Acoustic sensors enable efficient and non-invasive monitoring of a wide range of species, including many that are difficult to monitor in other ways. Although they were initially limited in application scope largely due to cost and hardware constraints, the development of low-cost, open-source models like the Audiomoth in recent years has increased access immensely and opened up new avenues of research. For example, some teams are using them to identify illicit human activities through the detection of associated sounds, like gunshots, vehicles, or chainsaws (e.g. OpenEars).
With this relatively novel dimension of wildlife monitoring rapidly advancing in both marine and terrestrial systems, it is crucial that we identify and share information about the utility and constraints of these sensors to inform efforts. A recent study identified advancements in hardware and machine learning applications, as well as early development of acoustic biodiversity indicators, as factors facilitating progress in the field. In terms of limitations, the authors highlight insufficient reference sound libraries, a lack of open-source audio processing tools, and a need for standardization of survey and analysis protocols. They also stress the importance of collaboration in moving forward, which is precisely what this group will aim to facilitate.
If you're new to acoustic monitoring and want to get up to speed on the basics, check out these beginner's resources and conversations from across the WILDLABS platform:
Three Resources for Beginners:
- Listening to Nature: The Emerging Field of Bioacoustics, Adam Welz
- Ecoacoustics and Biodiversity Monitoring, RSEC Journal
- Monitoring Ecosystems through Sound: The Present and Future of Passive Acoustics, Ella Browning and Rory Gibb
Three Forum Threads for Beginners:
- AudioMoth user guide | Tessa Rhinehart
- Audiomoth and Natterjack Monitoring (UK) | Stuart Newson
- Help with analysing bat recordings from Audiomoth | Carlos Abrahams
Three Tutorials for Beginners:
- "How do I perform automated recordings of bird assemblages?" | Carlos Abrahams, Tech Tutors
- "How do I scale up acoustic surveys with Audiomoths and automated processing?" | Tessa Rhinehart, Tech Tutors
- Acoustic Monitoring | David Watson, Ruby Lee, Andy Hill, and Dimitri Ponirakis, Virtual Meetups
Want to know more about acoustic monitoring and learn from experts in the WILDLABS community? Jump into the discussion in our Acoustic Monitoring group!
Header image: Carly Batist
Two years in Cape Town, South Africa. Yearly visits to Rwanda. If you love to code, and all things Python/deep learning/tech stuff/ then you'll have an awesome time!
16 January 2024
This article discussed early work on modeling how acoustic properties of the environment will change with variations in weather.
9 January 2024
Analysing recordings of gunshots could help save endangered species around the world by identifying poacher hotspots.
7 January 2024
Digital monitoring tools are helping rangers protect wildlife in South America's Atlantic Forest. Could sound-based maps pin down the poaching threat?
7 January 2024
The IQOE Task Team on Low-Cost Hydrophones for Research, Education, and Citizen Science is looking for industry partners to develop a low-cost hydrophone.
15 December 2023
Article
How to engage decision makers for a more sustainable land management for both citizens and landowners in developing countries.
15 December 2023
With the support of Women in Conservation Technology (Kenya) and Arm, I had a chance to work with Kijabe Environment Volunteers in Kikuyu Escarpment Forest. This was an opportunity to channel my passion for the...
1 December 2023
Prospective PhD students with a background in acoustics and an interest in Arctic ecology are encouraged to email Michelle EH Fournet
16 November 2023
Sarab Sethi is looking for a PhD student (Sept 24) to investigate real time insect pollinator monitoring with acoustics. Sensor design, ML, lab and field experiments, and more !
16 November 2023
Join the Rainforest Connection & Arbimon team to develop software for biodiversity monitoring!
14 November 2023
Yale University & Map of Life Rapid Assessments - XPRIZE
8 November 2023
Baker Consultants has released new ecoacoustic research assessing the benefits of using automated detectors alongside transect bird survey methods.
30 October 2023
April 2024
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Drop-deployed HydroMoth
2 April 2024 10:20am
15 April 2024 6:53am
Hi Matthew,
Thanks for your advice, this is really helpful!
