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
- @crazybirdguy
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Just a birder
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- 12 Groups
- @tom_august
- | he/him
Computational ecologist with interests in computer vision, citizen science, open science, drones, acoustics, data viz, software engineering, public engagement
- 4 Resources
- 48 Discussions
- 5 Groups
I am both head of the Innovation department and a biodiversity consultant at the Biotope consultancy. Originally a botanist and GIS expert, I specialise in the management of innovation projects, in particular software and technological products dedicated to biodiversity.
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- @chmod000
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I build sensing and perceiving hardware that is designed to address issues that matter to me. That ranges from assistive technologies, to conservation ecology, and connecting individuals with place and each other.
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- @ARobillard
- | He/Him
A conservation data scientist and field ecologist with broad interest in the application of machine learning and population genetics to the conservation of threatened species. Alex has conducted field studies throughout central and south America, the Caribbean, and North America.
- 1 Resources
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- @pbull
- | he/him
DrivenData
Engineer and AI for Good leader working on bringing machine learning tools to social impact organizations.
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St. Lawrence University
Professor of Biology at St. Lawrence University
- 0 Resources
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- @SamuelHertz
- | He/Him/His
I'm a PhD researcher at Royal Holloway University of London (Centre for GeoHumanities) researching modalities of sound-sensing technologies across climate and conservation sciences. Interested in ethics and histories of acoustic monitoring as well as new visualization methods.
- 0 Resources
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- @AliceMuller
- | she/her
I am an environmental scientist working in international community development and community led ecosystem restoration
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- 4 Groups
- @EliThore
- | He/Him
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
I am a biologist with a broad interest in how the environment affects the behaviour and ecology of wildlife. I also like seeking creative and practical solutions to reduce our impact on the environment.
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PhD Student working on acoustics and hunting in tropical forests
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Hussey Labs seeks a senior post-doctoral researcher/senior research associate for movement ecology of Greenland halibut in the context of fisheries management across Baffin Bay-Davis Strait, Eastern Canadian Arctic.
13 March 2024
Catch up on the conservation tech discussions and events that happened during World Wildlife Day 2024!
7 March 2024
Do you know anyone interested in this position? Let them know by sharing widely.
27 February 2024
The Ecological Acoustics and Behavior Lab at the University of New Hampshire seeks a PhD student to join our lab to investigate how forest habitat affects moose occupancy and soundscape in northern New Hampshire
13 February 2024
The primary focus of the research is to explore how red deer movements, space use, habitat selection and foraging behaviour change during the wolf recolonization process.
10 February 2024
Applications open for a PhD position in plant vibroacoustics at the University of Southampton
8 February 2024
We demonstrate the power of using passive acoustic monitoring & machine learning to survey species, using ruffed lemurs in southeastern Madagascar as an example.
23 January 2024
Come join our team! We're looking for a Program Officer to join the WILDLABS Community, hosted by WCS in Argentina. This role will support our research program, with the chosen candidate leading our horizon scanning...
