Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Alvaro Vega-Hidalgo, Eleanor Flatt, Andrew Whitworth, Laurel Symes
Summary: Different approaches were used to assess restoration treatments and varied in the amount of acoustic data incorporated and human processing time. The study found that relying only on visual and acoustic review may fail to capture diel acoustic patterns identified in other approaches.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2021)
Review
Ecology
Samuel R. P. -J. Ross, Darren P. O'Connell, Jessica L. Deichmann, Camille Desjonqueres, Amandine Gasc, Jennifer N. Phillips, Sarab S. Sethi, Connor M. Wood, Zuzana Burivalova
Summary: Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is an important tool in applied ecology, conservation, and biodiversity monitoring, but its potential contribution to fundamental ecology is often overlooked. This article explores the most promising directions for using PAM to address long-standing fundamental questions in ecology. Overall, it shows how ecologists can harness the power of PAM to contribute to fundamental ecological understanding.
FUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Eliziane Garcia Oliveira, Milton Cezar Ribeiro, Paul Roe, Renata S. Sousa-Lima
Summary: Advances in technologies for data acquisition, storage and analysis have boosted Acoustic Ecology studies, but protocols are still lacking. More research is needed to understand which methodologies can be applied to answer ecological questions in different environments. This study successfully applied passive acoustics to monitor the soundscape of a threatened biome in Northeast Brazil, revealing distinctive patterns of sound sources and their acoustic activities.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
Livio Favaro, Eleonora Cresta, Olivier Friard, Katrin Ludynia, Nicolas Mathevon, Lorien Pichegru, David Reby, Marco Gamba
Summary: The study collected soundscape recordings of African Penguins to document their vocal activity patterns during the breeding season, finding that most display songs occurred in the early morning and late evening, with the Acoustic Entropy Index being a good predictor of song numbers.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Lucille Chapuis, Ben Williams, Timothy A. C. Gordon, Stephen D. Simpson
Summary: The study evaluated the performance of two models of GoPro underwater action cameras as PAM recorders, finding that they can reliably capture underwater acoustic recordings. Although not directly comparable with hydrophone-derived values, metrics derived from GoPros can be valuably compared between recordings taken using the same model.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Timothy A. C. Lamont, Ben Williams, Lucille Chapuis, Mochyudho E. Prasetya, Marie J. Seraphim, Harry R. Harding, Eleanor B. May, Noel Janetski, Jamaluddin Jompa, David J. Smith, Andrew N. Radford, Stephen D. Simpson
Summary: The degradation of coral reefs worldwide has led to significant investments in their active restoration. Research shows that restoration efforts not only help increase coral cover but also play a vital role in restoring the soundscape of the reef ecosystem, which is essential for the recruitment of reef organisms. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) could be a valuable tool for evaluating ecosystem-level recovery, but caution is needed when choosing metrics and interpreting results as different PAM metrics may reflect different aspects of the reef soundscape.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Oliver C. Metcalf, Jos Barlow, Christian Devenish, Stuart Marsden, Erika Berenguer, Alexander C. Lees
Summary: Acoustic indices play a crucial role in soundscape analysis, but signal masking may affect their sensitivity and fidelity. Calculating acoustic indices at ecologically appropriate time and frequency bins can reduce masking effects and improve the efficacy of the indices.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Carlos Abrahams, Camille Desjonqueres, Jack Greenhalgh
Summary: Freshwater conservation is crucial for global biodiversity, with ponds playing a critical role in ecosystem functioning and diversity by providing habitats for various species. However, the limited availability of specialist surveyors and the perceived difficulty of surveying freshwater taxa have led to constrained datasets on ponds.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Ivan Braga Campos, Rachel Fewster, Todd Landers, Anthony Truskinger, Michael Towsey, Paul Roe, William Lee, Anne Gaskett
Summary: One quarter of terrestrial native bird species in New Zealand have become extinct since human arrival, resulting in a decrease in native bird song. Passive acoustic techniques can be used for environmental monitoring, especially in testing the effectiveness of mammal control in reversing the 'silent forest' effect. This study compares soundscapes from two sites in New Zealand with different levels of predator control and identifies acoustic regions that best discriminate between the management regimes. The results suggest that the presence of invasive mammals contributes to acoustic differences, and the spring season is important for bird monitoring in New Zealand.
