Whalepostcard The National Geographic Society recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the debut of the crittercam, a camera originally strapped to the back of a loggerhead turtle.

Marine biologist Greg Marshall, who thought up the idea while SCUBA-diving when he spotted a sucker fish hanging to the body of a shark, now leads a team of researchers that has rigged Crittercams to penguins, sharks, seals, whales and other species, in hundreds of projects. Just a few years ago, they deployed the first Crittercams on land to study wild lions in Kenya. They've also added new instruments, and the latest cams can capture images down below 3,000 feet. Recently, scientists have also begun trying to strap tiny cameras to crows as well.—Gregory Mone

Check out Crittercam footage here

Via NYTimes

(Image credit: National Geographic Society)

1 Comment

Hope that one day National geographic posts the full length of those videos. Hope critter cam keeps on going and keeps getting better.


140 years of Popular Science at your fingertips.

Innovation Challenges



Popular Science+ For iPad

Each issue has been completely reimagined for your iPad. See our amazing new vision for magazines that goes far beyond the printed page



Download Our App

Stay up to date on the latest news of the future of science and technology from your iPhone or Android phone with full articles, images and offline viewing



Follow Us On Twitter

Featuring every article from the magazine and website, plus links from around the Web. Also see our PopSci DIY feed


June 2012: Invent Your Own Anything

The 6th annual Invention Awards are here, from an inflatable tourniquet to a better lobster trap to spring-loaded hocket skates. This issue is all about the celebration of invention.

Plus: Making synthetic biology breakthroughs in a garage, building a constantly-moving ping-pong table, and a ridiculously overpowered barbecue.

circ-top-header.gif
circ-cover.gif
bmxmag-ps