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
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20+ years traveler and management consultant turned tech founder and conservationist. Founder & CEO of ZAMBEZI ZERØ; super intelligence to safeguard biodiversity.
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I work in marine bioacoustics with a focus on the conservation of marine mammals. Most of the time I'm developing and using passive acoustic technology to study the underwater behaviour of dolphins and porpoises. I'm also a keen developer on the PAMGuard project.
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Hi, I'm pursuing Master's in Data Science. And I want work help protect nature and wildlife.
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Frontier Labs
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Careers
If you're a Post-Doctoral Fellow, a PhD student, or a member of the research staff interested in applying your computational skills to support active research publications, please read on to learn about the Cross-...
5 August 2025
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A group of Montreal labs is searching for a postdoctoral researcher for a project applying machine learning to the spatial scaling of biodiversity.
28 July 2025
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The Marine Innovation Lab for Leading-edge Oceanography develops hardware and software to expand the ocean observing network and for the sustainable management of natural resources. For Fall 2026, we are actively...
24 July 2025
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PhD position on bat acoustics and collective behavior
Blair Costelloe
PhD position available at the University of Konstanz in the Active Sensing Collective Group!
28 March 2025
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Naturalis is looking for a postdoc in AI for Ultrasonic Bioacoustic Monitoring
24 March 2025
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Postdoctoral opening in the Bioacoustics and Behavioral Ecology Lab at Syracuse University
14 March 2025
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Postdoc in bird modelling and remote sensing
Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute
Building species-specific habitat models for forest bird species using state of the art methods and remote sensing layers
28 February 2025
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Live and work in sunny San Diego for the summer, contributing to engineering projects as they relate to conservation technology.
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SDZWA Conservation Tech Summer Fellowship
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The Conservation Technology Laboratory within the Population Sustainability department is seeking two fellows for summer 2025
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Fully funded 4 year doctoral student position
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Develop state-of-the-art interactive ML-based tools for biodiverstiy conservation and related applications
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Join the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance as a Postdoctoral Fellow! Lead groundbreaking bioacoustic and ML research to conserve burrowing owls in SoCal.
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| Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hi there I was wondering when this virtual meetup recording will be available? Thanks :) Axel |
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Acoustics | 5 years 5 months ago | |
| Hi Harold! Great to know you are in the domain. To be honest my analysis so far indicates that when conducting a DSP approach on the spectrum, smoothing via... |
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Acoustics | 5 years 5 months ago | |
| How can we learn more about your BEESWAX7 buzz identification and counting program, and discuss working together? |
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Acoustics | 5 years 5 months ago | |
| Hi David, I use cron-like patterns. One form looks something like: mon,wed-sun 0-23:0-59/10 90 which means every day but Tuesdays, every 10 minutes from... |
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Acoustics | 5 years 11 months ago | |
| Hi Shawn, I've only heard good things about LiFePO4. The only issue I can think of is exactly the one you bring up: the EMF is low enough that a 2S battery is needed... |
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Acoustics | 5 years 11 months ago | |
| So far we have been able to disambiguate between the flocks of two different species of small birds? Not easy. Our problem seems to be based around the fact that... |
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Acoustics | 6 years ago | |
| Hi Sam, have you tried the Clippy EM172 ? I was looking at this microphone on Raspberry Pi + PiSound, but it has an electret capsule and should then be powered... Thank you... |
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Acoustics | 6 years ago | |
| Hi Kev, thank you for contacting us. We are a non-profit, too. I very much welcome collabortion on this system. Shall we continue our discussion through email? Mine is jankees.... |
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Acoustics | 6 years 1 month ago | |
| Hi all, In order to help the development of bioacoustics methods in the UK, I've recently produced some draft guidance, focussed on... |
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Acoustics | 6 years 4 months ago | |
| Hi. I'm moving a topic to this thread from the camera trap thread since it's more relevant here. Discussion with Alasdair... |
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Acoustics | 6 years 5 months ago | |
| Hi Tessa. Thanks and also thanks for being so generous with your work :) Regarding the format, how do you all think if we have a single document and a wiki? I could... |
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Acoustics | 6 years 5 months ago | |
| Joachim and Carlos, Thank you both very much for all your help so far with this problem, all of your input is very constructive. I have had look into the CCTV tech and also... |
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Acoustics | 6 years 5 months ago |
