Many seabird species are threatened, facing anthropogenic threats including invasive species, climate change, and fisheries bycatch.

Monitoring seabird populations is difficult due to large at-sea ranges and isolated colonies on islands and cliffs. Burrow-nesting seabirds create additional challenges because they are nocturnal, and most of their time in the colony is spent underground. Traditional surveys are intensive and invasive, and drones or automated cameras have limited utility. But birds make a lot of noise, so we are looking at how passive acoustic monitoring can be used to estimate seabird numbers.

This project works in collaboration with the Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP) to study acoustic recordings and burrow surveys of white-chinned petrels at Bird Island, South Georgia. Investigating the ability of acoustic monitoring to detect population dynamics of breeding and non-breeding white-chinned petrels will improve our ability to monitor conservation outcomes.