Wedgie Gold: Using metal detectors to recover PIT tags under areas used by wedge-tailed eagles and barn owls
M. Blythman A C , C. Sims A and G. Eliot BA Science and Conservation Division, Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions, Locked Bag 104, Bentley Delivery Centre, WA 6983, Australia.
B PO Box 1902, Geraldton, WA 6530, Australia.
C Corresponding author. Email: mark.blythman@dbca.wa.gov.au
Australian Mammalogy 40(2) 304-306 https://doi.org/10.1071/AM17021
Submitted: 1 April 2017 Accepted: 13 August 2017 Published: 4 September 2017
Abstract
A metal detector was used to recover passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags from below wedge-tailed eagle and barn owl nests and roost trees. The effectiveness of four different metal detectors to locate PIT tags and Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme (ABBBS) bands were compared. Twenty PIT tags from 14 golden bandicoots, five burrowing bettongs and one rufous hare-wallaby were recovered from wedge-tailed eagle sites. One unreadable PIT tag was recovered from a barn owl site. This technique has potential for use in determining the survivorship of translocated threatened species.
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