I'm planning to use it in a seagrass meadow survey for a series of ~20 drops/sites to around 30 m, recording for around 10 minutes each time, in Cornwall, UK.
At this stage I reckon we won't exceed 30 m, but based on your advice, I think this sounds like not the best setup for the surveys we want to try.
We will try the Aquarian H1a, attached to the Zoom H1e unit, through a PVC case. This is what Aquarian recommended to me when I contacted them too.
Thanks for the advice, to be honest the software component is what I was most interested in when it came to the AudioMoth- is there any other open source software you would recommend for this?
Best wishes,
Sol
21 April 2024 7:10pm
Hey Sol,
No problem at all. Depending on your configuration, the Audiomoth software would have to work on a PCB with an ESP32 chip which is the unit on the audiomoth/hydromoth, so you would have to make a PCB centered around this chip. You could mimic the functionality of the audiomoth software on another chip, like on a raspberry pi with python's pyaudio library for example. The problem you would have is that the H1A requires phantom power, so it's not plug and play. I'm not too aware with the H1e, but maybe you can control the microphone through the recorder that is programmable through activations by the RPi (not that this is the most efficient MCU for this application, but it is user friendly). A simpler solution might be to just record continuously and play a sound or take notes of when your 10 min deployment starts. I think it should last you >6 hours with a set of lithium energizer batteries. You may want to think about putting a penetrator on the PVC housing for a push button or switch to start when you deploy. They make a few waterproof options.
Just somethign else that occured to me, but if you're dropping these systems, you'll want to ensure that the system isn't wobbling in the seagrass as that will probably be all you will hear on the recordings, especially if you plan to deploy shallower. For my studies in Curacao, we aim to be 5lbs negative, but this all depends on your current and surface action. You might also want to think about the time of day you're recording biodiversity in general. I may suggest recording the site for a bit (a couple days or a week) prior to your study to see what you should account for (e.g. tide flow/current/anthropogenic disturbance) and determine diel patterning of vocalizations you are aiming to collect if subsampling at 10 minutes.
Cheers,
Matt
Thoughts on RooBadge?
2 April 2024 2:55pm
5 April 2024 12:31pm
Sound deterrents to prevent collisions with Kangaroos in Australia have been sold for many years. None have been shown to work. Whether the Volkswagen device will be any better waits to be seen. Collision data will have to be collected for a while to see if the VW device has any effect on collision rate.
8 April 2024 12:49am
That is an interesting concept, and it would be great if something out there worked. In the meantime, I will try not to drive at dusk 🦘
At one point, I knew the "sonic" animal guards were the most stolen components of cars. You head in, get groceries, and come out, and they are gone. They weren't on the car long enough for me to confirm that would work
20 April 2024 2:40am
Totally agree.
Inititally sceptical until I saw Helena and Graeme were involved.
MJ
4th International workshop on vocal interactivity in-and-between humans, animals, and robots
19 April 2024 3:03pm
WILDLABS AWARDS 2024 - Fostering bat conservation and citizen science in Zimbabwe: Establishing bat groups and training individuals to use bat detectors
4 April 2024 12:12pm
4 April 2024 7:44pm
Awesome project!!
My own curiosity here - how many different bat species are there in Zimbabwe?
8 April 2024 9:29am
Thank you Carly!
We have over 60 bats recorded in Zimbabwe
19 April 2024 2:16pm
Abigail. I would love to know more and potentially support the initiative. Please send me more info on [email protected]
Webinar: Bats and Wind Energy
18 April 2024 6:11pm
WILDLABS AWARDS 2024 - BumbleBuzz: automatic recognition of bumblebee species and behaviour from their buzzing sounds
12 April 2024 8:37am
12 April 2024 8:41pm
Super great to see that there will be more work on insect ecoacoustics! So prevalent in practically every soundscape, but so often over-looked. Can't wait to follow this project as it develops!
