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etn

ANALYTICS
Velocity0.0

Access Data from the European Tracking Network

etn stopped being an RStudio-server package and became something you can run anywhere.

rtelemetrymarine-scienceapi-clientopen-data
Current state
etn is the R client for the European Tracking Network's acoustic telemetry database, maintained at INBO. The 3.0.0 release routes queries through an API served by the companion etnservice package, so the package no longer requires a session on the ETN RStudio server. Credentials moved out of a connection object and into .Renviron, and the data model was rescoped in 2.0.0 around tag_serial_number so acoustic work is one scope among several rather than the whole package.
Where it's heading
Two arcs run in parallel: widening access, and making room for non-acoustic data. The access work has been deliberate — an API-backed beta in 2024, then a stable release that picks the transport automatically and checks that a local etnservice install matches the deployed one, because the same query returning different results by transport would be worse than requiring the server. The Darwin Core export added in 2.1.0 points the same outward direction, moving data to OBIS and GBIF instead of keeping it in the ETN silo.
Prediction
The cpod scope named in the 2.0.0 notes is the most likely next addition, now that the naming and the API transport are both in place to carry it.

Recent moves

  1. 5mo ago

    etn runs off the ETN RStudio server via the etnservice API

    ⚡ SPARK

    The release that removes the ETN RStudio server as a requirement, completing an access arc that began with the v2.3 beta back in 2024. It also breaks every existing script by moving credentials out of the connection argument.

    View source ↗
  2. 6mo ago

    Data model rescoped; acoustic becomes one named scope

    Rescopes the package around ETN's new data model: tag_serial_number becomes the primary tag identifier, tags gain multiple types, subtypes and sensors, and acoustic-specific work is renamed to sit under an explicit acoustic scope. Acoustic coverage is unchanged today; the renaming is what makes room for scopes like cpod later.

    View source ↗
  3. 6mo ago

    write_dwc() exports telemetry as Darwin Core for OBIS and GBIF

    Adds write_dwc() to transform acoustic telemetry into Darwin Core for harvesting by OBIS and GBIF. A genuine new output path, pushing ETN data into the biodiversity commons rather than keeping it inside the R client.

    View source ↗
  4. 6mo ago

    depth_in_meters added to acoustic detections

    Adds depth_in_meters to get_acoustic_detections(), stops download_acoustic_dataset() breaking on missing datapackage.json fields, and starts a NEWS.md. A small data-surface addition on the way to the 2.2.x fix line.

    View source ↗
  5. 6mo ago

    write_dwc() fixes for uppercase project codes

    Two write_dwc() fixes: uppercase animal_project_codes, and a break caused by an updated dependency. Repair on the export path added in 2.1.0.

    View source ↗
  6. 6mo ago

    NA formatting and duplicate receiver ID fixes

    NA formatting in check_value(), duplicate values from list_receiver_ids(), empty rights_holder in write_dwc(), plus test-skipping and citation metadata. Housekeeping ahead of the model rescope.

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