Leveraging social media and other online data to study animal behavior

Reut Vardi, Andrea Soriano-Redondo, Jorge S. Gutiérrez, Łukasz Dylewski, Zuzanna Jagiello, Peter Mikula, Oded Berger-Tal, Daniel T. Blumstein, Ivan Jarić, Valerio Sbragaglia

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

The widespread sharing of information on the Internet has given rise to ecological studies that use data from digital sources including digitized museum records and social media posts. Most of these studies have focused on understanding species occurrences and distributions. In this essay, we argue that data from digital sources also offer many opportunities to study animal behavior including long-term and large-scale comparisons within and between species. Following Nikko Tinbergen’s classical roadmap for behavioral investigation, we show how using videos, photos, text, and audio posted on social media and other digital platforms can shed new light on known behaviors, particularly in a changing world, and lead to the discovery of new ones.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere3002793
JournalPLoS Biology
Volume22
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Aug 2024

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Neuroscience
  • General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
  • General Immunology and Microbiology
  • General Agricultural and Biological Sciences

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