TrakaBat detectors
are the first of a new generation of autonomous detectors that recognise the difference between echolocation calls made by bats and environmental noise made by insects and rain.
Designed and made in New Zealand the TrakaBat system is so efficient that it dispenses with the need to store and interpret huge amounts of
data.
Up to 5600 data records are packed into a tiny 130kB data file. When the data is downloaded it is simply displayed as a standardised graph
enabling weeks of monitoring to be understood in a glance.
The graphs show bat activity by time-of-night and by ultrasonic
frequency. Noise is displayed as time lost during the deployment period.
TrakaBat detectors are small, lightweight and will run for up to
30-nights on four AA batteries. Large numbers of
detectors can be managed with very little effort by just one or two people.
All
of this makes TrakaBat detectors ideal reconnaissance tools for
indexing bat activity. If detailed call analysis is your aim then you
can improve your project's efficiency by using TrakaBat detectors to
find productive locations in which to place the more expensive
equipment.
Reading TrakaBat frequency graphs
New
Zealand's two bat species have evolved distinctly different call
structures to suit their different hunting styles. Long-tail bats
hunt in the open on the forest edge. Short-tail bats hunt inside the
forest. Both species roost in trees inside the forest.
These frequency graphs show that it is easy to tell these two species apart.
The first graph (top) shows the frequency range used
by long-tail bats as they fly through the forest. The
second shows a lower frequency range being used by short-tail bats
inside a forest.
An example from Nohfelden in Germany
In
this example the TrakaBat software shows the accumulated data for
14-nights monitoring at a swarming site in Germany. The time line shows
that at this location bat activity started soon after 21:30 and
continued through to shortly after 05:00. The most common
frequency range in use is 48-50kHz. There is also a wide range of other
call frequencies in use in this location.
New
Zealand's two bat species have evolved distinctly different call
structures to suit their different hunting styles. Long-tail bats
hunt in the open on the forest edge. Short-tail bats hunt inside the
forest. Both species roost in trees inside the forest. 