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Using airborne thermal imaging to understand American Coot movement patterns in a hot spring refugium during winter

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Abstract

We examined the movement patterns of American Coots relative to water temperature and heat index where a geothermally heated stream enters Utah Lake, UT, USA during winter using a thermal imager onboard an Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). Observations of Coots in different water temperatures (n = 2354) were compiled during 31 flights in January–March, 2020. Coots were actively swimming during 82.3% of the observations, fleeing during 8.1%, and sedentary in water during 9.6%. The population spent more time swimming in cooler water and were sedentary for longer in warmer water. The only instance of uniform behavior occurred during an anomalously cold period in which Coots stood huddled in the warmest available water. Using a linear model framework, we found that Coot time spent increased with water temperature when heat index decreased. Coots’ swim paths deviated away from warmer water more than cooler water and more so as heat index increased. We suggest that Coots use the spring water primarily for ice-free habitat and maintain metabolic rates via a combination of thermal conductance, caloric ingestion, and exercise, but only exploit the heated water strictly for thermoregulation during anomalously cold periods. We discuss the benefits and hindrances of using UASs amidst a rapidly expanding assortment of sensors and aircraft available to researchers. Given wetlands’ immediate conservation concern, ecosystem services they provide, and support of unique species assemblages, our research provides valuable insight into documenting wildlife’s use of wetlands with relatively low scientific take and human interference.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the Saratoga Springs Police Department for their logistical assistance, as well as to D. Nelson and the field technicians who supported this effort. We also thank the anonymous reviewers for their contributions in improving this article.

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The authors have no funding to declare.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Economics and Geosciences, United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 80840, USA

    Justin H. White, Collin S. Philipps & Landon B. Chandler

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  1. Justin H. White
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  2. Collin S. Philipps
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  3. Landon B. Chandler
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Contributions

Conceptualization: JHW; methodology: JHW; formal Analysis and investigation: CSP, JHW; writing—original draft preparation: JHW, CSP. Visualization: JHW, CSP, LBC.

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Correspondence to Justin H. White.

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This research was permitted of the Utah Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife Resources.

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White, J.H., Philipps, C.S. & Chandler, L.B. Using airborne thermal imaging to understand American Coot movement patterns in a hot spring refugium during winter. Wetlands Ecol Manage 31, 875–886 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-023-09957-w

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