Every month, millions of users passionate about climate change and endangered species. They visit wildlife tracking platforms and apps to monitor animal movements and support vital causes. In this text we are showcasing top wildlife tracking technology solutions and highlighting how they educate and boost donations effectively.
Animals have been our greatest teachers since the dawn of humanity. Countless innovations have been directly inspired by observing the natural world. The tiny hooks on thistles sparked the invention of velcro, while the incredible strength and energy-absorbing properties of spider webs influenced the development of bulletproof vests. Even the designers of the Shinkansen bullet train studied the streamlined beak of a kingfisher to achieve unparalleled aerodynamics.
In recent decades, wildlife monitoring and tracking systems has advanced more than we could have ever imagined. And has made the lives of biologists and zoologists much easier, and certainly more exciting. Nowadays, we can check the pulse of turtles in the Atlantic, or follow sharks cruising the oceans via a QR code.

From GPS through global connectivity to thousands of satellites
Before diving into today’s cutting-edge wildlife tracking solutions, let’s take a moment to explore the fascinating journey that brought us here. A major breakthrough came in the 1990s when the Global Positioning System (GPS) was made available to the public, revolutionizing tracking capabilities. Over the following decades, GPS technology steadily improved in accuracy, laying the foundation for the advanced tools we use today. GPS based wildlife tracking has been booming for the last 20 years. There was always one major downside to it: the position and movement data were stored in the device without the ability to be sent out in real time (or near-real time). GSM systems or LoRaWAN networks were supposed to cure this headache, but their reach is rather limited.
The first solutions for truly global wildlife tracking system in near real-time came around the new millennium. They were able to send data from inaccessible locations over satellite, but were very heavy and the batteries lasted just a few days. There was no global internet as we know it today – allowing the whole world to communicate seamlessly (global connectivity). If the devices were damaged or lost signal, the scientists usually lost a very expensive tracker and all the data.

Can you guess how many satellites are orbiting Earth in 2025? Over 9,000 and counting! Many of these satellites can be tracked in real-time, you can watch the public ones in real time here.. Some play a crucial role in wildlife telemetry, transmitting data from the deepest oceans – and nearly every corner of the planet – through space and back to your devices, enabling groundbreaking insights into animal behavior and ecosystems.
4 steps for effective wildlife data processing in 2023 (hardware and tools tips included)
The process of modern, smart and effective wildlife tracking follows four steps: choosing the right supplier, respectful tagging, managing data while staying secure, and visualizing data in an engaging way.
While researching wildlife tracking, you will most certainly come across the french Argos Systems. Since the 1970s, they have facilitated the transmission of data and supported thousands of environmental projects using their satellite network, including partnerships with initiatives like OCEARCH. You can explore the full list of Argos tag manufacturers here. For even more precise location data, consider checking out Iridium’s advanced capabilities.. For getting even more accurate location data, you might want to check out Iridium. Read this blog explaining the differences between Argos and the technologically more advanced Iridium in detail.

Get a full picture
There are hardware producers out there like WildLifeComputers, which allow you to bring the wildlife monitoring and telemetry up another notch. Their devices contain many different sensors that tell you a story about much more than just location. They can measure the environment (air or water temperature, salinity etc.) or the animal itself (pulse or temperature). If you need data about the environment in addition to or instead of location monitoring, their hardware can do just that. We use it in High Tatras in Slovakia to monitor and count people and walking traffic in the mountains.

Czech startup Hardwario came up with IoT devices that last for years and send data several times a day. They help prevent poaching and monitor roads in the Liberec Region.
How do you process all the data you gather? Most of your audience would have a hard time consuming the raw data, and that’s where wildlife tracking solutions like Mapotic come into play. Take a look at how it turns the spreadsheet data into an attractive and easy to navigate map that users will actually enjoy spending time exploring.

Build your own wildlife tracking app
With Mapotic, you can launch your wildlife tracking solution in a few weeks. Be the source of exciting data for scientists and mind blowing yet easy to consume content for the public. The more engaging your app or website, the more active users you receive and the more enticing your project is for your potential sponsors. Any visitor of your website will understand what you do in seconds. Let users follow your journey of wildlife rescue and put their finger on the pulse of it.
At Mapotic, we care for the safety of all tracked animals. Therefore, there’s a delay between obtaining the data and visualizing them on a map. Why? Because the last thing we want to do is make it any easier for poachers to find their prey. Depending on how quickly the animals are moving, we choose the right level of delay and data randomization to make sure no animals are being harassed.
Blooming tracking projects = thriving wildlife
At Mapotic, our data processing and movement data visualization cloud software powers wildlife tracking projects around the world. We already mentioned OCEARCH shark tracker app, who track the movements of sharks to help scientists understand how to restore balance back to our oceans. They received 25% more engagement from users after launching their brand new app designed by us. A more engaging platform created a stronger bond with their audience, which resulted in a higher volume of donations.

We also supported the Sea Turtle Conservancy, the world’s oldest sea turtle research and conservation organization. They are legends in the field, saving the creatures who themselves play a huge part in maintaining the health of oceans worldwide. Partnering with us enabled innovations (e.g. interactive visualization of weather and currents). This translated into hundreds of thousands of map views per month while lowering budgets for Google maps by tens of percent!