22 January 2024
Careers
We're hiring ecologists for immediate start / remote working / short contract
19 January 2024
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
April 2024
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Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
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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... |
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Acoustics, AI for Conservation, Conservation Tech Training and Education, Early Career, Marine Conservation | 3 days 18 hours ago | |
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. |
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Acoustics | 4 days 1 hour ago | |
Hello everyone, I'm interested in gathering insights on how the behavior of different species impacts the development and efficacy of... |
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Biologging, Acoustics, Camera Traps, eDNA & Genomics, Emerging Tech, Marine Conservation | 6 days 3 hours ago | |
Thank you Carly, I will definitely take a look. |
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Acoustics, Biologging, Climate Change, Conservation Tech Training and Education, Data management and processing tools, Remote Sensing & GIS, Software and Mobile Apps | 1 week 1 day ago | |
If you're interested in a free, no-code ecoacoustic analysis platform for your data, check out Arbimon! |
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Acoustics | 1 week 2 days ago | |
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... |
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Acoustics, AI for Conservation, Citizen Science, Emerging Tech | 1 week 5 days ago | |
Hi Hubert,There's been some research into which batteries are most effective with ARUs, and there's some results here: Battery quality can vary greatly, especially NiMh.... |
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Acoustics | 2 weeks 3 days ago | |
Really interesting project. Interesting chip set you found. With up to around 2mb sram that’s quite a high memory for a ultra low power soc I think.It might also be... |
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Acoustics, AI for Conservation | 2 weeks 5 days ago | |
Hi everyone, I am currently working on the vocal repertoire of an Amazon turtle species and would appreciate if someone would be open... |
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Acoustics | 3 weeks 3 days ago | |
Thank you so much for your encouraging words! I'm thrilled to hear that you enjoyed our conversation, and I truly appreciate your support in spreading the word about my survey... |
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Acoustics, AI for Conservation | 1 month ago | |
I heard it through industry chatter but can't find a news release on it yet. |
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Acoustics | 1 month ago | |
Hi everyone,I posted this mystery recording to Twitter already, but perhaps this forum will have more ideas... Over the years, my lab... |
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Acoustics | 1 month ago |
Bird Acoustic Solution
9 June 2022 11:31pm
16 June 2022 9:27am
Hi,
Look at this publication (below) and download the BirdNet app. The computer code is provided to train ML algorithm that will allow you to tailor the model with your own data.
Thanks, Mrigesh
20 June 2022 1:00am
Thank you @carlybatist , @Freaklabs and @MK . The inputs are very useful and I am progressing on my project based on that. Appreciate a lot.
Hiring Acoustic Ecology Postdoctoral Fellow
16 June 2022 4:02pm
Multiple Roles with Rainforest Connection
16 June 2022 9:15am
Passive acoustic training workshop video/materials
13 June 2022 4:03pm
New papers on marine acoustic monitoring
11 June 2022 2:36pm
Ocean Tracking Network - Telemetry Data Study Hall
8 June 2022 6:48pm
Audio Data Across Domains (AudioXD) Workshop
7 June 2022 3:48pm
New microprocessor for low power AI camera & audio applications from Microchip
3 June 2022 8:36pm
New article (Reuters): Orca stuck in river to be lured to sea using drone with loudspeakers
1 June 2022 4:02pm
Enhancing automated analysis of marine soundscapes using eco-acoustic indices and machine learning
31 May 2022 6:33pm
UKAN+ Monitoring UK Biodiversity Symposium 15-16th June
31 May 2022 2:58pm
New papers on passive acoustic monitoring
29 May 2022 7:24pm
1 June 2022 3:00pm
4 June 2022 3:09pm
New paper: Animal soundscapes reveal key markers of Amazon forest degradation from fire and logging
29 May 2022 12:43pm
Microphone for bird monitoring on Raspberry Pi
21 August 2019 5:45pm
26 August 2019 1:51pm
I can understand the reluctance to go down the I2c route on linux, but I bought some Adafruit MEMs mics (https://www.adafruit.com/product/3421) and they work fine.
If you want to dip a toe in the water, are not too cost concious, but want something you just plug in and it (largely) pretty much works, then I'd recommend looking at the seeed respeaker. Its an array, and is probably overkill for what you want. It does come with quite a bit of hand holding though, I got a "4 mic linear". Connect some jumper wires, screw on a board, install some software (!). OK for a POC (proof of concept) and as a sanity check.
Going back to the Adafruits mems breakouts, I have them wired back to the pi by re-using old CAT5 network cable, so the pi can be in one place and the mics somewhat remote - eg round the other side of a tree? I configured a lot of software to get this working as I wanted, but it essentially removes "white noise", does file compression etc.
9 May 2022 4:04pm
apologies - ignore this reply (or if someone can delete it please do!) I have forum blindness and thought this thread was also about using Birdnet but I realise it isn't.... I suspect this is a setting on Birdnet-Pi so will post on their forums...
Hi Paul, have been trying to get a i2c mic working with Birdnet but am having challenges in getting it working. I can install the adafruit mems you mention above and getting it working directly but when I try to use it through Birdnet I am failing. Have done some rebooting, testing, search forums but am drawing a blank - did yours work "out the box"?
