Developing bio-acoustic monitoring: can current challenges be overcome?

背景大尺度测量和监测动物群生物多样性是一个挑战，特别是对于较小的类群，如无脊椎动物，和那些活跃在地下。生态学中的一个日益增长的趋势是使用一个区域的声音来非侵入性地监测物种：提供有关生物多样性、丰度、群落的丰富度和组成的时空分布的信息。声学复杂性（例如声学复杂性）可以量化存在的声音，并将其与生态系统的多样性联系起来。这项技术正在成为水生和地上温带系统的标准，重点是鱼类，蝙蝠，鸟类和无尾类动物，但尚未完全探索地下和无脊椎动物。工作沿着干扰梯度（主要是放牧压力）和整个稀树草原栖息地，该项目旨在通过确定这种采样方法的潜力，以量化无脊椎动物的多样性在地上和地下推进生物声学领域。新奇和及时性虽然一些传感器已被用于探索土壤中的生物信号，但没有一个提供可靠的、具有成本效益的解决方案;这是目前声学用于地面监测的障碍。该项目将开发土壤传感器，并使用人工智能驱动的数据处理，提供开发一种新颖且广泛适用的技术的潜力，以帮助保护和了解生物多样性。探索地上和地下陆地生物声学采样和生物多样性量化的潜力。通过比较来自声学记录单元的生物多样性数据与来自野外采样和eDNA的生物多样性数据，确定声学多样性指数是否能够反映真实的多样性。确定在多大程度上可以用生物声学生物多样性措施检测到稀树草原栖息地的差异。基于肯尼亚山周围的稀树草原景观，博士生将与项目合作伙伴，自然状态（www.naturalstate.org）密切合作，以完善研究问题并开发现场采样设计。自然状态将提供国内支持。生态学和保护的一个增长趋势是使用声音或振动来监测生物多样性。这种有前途的非侵入性监测方法具有广泛的好处;它可以提供有关动物丰度，多样性和群落空间分布的数据。虽然生态声学现在通常用于评估水生和地上陆生类群（例如，鱼类、蝙蝠、鸟类和无尾类动物），很少有研究将该技术应用于地下系统或无脊椎动物。通常，地下无脊椎动物采样是使用传统的野外工作技术进行的。虽然这些方法被证明是成功的，但它们往往耗时、昂贵，并会对土壤造成干扰。该项目旨在发展生态声学监测，以量化地上和地下无脊椎动物。更具体地说，我们的目标是：（1）探索地面和地下的陆地生态声学监测的潜力，使用具有成本效益的传感器;（2）确定生态声学指数是否可以反映真正的丰富度和多样性，通过比较生态声学数据，传统的现场采样;（3）确定使用生态声学映射无脊椎动物的丰富度和多样性在稀树草原栖息地的潜力。我们将与该项目的合作伙伴，肯尼亚山自然状态进行我们在热带草原栖息地的实地考察。这将允许我们沿着干扰梯度工作（例如，放牧压力），评估碳储存和无脊椎动物生物多样性之间的关系，并探讨稀树草原栖息地恢复对无脊椎动物的影响。本研究旨在支持无脊椎动物的保护工作，并量化干扰，碳储存和稀树草原恢复项目对这些功能重要的类群的潜在影响。

BackgroundMeasuring and monitoring faunal biodiversity across large scales is a challenge, especially for the smaller sized taxa such as invertebrates, and those active below-ground. A growing trend in ecology is to use the sounds of an area to non-invasively monitor species: providing information regarding spatial and temporal distribution of biodiversity, abundance, and the richness and composition of the community. Metrics (e.g. acoustic complexity) can quantify the sounds present and link these to diversity of the ecosystem. This technique is becoming standard in aquatic and above-ground temperate systems focussed on fish, bats, birds and anurans, but is yet to be explored fully below-ground and for invertebrates. Working along disturbance gradients (principally grazing pressure) and across savanna habitats, this project seeks to advance the field of bio-acoustics by determining the potential of this sampling approach for quantifying invertebrate diversity both above and below-ground. Novelty and TimelinessWhilst a few sensors have been used to explore biotic signals in soil, none offer a reliable, cost-effective solution; a road-block in the current utility of acoustics for ground monitoring. This project will develop soil sensors and use AI-driven data processing offering the potential to develop a novel and widely applicable technology to aid conservation and biodiversity understanding.Objectives1. Explore the potential of above and below-ground terrestrial bioacoustics sampling and biodiversity quantification.2. Determine if acoustic diversity indices can reflect true diversity by comparing biodiversity data from acoustic recording units, with that from field sampling and eDNA.3. Determine to what extent differences in savanna habitats can be detected with bioacoustics biodiversity measures.Based in the savanna landscapes surrounding Mount Kenya, the PhD student will work closely with the project CASE partner, Natural State (www.naturalstate.org), to refine the research questions and develop the field sampling design. Natural State will provide in-country support. A growing trend in ecology and conservation is the use of sounds or vibrations to monitor biodiversity. This promising non-invasive monitoring method has a wide range of benefits; it can provide data regarding animal abundance, diversity, and spatial distribution of communities. Whilst ecoacoustics is now commonly used to assess aquatic and above-ground terrestrial taxa (e.g., fish, bats, birds, and anurans), few studies have applied the technique to below-ground systems or invertebrates. Typically, below-ground invertebrate sampling is conducted using traditional fieldwork techniques. Whilst proven to be successful, these methods are often time consuming, expensive, and cause disturbance to soils. This project aims to develop ecoacoustic monitoring to quantify above- and below-ground invertebrates. More specifically our objectives are: (1) explore the potential of above- and below-ground terrestrial ecoacoustic monitoring using a cost-effective sensor; (2) determine if ecoacoustic indices can reflect true abundance and diversity by comparing ecoacoustic data to traditional field sampling; and (3) determine the potential of using ecoacoustics to map invertebrate abundance and diversity in savanna habitats. We will collaborate with the project CASE partner, Natural State in Mount Kenya to conduct our fieldwork in savanna habitats. This will allow us to work along disturbance gradients (e.g., grazing pressure), assess the relationship between carbon storage and invertebrate biodiversity, and explore the impact of savanna habitat restoration on invertebrates. This research aims to support conservation efforts of invertebrates, and quantify the potential effects of disturbance, carbon storage and savanna restoration projects on these functionally important taxa.