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By Harriette Halepis

Since 2005, Dr. Henrik Rasmussen (in collaboration with Save the Elephants) has been using GPS tracking technology to follow Marsabit elephants. These elephants have eluded researchers for quite some time, and GPS data is proving that previous notions may have been entirely false.

Up until a few years ago, researchers thought that the Marsabit elephants spent most of their time in the forest. However, this is not the case. Thanks to GPS data, researchers now know that these elephants actually spend a very limited amount of time in the forest.

In addition, researchers have discovered that these elephants only use a small portion of the mountain where they live to graze. This information is in stark contrast to the earlier hypothesis that the elephants used the entire expanse of the mountain for grazing purposes.

Why does any of this information matter? By knowing more about wild animals, researchers can help to protect them from their environment. In addition, some wild animals need protecting from humans, which is an entirely different reason why GPS tracking is vital to the animal world.

The Marsabit elephants live in Kenya, which happens to be an area of the world where elephants are not entirely safe from humans. While ranger patrols try and stop any poaching activity, this is not always possible. With the help of live GPS tracking, researchers are not only able to keep an eye on the elephant’s patterns, but they can also spot any poaching activity.

By simply monitoring the Marsabit elephants, the Save the Elephants group has made Kenya a safer place for these animals. Save the Elephants works with the Environmental Systems Research (ESR) Institute in order to keep track of the elephants. The ESR provides real time tracking capabilities that have changed the way that researchers keep tabs on these wild creatures.

While real time GPS tracking proves to be quite useful for researchers, this technology can also be used by the public. By logging onto the Save the Elephants website, individuals can also watch the Marsabit elephants go about their daily lives in real time.

GPS Tracking is used all over the world to protect numerous species. Thanks to this innovative technology, animals that might have faced extinction are now being protected. The information that a GPS tracker provides is priceless…both for the lives of animals and for the lives of future generations that will be able to enjoy them for many years to come.