AlphaTracker: A Multi-Animal Tracking and Behavioral Analysis Tool

Abstract

The advancement of behavioral analysis in neuroscience has been aided by the development of computational tools^1,2. Specifically, computer vision algorithms have emerged as a powerful tool to elevate behavioral research^3,4. Yet fully automatic analysis of social behavior remains challenging in two ways. First, existing tools to track and analyze behavior often focus on single animals, not multiple, interacting animals. Second, many available tools are not developed for novice users and require programming experience to run. Here, we unveil a computer vision pipeline called AlphaTracker, which requires minimal hardware requirements and produces reliable tracking of multiple unmarked animals. An easy-to-use user interface further enables manual inspection and curation of results. We demonstrate the practical, real-time advantages of AlphaTracker through the study of multiple, socially-interacting mice.