17 April 2024 10:23am
Thanks Carly! I will keep anyone interested in this project posted on this platform. Cheers
WILDLABS AWARDS 2024 - TimeLord: A low-cost, low-power and low-difficulty timer board to control battery-powered devices
5 April 2024 3:29pm
16 April 2024 9:34am
Thanks @Freaklabs, I think you'll really enjoy getting involved with this too as we're looking for input from makers in the community to get the most from the approach and to capture features and usability ideas from a large number of people.
I've a new modular drop-off tag build using @Rob_Appleby's original SensorDrop board that I think would be great for this project too to see if we can drop different compartments, or do various different timed events with the one TimeLord board.
Most importantly, we have to make it play a MIDI version of the DoctorWho theme song when you arm the device. That has to be the #1 feature if you ask me!
16 April 2024 9:35am
Reminds me that we should look at both terrestrial and marine applications when we get stuck in to the demo builds to make sure we cover use cases
16 April 2024 10:22am
'Most importantly, we have to make it play a MIDI version of the DoctorWho theme song when you arm the device. That has to be the #1 feature if you ask me!'
Seconded!
WILDLABS AWARDS 2024 - Developing AudioMoth for the detection of infrasonic elephant rumbles
11 April 2024 7:35am
11 April 2024 4:05pm
Awesome project!!
Wildlife Drones will be at the 21st Australasian Bat Society Conference
9 April 2024 6:03am
WILDLABS AWARDS 2024 - Underwater Passive Acoustic Monitoring (UPAM) for threatened Andean water frogs
30 March 2024 3:54pm
2 April 2024 2:35pm
Thanks @carlybatist for your suggestions! In deed we are looking for open code/free access alternatives for automated species recognition
5 April 2024 12:13pm
Congratulations, very exciting! Keep us updated!
7 April 2024 6:09pm
This is so cool @Mauricio_Akmentins - congrats and look forward to seeing your project evolve!
WILDLABS AWARDS 2024 - FinDrop: Accessible Acoustic Monitoring for Mesophotic Marine Environments
5 April 2024 10:22pm
7 April 2024 6:07pm
Congrats @MattyD797 and team!!! We do a lot of work in the underwater bioacoustic realm and your tool certainly seems like it would be a great instrumental addition to the community. Look forward to learning more about your project!
Liz
Underwater advertisement call of the threatened Telmatobius rubigo (Anura: Telmatobiidae
6 April 2024 9:56pm
Bioacoustic device security in urban parks
8 March 2024 2:49pm
24 March 2024 4:53am
Yes, I agree with Panji......make sure you have notes of where you put them and remember that photos of trees without leaves look completely different 6 months later......not that I would ever make that mistake.........well not again......especially after spending 2 days trying to find 3 ARU's.
24 March 2024 9:38pm
We suggest and use Python Locks for urban areas here in Australia. Can also screw the Mini 2 to a tree or phone post with the python lock.
5 April 2024 12:55pm
We've deployed passive acoustic monitors in various urban environments without any issues of theft, even in locations where camera traps and other technology has been historically taken or vandalised. I think acoustic sensors generally look less valuable than other technology, and I would recommend removing or covering any stickers or labels on devices that would otherwise make them more appealing! Placing them in hedgerows or on trees with some (but not too much!) foliage will help keep them well hidden too.
Not so silent spectators: How spectator vessels at international sailing regattas alter marine soundscapes
3 April 2024 4:50pm
Check out how water-based sporting events are impacting underwater noise pollution for marine life.
Seventh International Conference on the Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life
3 April 2024 4:34pm
Postdoctoral Research Associate in Ecoacoustics
2 April 2024 2:49pm
Think Wildlife Podcast | The Role of Bioacoustics in Conservation with Bourhan Yassin, Founder of Rainforest Connection
28 March 2024 11:27pm
Hi,
I am Anish and I'm new to this platform! I host the Think Wildlife Podcast and wanted to share a recent episode with Bourhan Yassini. We talk in-depth about the role of AI and bioacoustics in conservation. Tune in to listen more!
