Visualizing aerial wildlife movements: Internet sources of Doppler radar for the classroom

Abstract

Doppler radar imagery is a useful classroom tool for studying the movement and spatio-temporal distribution of animals. In this paper we present a basic introduction to Doppler radar and the base products used to garner biological and geographical data. We draw upon imagery depicting bat and avian movements to illustrate how radar imagery may be beneficially used in the classroom to examine habitat use and species distribution at the landscape scale. Additionally we provide references for data acquisition and real-time animated imagery available on the Internet. We hope the information and imagery provided here will help instructors enrich the classroom experience for their students, while at the same time demonstrating real-world applications for the use of radar imagery in biogeographic studies.

Keywords:

• bats
• birds
• biogeography
• Doppler radar
• Internet data sources
• physical geography
• remote sensing