Sea animals can help humans monitor oceans

Sharks, penguins, turtles and other seagoing species could help humans monitor the oceans by transmitting oceanographic information from electronic tags , a new study suggests.

Researchers from the University of Exeter said large areas of the ocean still remain under-sampled — leaving gaps in our knowledge. The team said data from animal sensors could help fill these gaps through natural behaviour such as diving under ice.

Thousands of marine animals are tagged for research purposes, but at present the data isn’t widely used to track climate change and shifts in the oceans.