Using PODs

Suitable projects for PODs

T-PODs have been deployed universally in a wide range of challenging environments and for numerous types of research projects. Each application raises different operational issues and requires different detection statistics. The following information will help you decide whether PODs are an appropriate acoustic tool for your own project.

Environmental Impact Assessment

PODs are applicable where detection of short-term, large impacts and much smaller, long-term effects may be needed. And, as temporal changes from various causes could occur on either time scale, where comparison of changes at the impact site - with changes at a similar, non-impacted, control site - are needed. Find out more…

Use in fisheries

Interactions between cetaceans and fishing gears have been successfully studied using the T-POD. In comparison, towed gears are particularly problematic due to the noise of towing and the proximity of boat sonars, whereas static gear may present few problems. Find out more…

Monitoring population trends

Measurement of population levels by visual survey methods has limited ability to detect trends and is very expensive. SAMs (static acoustic monitors) such as the T-POD and C-POD, potentially offer a much cheaper way of collecting the large volumes of data needed to improve accuracy and there are interesting possibilities for networking and cooperation between different projects.

Behavioural studies

Click train parameters can be exported automatically from T-POD data files, allowing the detection of patterns of click repetition rates that are known to be associated with different behaviours. Find out more…