the more susceptible it is to damage and
predation.
Pinger
The pinger is used for tag recovery. When enabled, the MiniPAT sends out low power “pings” after release,
while at the surface. The tag can be located with an appropriate receiver and directional antenna. A one or
two-second ping interval is the most appropriate setting for tracking, and mimics a typical VHF tracking
transmitter. Excess power draw from the pinger is negligible. The transmissions sent by the pinger are very
short and do not carry any data.
External Release Device
If using an external release device, such as
Wildlife Computers Programmable Timed- Release (PTR)
, the
MiniPAT will not burn its release pin. With the burn pin still intact, the MiniPAT can be redeployed. Set the
date the external release device is programmed to release and expected deployment date. Based on this
range, the tag will calculate the archival sample interval. The pinger feature can be enabled to assist with
recovery.
