Ecosystem-scale Biodiversity Monitoring in California

Comprehensive acoustic monitoring and machine learning reveal bird biodiversity across the Sierra Nevada, supporting conservation efforts and ecosystem management in the face of climate and environmental pressures.

Using passive acoustic surveys and machine learning tools, we monitor nearly the entire bird community (over 100 species) across the entire  Sierra Nevada ecosystem. Begun in 2016 in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin, we have over 1,600 recorders spanning 25,000 km², an area the size of Vermont. In addition to the Spotted Owl conservation work, we’ve begun exploring the ecology of diurnal birds like Mountain Quail and the Olive-sided Flycatcher. With funding from NASA, CAL-FIRE, and the U.S. Forest Service, we are combining our biodiversity data with remote sensed data to develop decision support tools for the management community.

In Southern California, we’re developing monitoring efforts in both montane forests, expanding the Spotted Owl work, and in the narrow riparian corridors that are under immense pressure from climate change (drought), fire, invasive species, and the water needs of the massive population of greater Los Angeles.