This dataset contains audio files for TERN Calperum Mallee SuperSite. Long-term recordings of the environment can be used to identify sound sources of interest, characterise the soundscape, aid in the assessment of fauna biodiversity, monitor temporal trends and track environmental changes.
The site was established in 2010 and is located on Calperum Station, near Renmark, in South Australia. The property was a pastoral grazing lease for nearly 150 years, and suffered grazing-induced modifications to its ecosystems that are now being actively restored following removal of sheep in 1994. The area includes mallee woodlands and riverine vegetation. A significant amount of the mallee woodlands was burnt in January 2014. The mallee species are multi-stemmed eucalyptus trees (Eucalyptus dumosa, E. incrassata, E. oleosa and E. socialis) while the sparsely distributed mid-storey species come from Eremophila, Hakea, Olearia, Senna and Melaleuca genera. The spaced understory is predominately clumps of spiny grass (Triodia spp.). For additional site information, see Daintree Rainforest SuperSite
In 2013 two acoustic recorders were set up to collect audio data for a total of 12 hours per day, split between six hours around dawn and six hours around dusk. The recording schedule aimed at capturing morning and evening bird choruses while minimizing memory and battery requirements. A long-term spectrogram has been generated for each audio file to aid in data exploration. The sensor also recorded temperature, minimum- maximum- and mean-sound pressure levels.
Data are made available through the data link. For downloading large amount of data, please follow these instructions How to download TERN's acoustic data in bulk
Credit
We at TERN acknowledge the Traditional Owners and Custodians throughout Australia, New Zealand and all nations. We honour their profound connections to land, water, biodiversity and culture and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
Calperum Mallee SuperSite was established in 2010 by a partnership between the University of Adelaide and the Australian Landscape Trust with initial funding from the Australian Federal Government, Education Investment Fund.
This work was jointly funded by the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), an Australian Government National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) project.
Purpose
Long-term acoustic recordings are collected to characterise the acoustic sources in the ecosystem. Recordings can be used to estimate biodiversity, monitor temporal changes in the soundscape, compare the acoustic characteristics of different locations, and assess the effect of particular events such as bushfires and floods.
Lineage
Two acoustic sensors were set up to collect audio data as part of a continent wide long term monitoring project. The sensors were Wildlife Acoustics Song Meter 2 equipped with two microphones each. According to manufacturer's specifications the microphones sensitivity was -36±4 dB (0 dB=1 V/Pa at 1 kHz). The sensors were mounted on star pickets. Data were recorded for a total of 12 hours per day, split between six hours around dawn and six hours around dusk. Recordings were made as dual channel, three-hour long wac files, and were later converted into flac format. They had a sampling rate of 22,050 or 44,100 Hz and a depth of 16 bits.
Long-term spectrograms have been created for the audio files and are avaialble through the data link.
The sensor also recorded 'ancillary data' such as temperature, minimum- maximum- and mean-sound pressure levels.
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