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Crittercam

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Introduction

History of Crittercam

Crittercam™ is an imaging system developed to be deployed on wild, free-ranging animals. Commonly referred to as an "animal-borne system," it collects visual data in places where a human observer could not safely go, or where their presence would likely disturb natural behavior. The footage documents animal behaviors from their point of view, containing first-hand evidence of previously unknown or unconfirmed behaviors.

Crittercam inventor, National Geographic Explorer Greg Marshall, was inspired by seeing a remora fish clinging to a reef shark off the coast of Belize in 1987. He wondered what it might be like to ride along with the shark as it went about its normal behavior; what a researcher could learn about sharks or other animals beyond the very small glimpse often seen of their lives. After some experimentation to prove the concept possible, he brought his idea for an "animal-borne" imaging system to the National Geographic Society, where it has been championed ever since.

As a marine biologist, Marshall’s early work with Crittercam was focused on the ocean, though the technology later evolved for work with terrestrial animals, too.

Crittercam has shown that:

  • Leatherback Turtles mate near their nesting beaches, not at distant feeding grounds as previously thought.
  • Emperor Penguins catch fish on the underside of sea ice rather than at the deeper parts of their dives.
  • Humpback Whales have unique 'jobs' in their cooperative bubble-net feeding behavior.
  • Hawaiian Monk Seals footage provided crucial evidence identifying critical habitats of this endangered species.
  • Adult Green Sea Turtles are not always strictly vegetarian as scientists had presumed, but instead have omnivorous eating habits.

The​ Society's Exploration Technology Lab—the department managing Crittercam projects—collaborates with scientists to adapt the Crittercams, the related technology, or both, to comprehensively address research questions and gain new insights into animal behavior and ecology.

Scope of the Collection

The Crittercam Collection was developed and documented by the Society’s Exploration Technology Lab and spans from the inception of Crittercam in 1991 through 2016. The Collection includes:

  • Crittercam deployments from all over the world, including locations in every continent
  • Documentation of 80 unique species
  • Six hundred digitized recordings currently available to view online
  • Two categories of media — the point of view (POV) footage and the supporting "topside" documentation of the deployment of the camera on the animal
  • Original-recording formats: Hi-8, MiniDV, DV/DVCAM, DVCPro HD, HDV tapes, and born-digital

After the Exploration Technology Lab and scientists reviewed and analyzed the data documented by the Crittercams, the media transferred to the care of the Society's Special Collections so that it could be preserved and made accessible for wider research and use.

Digitization of the Crittercam magnetic tape collection was supported by a Recordings at Risk grant from the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). The grant program is made possible by funding from the Mellon Foundation.

Search the Collection

We work to ensure the safety and health of every animal we study or document. In order to better understand or raise awareness of behaviors and habitat, we deploy Crittercams on wild, free-ranging animals to collect visual data in places where a human observer could not safely go, or where their presence would likely disturb natural behavior. Our team of scientists take the utmost care to monitor the animal’s health throughout our study/documentation. Please note that these videos contain unedited animal interaction.

Terrestrial

In 2003, the first "wild" terrestrial Crittercam was tested on an African lion. Now Crittercams are deployed on terrestrial animals throughout the world, from big cats, to elephants, bears, coyotes and more.

Marine

On marine animals, Crittercams can detach using a pre-programmed release mechanism. The Crittercams, which have radio transmitters, can then be found on the surface by researchers with tracking devices.

Topside Coverage

The "topside" coverage provides the background information and context for the Crittercam deployments. Included in this footage is preliminary work conducted by scientists collaborating with NGS on deployments, related preparations, interviews with research teams regarding the discoveries they hope to make and their reactions upon viewing recovered Crittercam footage.

Usage Rights

For Educational Use Only. All footage is owned by NGS, but for any use of this data for publications, scientists and/or their publication on the data must be cited.

Required Credit Line for Use:

Scientist Name, Crittercam Collection, National Geographic Society's Special Collections

Recommended Citation:

Scientist name (last, first), Year, Publication Title (if provided), Unique ID and/or link to footage being cited, Crittercam Collection, National Geographic Society's Special Collections.

Example:

Parrish F.A., Boland R.C., Sawyer M., Greene B., Buhleier B., Marshall G., 2023. Monitoring the diurnal and seasonal foraging of Hawaiian monk seals in mesophotic rubble habitat using seafloor event loggers called "electric rocks." Endangered Species Research 51:293-303 https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01259 NS19759313, https://dam.ngs.org/CS.aspx?VP3=DamView&VBID=2K5ZV8PDQ8K1&PN=1&WS=SearchResults Crittercam Collection, National Geographic Society’s Special Collections.