📣 Call for abstracts!
Abstract submissions are now open for the 2026 OTN Symposium, taking place November 9–12, 2026 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.We invite submissions for posters, speed talks, oral presentations, panels, and/or workshops.
Submit your abstract by June 15!
Link to the OTN symposium portal in bio.
MAY STUDY HALL SCHEDULE! 🗓️
Every Thursday, the OTN data team works with peers from across the globe to answer telemetry questions and help problem solve! These informal sessions can be a valuable resource for anyone interested in aquatic telemetry.
Join us! Link in bio.
We’re inviting OTN collaborators to feature their work in a research profile!
Researchers are doing amazing work and we want to share it! If you’re part of the OTN community and want to highlight your project, check out our research profiles. They’re a great way to:
🌊 Strengthen community connections
🌊 Share your insights with a global audience
🌊 Inspire future research
To learn more and get started, visit the link in our bio.
🌊 A glimpse into the Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area (MPA)
Located in the Gulf of St. Lawrence along the Gaspé Peninsula, the Banc-des-Américains MPA stretches roughly 35 km from Cap Gaspé to Bonaventure Island. Beneath the surface, it protects rich seafloor habitats that support a wide diversity of marine life.
In 2025, an innovative acoustic telemetry project was launched to better understand how species use this protected area, with a focus on Atlantic wolffish and American lobster. A distinctive aspect of the project is its field approach, combining boat-based receiver deployments with scientific diving to tag wolffish directly underwater.
Using a network of 50 loaned OTN acoustic receivers, combined with 47 existing @fisheriesoceanscan (DFO) receivers, researchers can track movements in remarkable detail—revealing where animals go, how long they stay, and which habitats are most important to them.
These insights will help assess the effectiveness of the MPA, strengthen long-term monitoring efforts, and support future conservation and management decisions. 🪸
📸: Laélien Bassi (DFO/MPO)
We were excited to have our Director of Data Operations, Jon Pye, and Data Acquisition Coordinator, Mati Gray, participate in the kick-off meeting of the Multi-disciplinary Ocean Sensing for Adaptive International Conservation (MOSAIC) project in Belfast last month. This new cross-border initiative brings together 11 partners across Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Canada.
Led by the @loughsagency , MOSAIC will establish an innovative marine observation network linking ocean science and biodiversity to improve how we understand and manage our shared seas in a changing climate.
The project will deploy new sensor technologies, develop decision-support tools, and strengthen long-term access to high-quality marine data to support species conservation and climate resilience.
OTN is contributing to the initiative by implementing a new MOSAIC–OTN compatible acoustic telemetry data node. In addition, Jon and Mati are working with Rob Thomas at the Marine Institute in Ireland to deploy data management systems and facilitate workshops for project members.
During the recent visit, Mati also led a seminar for over 60 participants showcasing OTN’s work and connected with partners during follow-up visits at the Marine Institute.
MOSAIC is supported through PEACEPLUS, with funding from SEUPB, DAERA, and @deptcee .
🌊 How are elasmobranchs using Ireland’s waters?
Dr. Danielle Orrell at @universitycollegecork is using acoustic and satellite tracking to study species such as flapper skate, tope shark, small‑spotted catshark, and porbeagle in areas that overlap with offshore wind development.
With support from OTN’s equipment loaner program, her team is helping to fill key movement data gaps in the Celtic and Irish Seas.
Learn more about this important work at the link in our bio.
📸: The CETUS Project
🎉 Since 2017, our Tag! You’re It! conservation financing program with @bigsprucebrew has been turning beer into impact, and we’re excited to share our latest recipients!
Each year, we collaborate on a special‑edition beer that gives back, with a portion of proceeds supporting coastal and aquatic conservation in the Maritimes.
The current release, a hazy IPA showcasing a leatherback sea turtle, is helping fund three organizations making waves in their communities and across the region:
💙 @stmargaretsbaysa
💙 Jijuktu’kwejk Watershed Alliance
💙 @canadaseaturtle
Cheers to conservation, community, and collaboration. 🍻🌎
Read more about this year's recipients on our website!
🌍 Advancing ocean science at the 2026 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Expo!
The @dalhousieu SDG Expo brought together researchers, students, and community partners to showcase innovation and action aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and we were proud to be part of it!
As an endorsed project of the @unoceandecade , we highlighted how OTN's global infrastructure and collaborations are advancing aquatic animal tracking science. From acoustic telemetry to remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and marine autonomous platforms, our tools are helping monitor aquatic species and ecosystems in a rapidly changing ocean climate.
A big thank you to Cassandra (project management team) and Dan (data team) for representing OTN and engaging with attendees throughout the day, and to @sustainabilityatdal for hosting!
The 2026 spring bloom mission is underway! 🌊
One of our Slocum gliders was deployed in mid-February and recovered toward the end of March to help monitor one of the most important seasonal events in the Northwest Atlantic: the spring phytoplankton bloom.
This year’s mission is all about continuity and collaboration. We’re working closely with@fisheriesoceanscan (DFO) to ensure uninterrupted glider coverage before, during, and after the bloom. Earlier this winter, DFO completed the first mission, OTN led the second, and more DFO deployments are on the way — together tracking the bloom from start to finish. By carefully timing deployments, we can capture this brief but key process that fuels marine food webs and shapes ecosystem productivity.
Stay tuned for updates as the mission unfolds! 🌱
📸: Melany Belzile, DFO/BIO
🦈 Wave Glider attacked!
OTN’s glider team was shocked when recovering one of our Wave Gliders, only to find a large portion of the float missing, along with the entire sub. Needless to say, we were left wondering what could have caused this kind of damage…
Upon closer inspection, we found a tooth embedded in the side of the float. Measuring nearly 20 cm, it's more than three times the size of teeth from the largest living predatory sharks, great whites, which typically reach only about 5 cm!
After careful (and slightly skeptical) analysis, there’s only one possible conclusion: a Megalodon.
Scientists believe Megalodon went extinct around 2.6 million years ago, but we’re starting to think otherwise… 👀🤯
Here’s hoping the next encounter involves acoustic tags so we can track this so-called “extinct” shark!
#AprilFools
We’re thrilled to support a @novascotiacommunitycollege (OTEC) capstone project team (students Brendan, Lara, and Michael)—who are developing a mounted, deployable recovery line for our Blue ROVs.
While OTN usually undertakes equipment recoveries using a Falcon ROV (rated to 1000 m), the students have been testing a recovery concept at a smaller, yet functional, scale. The goal: reduce common recovery challenges, like line drag and the risk of twisting the line and tether.
With guidance from OTN telemetry ops team members Sean and Iago, field testing took place earlier this month in the Halifax Harbour. The team successfully recovered a mock mooring suspended from the vessel 3/3 times, at depths of up to 30 m.
Huge congratulations to Brendan, Lara, and Michael on this milestone! We can’t wait to see their final presentation at the NSCC Tech Showcase on March 27 (today!).
What ancient species has outlived both the dodo bird and woolly mammoth? The Atlantic whitefish!
Ava Sergio—a master’s student at @dalhousieu —is investigating this critically endangered freshwater fish, which has lived in Nova Scotia since before the last Ice Age. In this interview, she discusses her research on the species’ behaviour, potential spawning sites, and interactions with invasive predators.
Read more about Ava's research on our website!
