Seal scientists

Humans not up to the task of gaterhing data to answer your research question? What do you do? Use a proxy? Sophisticated technological equipment? An elephant seal?

Onbviously the answer is elephant seal:

Elephant seals on South Georgia have been recruited to the cause of science. Equipped with computerised tags stuck to their heads, the animals have been collecting remarkable new information on conditions in the Southern Ocean.

As the animals swim for thousands of km and dive down to 2,000 m, their tags record details of temperature, depth and the salinity of the water. When the seals pop up to breathe, the computers transmit the information to scientists in Scotland via satellite.

Low maintainence research assistants

I wonder if they can be persuaded to take up pollen analysis?