Understanding the ecology of boreal birds through automated soundscape analysis

声音是生物环境中无处不在的重要组成部分。生态学家通过计算物种发出的声音来追踪野生动物的状态。然而，人类不可能一直在任何地方，所以关于生态过程的时间和间隔的许多问题，特别是在大空间尺度和长时间框架内，是无法用人类观察者来回答的。我们将测试几个关键的生态理论，如理想自由与专制选择，丰富的中心假设，范围物候变化和恐惧景观，使用来自北方森林鸣禽声音的数据。测试所有这些理论需要精确的密度、空间使用和时间信息，这些信息比人类观察者通常收集的要精确得多。我们的技术进步是使用自主录音装置（录音设备）来做到这一点。我们将开发深度学习工具，通过声音改善密度、季节性、回报率、入住率动态和繁殖状态等指标。我们也在通过创新的在线工具改变数据的收集、整理和最重要的是在研究人员之间共享的方式。这使我们能够为决策者提供有关紧迫的大规模保护问题所需的信息。生境选择是生态学中研究最多的过程之一，也是应用保护和理论生物学的核心。然而，目前大多数研究人员使用的方法倾向于强调鸟类的局部尺度模式是如何根据人类足迹和植被而变化的。我们的工作通过研究栖息地选择的变化和物种之间的相互作用来推进这一范式，这些相互作用可能会在大尺度和长时间内改变栖息地选择的模式，而这只有通过ARUs才能实现。HQP是我研究项目的核心。在过去的6年里，我为200多个HQP提供了机会。我预计下一个周期会有同样数量的学生接受培训。我的项目的成功依赖于开发一个强有力的协调系统的合作学生项目，这些项目单独是独特的，但当整合时，提供了更多的机会来揭示行为，人口，社区和景观生态学的基本见解。正如我的出版记录和过去学生的就业能力所证明的那样，这种方法创造了在应用和理论生态学方面都具有能力的全面发展的个人。DG项目提供了关键的资金，使我的学生能够扩展应用工作，以测试关于生态理论的特定假设，以及在不同空间尺度上驱动鸟类多样性模式的过程。

Sound is a ubiquitous & important component of the biotic environment. Ecologists use sound to track the state of wildlife by counting vocalizations made by species. However, people cannot be everywhere all the time, so many questions about the timing & spacing of ecological processes, particularly at large spatial scales & over long time-frames are unanswerable using human observers. We will test several key ecological theories  like ideal free vs. despotic selection, abundant centre hypothesis, range-phenology shifts & landscapes of fear using data from the sounds made by boreal forest songbirds. Testing all of these theories requires accurate density, space use & timing information that is far more precise than human observers typically collect. Our technological advance is the use of autonomous recording units (sound recording devices) to do this. We will develop deep learning tools to improve measures of density, seasonality, return rates, occupancy dynamics & breeding state through sound. We are also changing how data is collected, collated & most importantly shared between researchers through innovative online tools. This allows us to provide the information needed by decision makers about pressing large-scale conservation issues. Habitat selection is one of the most studied processes in ecology and is central to applied conservation and theoretical biology. However, current approaches used by most researchers tend to emphasize how local scale patterns of birds vary based on human footprint & vegetation. Our work advances this paradigm by studying variation in habitat selection & the interactions between species that may alter patterns of habitat selection at large scales & over time that are only possible through ARUs. HQP are central to my research program. In the past 6 years I have provided opportunities to over 200 HQP. I foresee similar numbers of students being trained in the next cycle. The success of my program is dependent on developing a strongly-coordinated system of collaborative student projects that individually are unique but when integrated provide greater opportunities to reveal fundamental insights into behavioral, population, community & landscape ecology. As evidenced by my publication record and the employability of past students, this approach creates well-rounded individuals with competencies in both applied and theoretical ecology. The DG program provides critical funds that allow my students to expand applied work to test specific hypotheses about ecological theory and the processes that drive patterns of avian diversity at different spatial scales.