27 May 2022 3:42pm
Hi Julien,
I use this mic for my raspberry pi setup and it works well picking up bird species singing in our garden while the mic and raspberry sit under our roof tiles.
Greetings,
Robin
Passive Acoustic Monitoring - Malagasy Training Workshop
9 May 2022 4:10pm
Help with AudioMoth configuration for bat recording
17 February 2022 1:31pm
11 March 2022 2:11pm
Koen,
Hi - the config for the audiomoth looks fine (you could put a high-pass filter on to cover frequencies 12-96 kHz only). The scheduler is not set (you have 0 files per day), but presume this is just the screenshot.
The issue you have, though, is to do with your loudspeaker - presuming it is just a standard one. Standard music/computer speakers are tuned to human range of hearing and don't emit sound above around 20 kHz. They won't emit ultrasound to 100 kHz. For that you need specialised equipment. If you want to generate some ultrasound yourself though, just rub your fingers together, or jangle some keys near the Audiomoth!
Hope that's of some use, Carlos
Apply now: Women in Conservation Technology Programme, Kenya
8 March 2022 12:00am
BirdCLEF 2022 Kaggle Challenge
2 March 2022 12:00am
Acoustic monitoring - sharks
23 February 2022 5:31pm
Introducing the WILDLABS On the Edge Fellows
10 February 2022 12:00am
Using rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for AudioMoths and/or Swift's
13 October 2021 5:32pm
25 October 2021 7:05pm
Actually it's interesting. I think it might be a good opportunity to think about how we can transition to rechargeable batteries in the field. Shipping them is possible if you follow postal rules and pay for hazardous material charges. But it needs to be planned in advance. Anyways, might be a good conversation to have in the community. But there also needs to be other foundational work like understanding how they're used, getting chargers in the field, and how to interface rechargeables to standard equipment.
25 October 2021 8:02pm
I've taken rechargeable batteries on planes no problem - NiMH can go in checked luggage. I use NiMH D batteries for the Swift's, because they take more and so it still lasts long. The Audiomoth is harder, because it's just the 3 AAs and even with lithium-ion you only get ~1 month. The drop off to NiMH is like a week, from my (minimal) trial-and-erroring.
20 January 2022 3:58am
We've been using 18650 lithium ion protected cells in our BAR recorders since 2013. The protected cells are great because the protection circuitry kicks in to disconnect the battery and save it from being dicharged too much. It also protects against short circuit.
So if you did want to give 18650 batteries a try then I'd recommend a Keystone 1043P (P for polarised so you can only fit the battery one way) battery holder and KeepPower protected 18650. There are a few other brands too that fit that battery holder ok but that's a common consistent brand.
Eizfan and XTAR make good chargers.
Most of our customers use them in the same continent and drive or road freight their recorders to site and so don' thave any problems shipping them.
We've heard of some problems on planes taking them as hand luggage and it's just luck of the draw if the particular person you encounter in the baggage area knows what their lithium ion battery policy is. I've usually heard of I think attempts to get this claried at the airline level has lead to a run around too.
Some people get to check them in if the batteries are fitted into the battery holders because they consider it built in like a phone or laptop. The spare batteries often go on as hand luggage. We have plastic battery cases to hold the cells for travel.
If you're sending it overseas we find that DHL, UPS and Fdex seem to take about a month to get the paperwork sorted out to give you permission on your account to ship lithium ion batteries with your recorders. Once you have permission though you can do it whenever you need to in the future for subsequenct studies. Look up the IATA regulations for packing lithium ion batteries with your equipment. You'll need to know this so you can tell DHL etc what permission you need and what you typically do. We use UN3481 packing instruction 966 section II becasue our cells are <20Wh and we can ship 5kg of batteries in a carton along with our recorders.
https://www.iata.org/en/publications/newsletters/iata-knowledge-hub/what-to-know-about-how-to-ship-lithium-batteries/
Mark Calder
Frontier Labs www.frontierlabs.com.au
Special session on "Open-Source and Free Tools for Bioacoustics" at the ASA Meting in Denver
3 January 2022 2:27pm
14 January 2022 12:13pm
Do you know if there are plans for remote attendance?
