Development of a Peduncle Belt as a Medium to Long-Term Tag Attachment Platform for Cetacean Studies

Peduncle saddle pack tag A padded harness will fit around the tail stock of the whale at the narrowest portion of the peduncle just before the fluke insertion point. To deploy the belt, a cantilevered pole mounted on the bow of a small inflatable will drop a spring loaded armature on the caudal terminus of the whale (Figure 1). Once triggered, the armature’s sickle shaped arms will close, latching a buckle under the whale’s belly. As the arms lift away, the elasticized belt is cinched to snugly secure the semi-rigid saddle housing the tag electronics to the dorsal ridge of the peduncle. An electronic timed release combined with a backup