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The C-POD detects the bio-sonar (echolocation clicks) of odontocetes (toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises), providing temporal (time) data on animal activity, as an indication of presence or habitat usage.
The C-POD detects the bio-sonar (echolocation clicks) of odontocetes (toothed whales, dolphins and porpoises), providing temporal (time) data on animal activity, as an indication of presence or habitat usage. Other behaviours such as feeding activity can also be inferred, but involves considerably more and highly specialised data analyses, which OSC can provide on request (see research publications downloadable from www.osc.co.uk). This Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) system is relatively low-cost, fully automated (battery powered) and static (i.e. surface or sub-surface moored), providing a cost effective method to gather large datasets over long periods with minimal field-effort.
The C-POD is the digital successor to the T-POD (www.t-pod.co.uk) and is not only capable of detecting broader-band clicks compared to the T-POD, but also collects a much wider range of data which allows for the advancement of species identification. The C-POD comprises an omni-directional hydrophone, a digital processor and timing/logging system, battery pack and analysis software. The C-POD (and T-POD) is capable of detecting harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) activity up to a range of approximately 300 m, with close to 100% detection reliability within a radius of around 100 m.
With the use of digital waveform characterisation, the C-POD selects and logs odontocete click time, centre frequency, sound pressure level, duration and bandwidth. The C-POD has a very low false positive rate and can log the broadband clicks of dolphins without using large amounts of memory. The C-POD can run for four months on eight alkaline D-cells and a removable Secure Digital (SD) memory card allows for rapid servicing at sea, as no computer is required for downloading data. The C-POD is also buoyant and therefore self-orientating, but requires considerable expertise when designing and safely implementing moorings.