14 January 2022 1:19pm
Unfortunately, the ASA is currently planning to do an in-person meeting only. Things may change if the COVID situation doesn't improve in May, but it is hard to predict at this point.
Bioacoustics Webinar: Primates You May Have Missed
14 January 2022 12:00am
GroupGets: AudioMoth Underwater Case
11 January 2022 12:00am
New Paper: HydroMoth Testing
5 January 2022 12:00am
Deep Learning for Marine Ecology and Conservation
20 December 2021 12:00am
batch/automated cloud processing
27 January 2021 6:13am
18 October 2021 8:08am
Hi Antoine, did you know about our bioacoustic recorders? https://frontierlabs.com.au/ . They have the best sound recording quality and built in GPS. You can have a listen to Australia here https://data.acousticobservatory.org/projects/1 . The Australian Acoustic Observatory uses 400 of our Solar BARs across Australia and the recordings are published for anyone to use.
Unfortunately there isn't software to do an easy bird census. Do you need to know every bird you can hear or just the presence of one species?
Best regards, Mark
9 November 2021 4:24pm
Wanted to chime with another option. My lab develops OpenSoundscape, a Python software package for training machine learning models for bioacoustic detection, especially convolutional neural networks. Check it out at http://opensoundscape.org/
I see that the list of bioacoustic softwares was mentioned earlier in the thread (thanks Carly!) - I'm always on the lookout for new softwares to add to that, so drop me a line if you see a package that is currently maintained and relevant to bioacoustics but is not included on the list.
(Here's the link: https://github.com/rhine3/audiomoth-guide/blob/master/resources/analysis-software.md)
9 November 2021 9:48pm
Hi all,
For everyone's reference but also a new one for your list Tessa (just checked and it isn't there yet) -
Fuentes, M., Salamon, J., Zinemanas, P., Rocamora, M., Paja, G., Román, I. R., ... & Bello, J. P. (2021). Soundata: A Python library for reproducible use of audio datasets. arXiv preprint arXiv:2109.12690. https://arxiv.org/abs/2109.12690.
MBARI shares trove of marine acoustic data
5 November 2021 12:00am
Opportunity: μMoth v1.1 Group buy
4 November 2021 12:00am
11 June 2022 1:16pm
There are a bunch of different options for detecting calls in audio data, from proper statistical platforms such as R/Python, to bespoke software such as Arbimon, Kaleidoscope & Raven. Edge Impulse also an online ML model-building interface, but this is more focused on then deploying the models onto devices for edge computing. Arbimon has template matching features that are a good way to start finding detections to build a training dataset, I have used it for this in the past. Arbimon is online & free. Kaleidoscope has a clustering function which is again a good first step to start picking out the low-hanging fruit of detections so to speak. It's a desktop app, but this is not free ($400/yr). Raven also has some automated features - template & band-limited entropy detectors. It's also a desktop app and not free ($100-$800 depending on 1-year or permanent license and whether non-profit or not; not sure where a government agency would fit into that).
There is always the ubiquitous split between biologists who traditionally are taught to use R and tech/computer folks who are taught to use Python, but for ML, Python's ecosystem is really well set up. Not sure what the level of programming you/your dept has, but there are a TON of free resources online for learning it if you were interested.
Relevant Python bioacoustics packages potentially of use - Acoustic_Indices, scikit-maad, Ketos, OpenSoundscape (as well as the obvious ML ones such as TensorFlow)
Some R packages as well - soundecology, bioacoustics, monitoR, warbleR, gibbonR
@tessa_rhinehart has created a fabulous list of bioacoustics software that you can find here: https://github.com/rhine3/bioacoustics-software.
You can also turn to articles that have already done similar things and reach out to the authors to discuss their methods. I've got a (totally un-exhaustive) list of papers on passive acoustic monitoring, with a section on 'analyses' that you might find useful to start with; I can email it to you if you'd like. Working on a PAM training materials page on my website that it will be available at shortly as well (will post the link to Wildlabs when it's live!).
Hope this is helpful!