ECOLOGICAL INFORMATICS
(2022)
Article
Infectious Diseases
Jayaveeramuthu Nirmala, Andres Perez, Marie R. Culhane, Matthew W. Allerson, Srinand Sreevatsan, Montserrat Torremorell
Summary: This study evaluated the genetic diversity of IAV in pigs at weaning in farms in the Midwestern USA. Multiple lineages of HA and NA were found to co-circulate in both piglets and farms, indicating significant genetic variability of IAV. The results underscore the need for novel strategies to prevent and control the spread of IAV within and between farms.
TRANSBOUNDARY AND EMERGING DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Tom Bradfer-Lawrence, Camille Desjonqueres, Alice Eldridge, Alison Johnston, Oliver Metcalf
Summary: The rise of passive acoustic monitoring and the growth in large audio datasets have driven the development of analysis methods for ecological inferences from acoustic data. Acoustic indices are widely used in ecoacoustics but can be challenging to interpret, leading to conflicting results and questioning their value. To improve the use of acoustic indices, this article provides nine points of guidance for study design, analysis, and interpretation, emphasizing the importance of understanding the links between soundscape patterns and acoustic indices. Overall, acoustic indices can offer valuable insights for biodiversity monitoring, conservation, and future research in ecoacoustics.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Letter
Biodiversity Conservation
Christos Mammides, Eben Goodale, Salindra K. Dayananda, Kang Luo, Jin Chen
Summary: Bradfer-Lawrence et al. (2020) used a novel modeling approach to analyze acoustic indices, making an important contribution to the literature. However, their argument about acoustic evenness index is challenged, as higher species richness does not always lead to less even soundscapes.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Juan Sebastian Ulloa, Sylvain Haupert, Juan Felipe Latorre, Thierry Aubin, Jerome Sueur
Summary: Passive acoustic monitoring is increasingly used in various environments for surveying biodiversity. The scikit-maad Python package is designed to assist users in analyzing environmental audio recordings by loading, processing, segmenting, computing acoustic features, and estimating sound pressure levels efficiently. This open-source package promotes reproducible research and collaboration among ecoacousticians to understand the acoustic diversity of ecological systems.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Review
Fisheries
Murilo Minello, Leandro Calado, Fabio C. Xavier
Summary: Soundscape ecology has become important in monitoring marine ecosystems due to its non-invasive and spatiotemporal efficiency. However, the development of ecoacoustic indices faces several challenges, especially in the context of marine ecology. By reviewing recent studies, it was found that there are limitations that need to be addressed in order to fully realize the potential of ecoacoustic indices in marine environments.
ICES JOURNAL OF MARINE SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Tomasz F. Stepinski
Summary: This paper discusses the method of using Boltzmann entropy to quantify the configurational complexity of landscapes and whether it adheres to the statistical mechanics framework. By comparing an illustrative example that adheres to the framework with the method of calculating Boltzmann entropy, it is concluded that the computation of Boltzmann entropy in the context of landscapes does not comply with statistical mechanics. Therefore, it does not provide a link between landscapes and thermodynamics, and claims that Shannon entropy cannot be used to assess the configurational complexity of landscape are incorrect.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Blaine Landsborough, David R. Wilson, Daniel J. Mennill
BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Ornithology
Jeffrey P. Ethier, David R. Wilson
Article
Ornithology
Mohammad Fahmy, David R. Wilson
JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Kaylee Busniuk, Anne E. Storey, David R. Wilson
Article
Ecology
Miguel A. Mejias, Julissa Roncal, Tyler S. Imfeld, Sander Boisen, David R. Wilson
Article
Biology
Jessika Lamarre, Sukhinder Kaur Cheema, Gregory J. Robertson, David R. Wilson
Summary: This study investigated the impact of consuming omega-3 fatty acids on the physiology, behavior, and cognition of ring-billed gull chicks, a top marine predator. The findings revealed that elevated levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their tissues improved chicks' cognition and facilitated earlier fledging, highlighting the importance of omega-3 fatty acids in maintaining problem-solving skills and survival in a changing environment.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biology
Richard K. Simpson, David R. Wilson, Allison F. Mistakidis, Daniel J. Mennill, Stephanie M. Doucet
Summary: The study shows that sympatry influences signal evolution in wood-warblers, but not always as predicted. The number of sympatric species can limit sympatry's influence on signal evolution.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
Kristal N. Kostoglou, Edward H. Miller, Michael A. Weston, David R. Wilson
Summary: Acoustic communication is crucial for precocial birds during early life stages, allowing them to convey information to parents and elicit defensive behaviors. Our study on charadriid chicks reveals sexual differences in call structure and rate, as well as gradual changes in call structure and rate with growth. This provides a foundation for future investigations on shorebird vocalizations during development and their functional significance.
