soundscape_IR is an open-source Python toolbox dedicated to soundscape information retrieval. This toolbox provides algorithms for supervised and unsupervised source separation (SS). It also enables the use of a snapshot recording for model training and subsequently applying adaptive and semi-supervised SS when target species produce sounds with varying features and when unseen sound sources are encountered.

Using two case studies featuring the diversity of sika deer vocalizations and estuary biotic and abiotic sounds, our results demonstrate that soundscape_IR offers a promising method for streamlining the assessment of acoustic diversity in diverse environments. We expect this toolbox can open new directions for ecoacoustic studies in the future.

At a time when worldwide biodiversity is in significant decline and underwater soundscapes are being altered as a result of anthropogenic impacts, there is a need to document, quantify, and understand biotic sound sources–potentially before they disappear. A significant step toward these goals is the development of a web-based, open-access platform that provides: (1) a reference library of known and unknown biological sound sources (by integrating and expanding existing libraries around the world); (2) a data repository portal for annotated and unannotated audio recordings of single sources and of soundscapes; (3) a training platform for artificial intelligence algorithms for signal detection and classification; and (4) a citizen science-based application for public users. We discuss the benefits such a program can provide and the challenges that need to be overcome to bring together bio- and ecoacousticians, bioinformaticians, propagation experts, web engineers, and signal processing specialists (e.g., artificial intelligence).

We recorded and analyzed the total environmental sound (‘soundscape’) of four deep-sea sites around Japan, including a hydrothermal vent and an abyssal plain site eyed for the extraction of deep-sea mineral resources. Different habitat types exhibited distinct soundscape characteristics, for example the vent site was dominated by sounds from geological activities and the abyssal plain was much quieter than all other sites. Our results indicate offshore mining-targeted areas are more susceptible to impacts from anthropogenic noise, and that the monitoring of soundscapes are important for environmental assessments in the deep ocean. 

This work use a computational approach that features the automatic separation of sound sources from a mixture to visualize the diurnal, lunar, and seasonal patterns of marine mammals, soniferous fishes, and shipping activities from 2.5 years of underwater sound recordings. This technique not just helps us evaluate the phenological patterns of each sound source and their potential interactions, it also facilitates the assessment of acoustic diversity.  As a result, we identified five types of marine mammal vocalizations (including echolocation clicks and whistles), two types of fish choruses that were not reported in this region before. By integrating this computational technique in global acoustic observatories, we can investigate the changes in marine biodiversity at various temporal and spatial scales. In addition, we can also use the information specific to anthropogenic noise to monitor human activities and evaluate their impacts on marine biodiversity. We believe that marine soundscapes will be an indispensable component of marine conservation in the future.

This work demonstrated the application of using soundscapes in studying the temporal and spatial changes of coral reef soundscapes. The results revealed amazing dynamics of biological sounds in upper-mesophotic coral reefs. High diversity of biological sounds may be an indicator of coral reef health, long-term monitoring of acoustic diversity will help us know how coral reefs respond to natural and anthropogenic stressors. Our results also discovered that mesophotic corals are frequently exposed to anthropogenic noise. Considering that soundscapes are an important habitat cue for larvae of corals and reef-associated fish, noise masking may interfere the phonotaxis and reduce the resilience of coral reefs. We urge to integrate soundscape monitoring in the global research network of coral reefs by characterizing the underwater sounds in healthy and degraded reef habitats, before and after bleaching events and other marine extreme events, in habitats with varying levels of management and regulations. This action will contribute to a data-informed platform for guiding conservation management and strategic investment on regional and global scales.