Soil ecoacoustics for land management

该项目的目的是开发一种利用生物声学监测农业土壤中蚯蚓和其他土壤动物活动的系统。以“大数据”规模记录和存储自然声音是可能的，处理可以快速识别声音，以区分动物的物种或功能群。蚯蚓对维持所有户外种植系统的土壤健康至关重要，有助于作物产量的可持续生产。它们也是许多农场野生动物的重要食物来源。目前，农民评估蚯蚓数量和多样性的方法是挖取样坑，然后从坑里取出蚯蚓，但这是一项劳动密集型工作，既费时又费钱。农民告诉我们，需要一种技术辅助的蚯蚓测绘系统。在试点工作中，我们已经证明，记录土壤中生物的声音特征是可能的，然后可以用于生物多样性监测，包括蚯蚓的丰度和活动。与人工评估相比，土壤声学监测可以在几分钟内产生结果，这将带来实质性的好处。农民们会在夜间（蠕虫活动最活跃的时候）在土壤中放置探针，并记录声音输出。然后，通过将输出与声音库进行比较的算法对其进行分析，以确定存在的蚯蚓的丰度、多样性和活动水平。土壤声景包含的信息有助于我们了解和监测功能性生物多样性。对蚯蚓发出的声音的描述包括爆裂声、啧啧声和刺耳声，这些声音可能来自它们的嘴或动作。夜间活动的奇闻蚯蚓用嘴撕扯和拖拽树叶，移动石头，把树枝撬进洞里。蚯蚓在土壤剖面上广泛地挖洞，发生变形的材料会产生声发射。在这里，我们使用仿生学启发的产品设计，基于鸟类用声音识别土壤中的蠕虫作为食物的事实。我们将使用声学监测设备，在扰动和被动情况下，记录和分析土壤声景，并将其与田地内蚯蚓的丰度和多样性联系起来。该项目将(1)开发一个记录和分析土壤中蠕虫声音的原型，(2)在对照实验中建立一个蚯蚓和其他大型无脊椎动物的声音特征库，(3)在野外部署录音设备，记录不同类型的田野和土地管理实践中的声景，并将这些与蚯蚓分布联系起来。

The aim of this project is to develop a system for monitoring the activity of earthworms and other soil fauna in agricultural soils using bioacoustics. Recording and storing natural sounds at 'big data' scales is possible and processing can rapidly identify sounds to distinguish species or functional groups of animals.Earthworms are critically important for maintaining soil health across all outdoor cropping systems, helping in the sustainable production of crop yields. They are also important as a food resource for many species of farm wildlife. At present, farmers assess the numbers and diversity of earthworms by digging sample pits and then extracting the worms within them, but this is labour intensive, costing time and money. Farmers have told us that a technologically assisted system of earthworm mapping is needed. In pilot work we have shown that it is possible to record the acoustic signatures of organisms within the soil, which could then be used for biodiversity monitoring including earthworm abundance and activity. There would be substantial benefits in soil acoustic monitoring which could generate results in minutes compared to manual assessment. Farmers would place probes within the soil at night (when worm activity is loudest) and record the sound output. This would then be analysed by algorithms that compare the output to a sound library to identify the abundance, diversity and activity levels of earthworms present.Soil soundscapes contain information that helps us understand and monitor functional biodiversity. Descriptions of earthworm noises include popping, slurping and rasping, which may come from their mouth or movements. Nocturnal anecic earthworms use their mouths to tear and drag leaves, move stones and lever twigs into their burrows. Earthworms burrow extensively through the soil profile and materials undergoing deformation generate acoustic emissions.Here we are using a biomimicry inspired product design, based on the fact that birds use sound to identify worms in the soil for food. We will use acoustic monitoring devices, under perturbation and passive scenarios, to record and analyse the soil soundscape and relate this to the abundance and diversity of earthworms within fields.This project will (1) develop a prototype to record and analyse the sounds of worms in soil, (2) construct a library of acoustic signatures from earthworms and other macroinvertebrates in controlled experiments, (3) deploy recording devices within the field to record soundscapes in different field types and land management practices and relate these to earthworm distribution.