Movebank API
Community OpenAPI document · agent-readyData EnrichmentData Transformationbasic, apiKey3 EndpointsREST
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For Agents
Query Movebank's animal-tracking database for studies, individuals, tags, deployments, and event tracks via the /direct-read interface using a basic-auth login or an api-token.
Use for: I need to list all studies I have access to in Movebank, Get the tracking events for a specific individual animal, Retrieve a Movebank api-token for a script run, Find all deployments associated with a study
Not supported: Does not handle data upload, study creation, or environmental sensor data outside the tracking model - use for Movebank read access to studies, individuals, tags, deployments, and tracking events only.
Movebank is an online database of animal tracking data hosted by the Max Planck Institute for Animal Behavior. Researchers worldwide upload GPS, accelerometer, and other telemetry from tags attached to animals, and Movebank exposes it through a REST API used for ecological research, conservation, and education. The API exposes three endpoints: a generic /direct-read entry-point for studies, individuals, tags, deployments, and tracking events, an attribute-listing variant, and /request-token for issuing time-limited API tokens. Authentication uses HTTP basic auth or a query-string api-token issued by Movebank.
Install Jentic One Beta
Connect the Movebank API to your agent
Jentic One is a self-hosted execution layer for AI agents. It lets your agent call the Movebank API, or any other public or private API you need. You set the rules, the agent never sees your credentials, and every call is logged.
Two steps, two machines. Install the instance in a safe environment, then register your agent from wherever it runs.
1
Step 1: Jentic One Host machine
# On the machine that will host your Jentic One instance:
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fmovebank.org%2Fmovebank" | sh2
Step 2: Agent machine
# On the machine where your agent runs (keep this separate from the instance):
curl -fsSL "https://jentic.com/install.sh?src=apis&api=%2Fapis%2Fmovebank.org%2Fmovebank" | sh
jentic register # connects your agent to your Jentic One instanceJentic One is in public beta. The setup above keeps your agent separate from the instance, which is what you want before using real credentials: an agent running as the same OS user as Jentic One can read its stored keys directly. Just evaluating? A single local install is fine to start. See the secure deployment guide for the tiers.
Capabilities
What an agent can do with Movebank API.
Issue a Movebank api-token via GET /request-token for time-bounded read access
Query studies, individuals, tags, deployments, and tracking events through GET /direct-read
List the attributes available on an entity-type via the /direct-read?attributes variant
Filter tracking events by study, individual, time range, or entity-specific parameters
Pull animal telemetry into ecological analysis, conservation reporting, or education tooling
Use Cases
Patterns agents use Movebank API for, with concrete tasks.
★ Ecological Research Data Pull
Researchers and analysts pull tracking events from Movebank into their analysis environment. The /direct-read endpoint returns studies, individuals, tags, deployments, or events depending on the entity_type query parameter, with filters for study ID, individual, and time range. Combined with /request-token, this gives a script a clean credential lifecycle for one-off or scheduled data pulls.
Request an api-token from /request-token, then call /direct-read with entity_type=event and a study_id filter to retrieve the GPS fix events for the study.
Conservation Dashboard Backend
Conservation programmes power dashboards that show the latest movements of tagged animals. The dashboard backend pulls from /direct-read on a schedule, transforms events into a time-indexed feed, and renders maps. The api-token flow keeps long-lived credentials out of the dashboard process.
On a schedule, request a fresh api-token, then pull events for a fixed list of study_ids and write them into the dashboard time-series store.
Wildlife Research Agent via Jentic
An AI research agent helping a biologist explore tracking datasets searches Jentic for the Movebank /direct-read operation, loads its schema, and executes queries by entity type. Jentic stores the basic-auth credentials and supplies them at call time, so the agent never holds the researcher's Movebank password.
Search Jentic for 'read Movebank tracking data', load /direct-read, and execute it with entity_type=individual and a study_id filter.
Key Endpoints
3 endpoints — movebank is an online database of animal tracking data hosted by the max planck institute for animal behavior.
METHOD
PATH
DESCRIPTION
GET
/direct-read
Read studies, individuals, tags, deployments, or events
GET
/direct-read?attributes
List attributes available on an entity-type
GET
/request-token
Issue a Movebank api-token
GET
/direct-read
Read studies, individuals, tags, deployments, or events
GET
/direct-read?attributes
List attributes available on an entity-type
GET
/request-token
Issue a Movebank api-token
Why Jentic?
What agents get from Jentic-routed access to this vendor.
Setup
Wiring Movebank by hand means choosing between basic auth and its api-token, passing the token as a query parameter, and shaping direct-read calls with the right entity_type. Through Jentic you install once, import the Movebank API from the API Directory, store the credentials once, and your agent calls it.
Permission scoping
Movebank selects data by entity_type in the query string rather than a resource path, so limit the agent to the operations it needs, such as direct-read of tracking events. You choose the operations it may call, so it stays within Movebank's read surface.
Credential isolation
Your Movebank basic-auth credentials and api-token are stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and attached as the basic-auth header or api-token parameter at execution time. Neither value enters the agent's prompt, logs, or context.
Intent-based discovery
Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'read Movebank tracking events', and Jentic returns the /direct-read operation with the entity_type parameter exposed in its input schema, so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the docs.
Related APIs
Alternatives and complements available in the Jentic catalogue.
FAQs
Specific to using Movebank API through Jentic.
What authentication does the Movebank API use?
Movebank accepts HTTP basic authentication with a Movebank account, or an api-token passed as the api-token query parameter. Tokens are issued by GET /request-token. Through Jentic, the basic-auth credentials sit in the encrypted vault and are attached at call time.
Can I download tracking events for a specific study?
Yes. Call GET /direct-read with entity_type=event and a study_id filter. You can also list /direct-read?attributes for the event entity to see what fields are available before pulling full events.
What are the rate limits for the Movebank API?
Movebank does not publish hard rate limits in the spec. Treat the API as fair-use and request an api-token via /request-token for scripted pulls so the platform can attribute and rate-limit appropriately.
How do I read tracking events through Jentic?
Run pip install jentic, search 'read Movebank tracking data', load /direct-read, and execute it with the entity_type and study_id parameters. Jentic supplies your Movebank credentials from the vault.
Is the Movebank API free?
Yes for research use under Movebank's Terms of Use. Access to specific datasets depends on the study owner's permission settings - some studies are public, others require explicit access from the principal investigator.
Why use api-token instead of basic auth?
The api-token is issued by /request-token and is time-bounded, which is safer for scripts and scheduled jobs than embedding a long-lived password. Basic auth is still supported for interactive testing.
Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the Movebank API?
Yes. Because you run Jentic One yourself, your own rules decide which Movebank operations and credentials the agent may use, so you can allow only /direct-read of tracking events and deny the rest of the read surface. Movebank selects data by entity_type in the query string rather than a resource path, so you scope the agent by the operations it can call, such as reading events for a study while withholding /request-token or the attributes variant. Your Movebank basic-auth login and api-token are attached at call time and never enter the agent's prompt or context.
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