The Pennsylvania Game Commission has collared a cow elk with a video camera, hoping the elk-eye view will provide insight into the cervid’s habitat preferences and cow-to-calf interactions.
While tracking animals for research is nothing new, this video offers a great inside look at how researchers handle the whole darting and collaring process. Elk biologist Jeremy Banfield also notes in the video that, to his knowledge, this is the first time an elk has been outfitted with a video camera.
In addition to the video footage, the collar will provide the Pennsylvania researchers with GPS tracking information. At the top of each daylight hour, the camera will turn on and film both video and audio for 30 seconds. After 75 days the collar will automatically fall off, allowing the Commission to retrieve it and mine the data for research.