Remotely tracking animals in their natural habitats has become a central pillar of wildlife research. But on land, the process often involves fitting a collar around an animal’s neck that contains a GPS tracker and various sensors. This requires capturing the animal, which isn’t just expensive—it’s also stressful and dangerous for everyone involved. But a biologist sees a better way forward for this field of study, known as wildlife telemetry. He’s now building and experimenting with devices, described in a recent preprint, that would allow researchers to apply collars on animals without needing to capture them. Rethinking how we put collars on animals, he argues, could bring many benefits to wildlife research, such as improving animal welfare and the quantity and quality of data collected at the same time. Learn more: scim.ag/4uq3lcQ