AI for Conservation!
4 March 2024 8:51pm
22 March 2024 12:29pm
Welcome, Have you considered participating in any of the AI for Good challenges. I find it is good way to build a nice portfolio of work. Also contributing to existing open source ML projects such as megadetector or to upstream libraries such as PyTorch is good way to getting hired.
22 March 2024 5:57pm
Thank you for the tip! I'll definitely consider contributing to open source projects and taking part in challenges :)
25 March 2024 5:22am
We could always use more contributors in open source projects. In most open source companies Red Hat, Anaconda, Red Hat and Mozilla, people often ended up getting hired largely due to their contributions on open source projects. These contributions were both technical such as writing computer code and non-technical such as writing documentation and translating tools in their local language.
Recording Orthoptera Sounds: International Workshop (Italy)
22 March 2024 9:25pm
How does behavior influence the use of technology for animal detection ?
22 March 2024 7:49pm
Leveraging Actuarial Skills for Conservation Impact
15 March 2024 12:31pm
19 March 2024 6:35pm
Thank you for your response Akiba. I will have a look. 👏🏻
19 March 2024 7:52pm
I would look into the TNFD (Taskforce on Nature-Related Disclosures), Finance for Biodiversity, Accounting for Nature, etc. which are all focusing on how to incorporate nature risk into corporate reporting and sustainability frameworks!
20 March 2024 3:48pm
Thank you Carly, I will definitely take a look.
Unveiling the Cicada Symphony: Seeking Support for Bioacoustics Research
18 March 2024 12:41am
18 March 2024 3:25pm
Ah okay. I found it with google reverse image search:
I thought it would be huge, but it's little. Unbelievable what these tiny things can do for the price. Looks like the battery life will far exceed the capacity of the SD card in it (64GB).
19 March 2024 7:53pm
If you're interested in a free, no-code ecoacoustic analysis platform for your data, check out Arbimon!
BirdWeather | PUC
27 October 2023 7:45pm
2 November 2023 9:20pm
I love the live-stream pin feature!
14 March 2024 10:29pm
Hi Tim, I just discovered your great little device and about to use it for the first time this weekend. Would love to be directly in touch since we are testing it out as an option to recommend to our clients :) Love that it includes Australian birds! Cheers Debbie
16 March 2024 10:47pm
Hi @timbirdweather I've now got them up and running and winding how I can provide feedback on species ID to improve the accuracy over time. It would be really powerful to have a confirmation capability when looking at the soundscape options to confirm which of the potential species it actually is or confirm it is neither to help develop the algorithms.
Also, is it possible to connect the PUC to a mobile hotspot to gather data for device that isn't close to wifi? And have it so that it can detect either wifi or hotspot when in range? Thanks!
The Freshwater Sounds Archive
15 March 2024 10:32am
Introducing The Freshwater Sounds Archive, a global database of sounds produced by freshwater species.
Submit your species-specific or unidentified sounds to the archive now and receive recognition for your contribution in a forthcoming data paper as a co-author!
Senior Post-doctoral Researcher/Senior Research Associate Opportunity: Movement ecology of Greenland halibut
13 March 2024 2:00pm
5 April 2024 2:04pm
Hi Sol! This seems like an awesome project! I have a few questions in response: Where were you thinking of deploying this payload and for how long?
Regarding hydromoth recorders, there have been several concerns that have popped up in my work with deploying the them at this depth because it's a contact type hydrophone which means it utilizes the case to transmit the sound vibrations of the marine soundscape to the microphone unlike the piezo element based hydrophones.
A side note: for biodiversity assessments, the hydromoth is not characterized and is highly directional, so you wouldn't be able to compare sites through your standard aocustic indices like ACI and SPL.
That said if you are deploying for a short time, a hydrophone like an Aquarian H1a attached through a penetrator of a blue robotics housing that contains a field recorder like a zoom recorder may be optimal for half a day and be relatively cheaper than some of the other options. You could also add another battery pack in parrallel for a longer duration.