Article
Ornithology
Miguel A. Mejias, Julissa Roncal, David R. Wilson
Summary: In order for signal divergence to drive speciation, receivers need to perceive structural differences in signals and tend to have stronger responses to similar-structured signals from closer relatives. Two mechanisms affecting receiver responses to passerine songs include sympatric song familiarity and an innate auditory template used to assess acoustic similarity. Male Bermuda White-eyed Vireos showed weaker responses to playback of songs from distantly related vireos, suggesting a role of acoustic similarity in species discrimination and reproductive isolation.
JOURNAL OF FIELD ORNITHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jessika Lamarre, David R. Wilson
Summary: String-pulling is a common cognitive task used to test problem-solving skills in mammals and birds. In this study, ring-billed gulls were found to be the first waterbird species able to solve a horizontal string-pull test. The success rate of the gulls in solving the test suggests a link between innovation rate and problem-solving skills with species' ability to adapt to changing environments.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Luis Sandoval, David R. Wilson
Summary: This study investigates the mechanisms underlying avian responses to heterospecific chick-a-dee calls. The results show that different resident bird species responded by approaching the chick-a-dee calls, and this response was not associated with their body mass or the similarity of their calls to chick-a-dee calls. The study demonstrates that these responses are innate and cannot be fully explained by learning, suggesting that the structural features of chick-a-dee calls are important.
AMERICAN NATURALIST
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Sydney M. Collins, April Hedd, David A. Fifield, David R. Wilson, William A. Montevecchi
Summary: The global population of Leach's Storm-Petrels has declined substantially in recent decades, with the species facing threats from anthropogenic light attraction and oil platforms. Conservation research should focus on risks during migration and winter, as well as on juveniles and immature birds.
FRONTIERS IN MARINE SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jessika Lamarre, Sukhinder Kaur Cheema, Gregory J. Robertson, David R. Wilson
Summary: Species and populations with greater cognitive performance are more successful at adapting to changing habitats. Urban species and populations often outperform their rural counterparts on problem-solving tests. However, urban foraging may have detrimental effects on the development and integrity of animals' brains due to the lack of essential nutrients in anthropogenic foods. A study on ring-billed gulls showed that experience foraging on anthropogenic food is the main factor leading to successful problem-solving, while regular consumption of omega-3 fatty acids during incubation appears inconsequential.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Ornithology
Miguel A. Mejias, David R. Wilson
Summary: This study shows that male Bermuda white-eyed vireos produce two distinct song types during both breeding and non-breeding seasons, and their singing behaviors are influenced by different stages of breeding. The males increase song production and song perch height to attract prospecting females, and they defend territories year-round.
JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Edward H. Miller, Kristal N. Kostoglou, David R. Wilson, Michael A. Weston
Summary: This article presents a detailed qualitative analysis of the calls of red-capped plover and masked lapwing chicks during handling. The calls were structurally complex and differed between species. The study highlights the importance of understanding interspecific patterns in call structure and determining call functions.