Monitoring Bird Songs

Sonic geographies is a relatively new method for monitoring biodiversity, which utilizes sound. A common sonic indicator of biodiversity is avian vocalizations, or bird songs, which we chose to monitor. We chose the UBC Botanical Gardens as our research location, working alongside SEEDS, an on-campus sustainability program that creates partnerships between students, operational staff, and faculty through innovative and impactful research projects. In our research, this location acts as a microcosm for larger global anxieties surrounding diminishing biodiverse habitats attributed to anthropogenic disturbances. We used the sonic geographies method, using hand recorders, to listen to and record sonic environments within the Botanical Gardens, paying close attention to both the bird and anthropological sounds, and the relationship between the two.