Acoustic communication in anurans plays a critical role in species recognition, defending territories and resources, and finding a mate. Anurans use a number of different call note types to communicate, from which the most notable are advertisement- and aggression calls. Optimum weather conditions are a precursor to the commencement of the breeding season for all frog species and their calling behaviour is therefore readily influenced by atmospheric conditions. Male frogs within a chorus also tend to call from territories within a specific range of distances from one another. The objectives of this study were to 1) determine a possible context in which call note types are produced, 2) to determine the effect of atmospheric conditions on calling behaviour and 3) to determine the spacing distances between males and females in a chorus of Queckett’s River Frog (Amietia quecketti). Pre-recorded note types were used in a playback experiment to determine a context for elicited responses. A context was derived for six of the responses. Advertisement (clicks and whines), aggression (creaks), encounter (tonal notes), territorial (whine-tonal notes), and release calls (squeaks) were described. Calls and atmospheric conditions were recorded and correlated for an entire breeding season. Water temperature, wind speed, humidity and barometric pressure had a significant effect on calling intensity. As water temperature decreased calling intensity increased, while increased wind temperature led to increased calling intensity. Amietia quecketti calls from the water, explaining the effect while increased wind speed decreases water temperature and can carry sound further. Both humidity and barometric pressure showed increased calling intensity only at specific levels. Humidity and barometric pressure have a direct effect on one another, which most likely causes the correlation between calling intensity and both these variables. In this study A. quecketti was shown to have breeding ponds for males and resting ponds and positions for non-gravid females. This prevents unwanted or unnecessary amplexus. Males showed much smaller and less variable territory sizes than females. This is most likely because males have a small range of optimal spacing distance while females move towards and away from males. The presence of vegetation resulted in smaller territories. This is possibly because smaller males act as satellite males and cannot be seen by larger males in vegetation. The size of males did not affect territory size. Males have a specific inter-male spacing distance regardless of size. / MSc (Environmental Sciences), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Passive acoustic monitoring has been used to investigate many aspects of marine mammal ecology, although methods to estimate absolute abundance and density using acoustic data have only been developed in recent years. The instrument configuration in an acoustic survey determines which abundance estimation methods can be used. Sparsely distributed arrays of instruments are useful because wide geographic areas can be covered. However, instrument spacing in sparse arrays is such that the same vocalisation will not be detected on multiple instruments, excluding the use of some abundance estimation methods. The aim of this thesis was to explore cetacean abundance and density estimation using novel sparse array datasets, applying existing methods where possible, or developing new approaches. The wealth of data collected by sparse arrays was demonstrated by analysing a 10-year dataset collected by the U.S. Navy's Sound Surveillance System in the north-east Atlantic. Spatial and temporal patterns of blue (Balaenoptera musculus) and fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) vocal activity were investigated using generalised additive models. Distance sampling-based methods were applied to fin whale calls recorded by an array of Ocean Bottom Seismometers in the north-east Atlantic. Estimated call density was 993 calls/1000 km².hr⁻¹ (CV: 0.39). Animal density could not be estimated because the call rate was unknown. Further development of the call localisation method is required so the current density estimate may be biased. Furthermore, analysing a single day of data resulted in a high variance estimate. Finally, a new simulation-based method developed to estimate density from single hydrophones was applied to blue whale calls recorded in the northern Indian Ocean. Estimated call density was 3 calls/1000 km².hr⁻¹ (CV: 0.17). Again, density of whales could not be estimated as the vocalisation rate was unknown. Lack of biological knowledge poses the greatest limitation to abundance and density estimation using acoustic data.

