Bioacoustics-the International Journal of Animal Sound and Its Recording 

About: Bioacoustics-the International Journal of Animal Sound and Its Recording is an academic journal published by Taylor & Francis. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Noise & Sound (geography). It has an ISSN identifier of 0952-4622. Over the lifetime, 843 publications have been published receiving 14210 citations.

Seewave, a free modular tool for sound analysis and synthesis

Abstract: We review Seewave, new software for analysing and synthesizing sounds. Seewave is free and works on a wide variety of operating systems as an extension of the R operating environment. Its current 67 functions allow the user to achieve time, amplitude and frequency analyses, to estimate quantitative differences between sounds, and to generate new sounds for playback experiments. Thanks to its implementation in the R environment, Seewave is fully modular. All functions can be combined for complex data acquisition and graphical output, they can be part of important scripts for batch processing and they can be modified ad libitum. New functions can also be written, making Seewave a truly open-source tool.

Marine mammal noise-exposure criteria: initial scientific recommendations

Abstract: (2008). MARINE MAMMAL NOISE-EXPOSURE CRITERIA: INITIAL SCIENTIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS. Bioacoustics: Vol. 17, No. 1-3, pp. 273-275.

Subharmonics, biphonation, and deterministic chaos in mammal vocalization

Abstract: To establish a framework for discussing mammalian vocalizations, relevant terminology and concepts from the theory of nonlinear dynamics are introduced. It is suggested that a variety of nonlinear phenomena including subharmonics, biphonation, and deterministic chaos are normally occurring phonatory events. The whole spectrum of these phenomena can be found in the repertoire of the African wild dog Lycaon pictus. In addition, examples of nonlinear phenomena in a wide range of other mammalian taxa will be presented. Moreover, some artifacts in sound spectrographic analysis are listed which may be misinterpreted as nonlinear phenomena. Within the framework of nonlinear dynamics, a consistent terminology is proposed and our observations are related to laryngeal sound production mechanisms. Finally, some hypotheses concerning the communicative potential of the described phenomena are discussed.

The “acoustic adaptation hypothesis”—a review of the evidence from birds, anurans and mammals

Abstract: The acoustic properties of the environment influence sound propagation. Many previous studies examined whether various species of anurans, birds and mammals adjust usage and/or structure of their vocal signals to limit degradation during propagation in this environment (“acoustic adaptation hypothesis”). The present review examines how widespread such adaptations actually are across taxa. First, evidence for environment-related adjustments in usage of vocal signals is collected from studies in birds and other vertebrates (i.e., anurans and mammals). Second, a meta-analysis conducted by Boncoraglio & Saino (2007) on the influences of the environment on the acoustic structure of avian vocalisations is taken as a reference, and results from additional studies in birds are reviewed and compared to its conclusions. Finally, evidence from similar studies conducted in anurans and mammals is collected and discussed. Concerning the usage of vocal signals, evidence of environment-related adaptations in the...

Identification of British bat species by multivariate analysis of echolocation call parameters

Abstract: 1. A method for the identification of bat species from time-expanded broad-band recordings of their echolocation calls is presented. The method may be used for the assessment of habitat use by bats. 2. Recordings were made of echolocation calls produced by 536 bats of known species identity, belonging to 15 species found in Great Britain. One call was analysed per individual, and sonograms and descriptive statistics of six time and frequency variables of calls are presented. British bats can be placed in three groups according to the structure of their calls: high duty cycle FM/CF/FM bats (Rhinolophus spp.), low duty cycle FM bats (Myotis spp. and Plecotus spp.) and intermediate duty cycle FM/CF bats (Pipistrellus and Nyctalus spp. and Eptesicus serotinus). 3. FM/CF/FM bats could be identified from the peak frequency of their calls. Two separate quadratic multivariate discriminant analyses were carried out on the time and frequency parameters of calls produced by FM bats and FM/CF bats. For FM ba...