One of the primary reasons to develop an automated acoustic monitoring method is to be able to determine how the presence and abundance of vocal organisms varies across habitats and landscapes. The investigation of how land-cover and acoustical patterns influence habitat quality and reflect that habitat’s ability to sustain its array of organisms is of critical importance. We will perform a quantitative assessment of soundscapes, landscapes and their interactions through the development of an advanced monitoring system that will collect and classify environmental acoustics through the following objectives:

• Develop and deploy an automatic sensor-based monitoring system to survey vocal organisms in common land-cover types.
• Calibrate the sensor system data with manual recordings and traditional observations.
• Determine the relationships between land-cover and acoustic characteristics and their effects on and ability to reflect habitat composition, structure and integrity.

Link: http://envirosonic.cevl.msu.edu/