#I also use the wayback machine to reference the Sirtrack catalogue which was cutting edge tech at the time

[bonefall]

How do the researchers react to the clan cats leaving the lake for a time?

You mean the little patrols they send out?

They aren't aware of them, EXCEPT for the Beaver Expedition that Dovepaw was on. They found out about that one because they got a phone call from the team in charge of the beaver introduction.

It was NERVE WRACKING. Both teams were terrified the other would injure their subjects. They were horrified when the cats dug out the top of the dam and pulled the squealing baby beavers out, thinking this was going to end BADLY, but practically cried in relief and excitement when the Clan cats baited the parents towards the lake.

(I like to imagine someone on the beaver team ended up hitting it off with someone on the Clan cat team. The wedding cake was cats and beavers.)

But generally? They don't know about expeditions. Sometimes they catch them leaving, but don't have the funding to chase them down.

Clan cats are also not under constant surveillance. Very important to understand this. Clan cats will attack anything that upsets them and good cameras are expensive; they snuck one into the ThunderClan Camp once in like 2009, and Firestar dug it up at the stake and dropped it down the WindClan border ravine because it was freaking his warriors out.

(The cats don't understand that the cameras watch; they just don't like the Freaky Human Thing)

So the team has to be careful, not install too many, and hide the ones they do have. They don't want the cats to move again.