Hello all, My co-authors and I are pleased to announce the publication of our paper on the perspectives of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in marine mammal research - explaining NIRS theory, function, potential applications, limitations, and presenting NIRS data from cetaceans, seals and humans. Alexander Ruesch, J. Chris McKnight, Andreas Fahlman, Barbara G. Shinn-Cunningham, and Jana M. Kainerstorfer. 2022. Near-Infrared Spectroscopy as a Tool for Marine Mammal Research and Care. Frontiers in Physiology. 12: 10.3389/fphys.2021.816701 Abstract: Developments in wearable human medical and sports health trackers has offered new solutions to challenges encountered by eco-physiologists attempting to measure physiological attributes in freely moving animals. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is one such solution that has potential as a powerful physio-logging tool to assess physiology in freely moving animals. NIRS is a non-invasive optics-based technology, that uses non-ionizing radiation to illuminate biological tissue and measures changes in oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin concentrations inside tissues such as skin, muscle, and the brain. The overall footprint of the device is small enough to be deployed in wearable physio-logging devices. We show that changes in hemoglobin concentration can be recorded from bottlenose dolphins and gray seals with signal quality comparable to that achieved in human recordings. We further discuss functionality, benefits, and limitations of NIRS as a standard tool for animal care and wildlife tracking for the marine mammal research community. The paper can be obtained at the following link: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphys.2021.816701/full?&utm_sou... Kind Regards, Chris