Despite the extensive Brazilian coast areas, little is known on underwater acoustic environments in Brazil. Acoustic environments (or soundscape) are composed by biological, geological and man-made sound sources. Soundscapes are strongly linked to ecosystems dynamics, and follow temporal patters that can vary at daily and seasonal scales. Thus, for soundscape characterization, it is necessary to undertake sound recordings for long periods, which demands innovative analyzing methods. Accordingly, the present research focuses in two principal objectives: (1) to develop methods for analyzing long-term acoustic recordings and, (2) to characterize marine soundscapes of selected points in São Paulo State. Four deployment sites were selected for the underwater acoustic monitoring: a point located at the channel entrance of the Santos Harbor, and three marine Protected Areas (PAs) in Sao Paulo state. As a result, the largest underwater acoustic database from Brazilian seas was acquired. The present work used Power Spectral Density (PSD), Sound Pressure Level (SPL) and Spectrograms to develop an innovative methodology for analyzing long-term acoustic data. In addition, a new visualization tool and a method for automatic detection of dawn and dusk choruses are presented. The achieved results validated the proposed methodology as an effective tool for analyzing long-term acoustic data. The area close to the first site, the vicinity of Santos Harbor, was dominated by ship noise, which values reach levels that can affect some species of fish and marine mammals. The soundscapes of the other three remaining measurement sites were dominated by fish and crustacean choruses, with daily and seasonal patterns (related to sunrise and sunset). For the monitored regions, the present work signifies the first contribution for cataloguing fish choruses, and establishes a baseline for the study of their underwater acoustic environment. Although the proposed methodology has used long-term undersea acoustic datasets as case-study, it can also be extended for monitoring other aquatic or terrestrial ecosystems. Finally, the research indicates to Brazilian environmental agencies and to the related scientific community that passive acoustic monitoring is a noninvasive and cost-effective tool that can be used for the management of PAs and points of economic relevance. / Apesar da ampla área dos mares brasileiros, pouco se conhece sobre paisagens acústicas submarinas no Brasil. Estas paisagens são compostas por sons de origens biológicas, geológicas e as produzidas pelo homem. As paisagens acústicas estão fortemente ligadas à dinâmica dos ecossistemas, mostrando padrões temporais diários e sazonais. Para caracterizar paisagens acústicas é necessário realizar gravações de sons por períodos de tempos prolongados, o que demanda métodos de análise inovadores. Neste sentido, a presente pesquisa visa dois objetivos principais: (1) desenvolver métodos para a análise de gravações acústicas de longa duração, (2) caracterizar a paisagem acústica do litoral do estado de São Paulo. Quatro pontos de coleta foram selecionados para monitoramento acústico passivo: um ponto situado no canal de entrada do Porto de Santos e os outros três em áreas de proteção marinhas (APM) do estado de São Paulo. Como resultado foi obtida a base de dados de sons submarinhos mais extensa dos mares brasileiros. Do ponto de vista da análise destes dados, o presente trabalho baseia-se no cálculo da Densidade Espectral de Potência, Níveis de Pressão Sonora e Espectrogramas, obtendo métodos de análise novedosos a partir técnicas tradicionais. Neste contexto a tese apresenta uma ferramenta para a visualização de dados acústicos e um método para a detecção automática de coros biológicos matutinos e vespertinos. Os resultados obtidos permitiram validar a efetividade dos métodos propostos na descrição e análise de dados acústicos de longa duração. O ambiente acústico nas proximidades do Porto de Santos foi dominado por ruído de embarcações, alcançando valores de níveis sonoros capazes de afetar algumas espécies de peixes e mamíferos marinhos. As paisagens acústicas dos três pontos restantes foram dominadas por coros de peixes e crustáceos, com padrões diários e sazonais (relacionados ao nascer e pôr do sol). O presente trabalho constitui a primeira pesquisa que cataloga coro de peixes e que estabelece uma referência para o estudo do ambiente acústico das regiões monitoradas. Embora os métodos apresentados usaram como estudo de caso dados de sons submarinos, a sua aplicação pode ser estendida para o monitoramento de outros ambientes aquáticos ou terrestres. Por último, a pesquisa mostra aos órgãos ambientais brasileiros que o monitoramento acústico passivo é uma ferramenta eficaz para o manejo e monitoramento de áreas protegidas e pontos de relevância econômica.

Vazamentos em tubos pressurizados geram ondas acústicas que se propagam através das paredes destes tubos, as quais podem ser captadas por acelerômetros ou por sensores de emissão acústica. O conhecimento de como estas paredes podem vibrar, ou de outro modo como as ondas acústicas se propagam neste meio, é fundamental em um processo de detecção e localização da fonte de vazamento. Neste trabalho, foi implementado um modelo analítico, através das equações de movimento da casca cilíndrica, com o objetivo de entender o comportamento da superfície do tubo em função de uma excitação pontual. Como a superfície cilíndrica é um meio fechado na direção circunferencial, ondas que iniciaram sua jornada, a partir de uma fonte pontual sobre a superfície, se encontrarão com outras que já completaram a volta na casca cilíndrica, tanto no sentido horário como no anti-horário, gerando interferências construtivas e destrutivas. Após um tempo suficiente, uma estacionariedade é atingida, criando pontos de picos e vales na superfície da casca, os quais podem ser visualizadas através de uma representação gráfica do modelo analítico criado. Os resultados teóricos foram comprovados através de medidas realizadas em uma bancada de testes composta de um tubo de aço terminado em caixa de areia, simulando a condição de tubo infinito. Para proceder à localização da fonte pontual sobre a superfície, adotou-se o processo de solução inversa, ou seja, conhecidos os sinais dos sensores dispostos na superfície do tubo, determina-se através do modelo teórico onde a fonte que gerou estes sinais pode estar. / Leaks in pressurized tubes generate acoustic waves that propagate through the walls of these tubes, which can be captured by accelerometers or by acoustic emission sensors. The knowledge of how these walls can vibrate, or in another way, how these acoustic waves propagate in this material is fundamental in the detection and localization process of the leak source. In this work an analytic model was implemented, through the motion equations of a cylindrical shell, with the objective to understand the behavior of the tube surface excited by a point source. Since the cylindrical surface has a closed pattern in the circumferential direction, waves that are beginning their trajectory will meet with another that has already completed the turn over the cylindrical shell, in the clockwise direction as well as in the counter clockwise direction, generating constructive and destructive interferences. After enough time of propagation, peaks and valleys in the shell surface are formed, which can be visualized through a graphic representation of the analytic solution created. The theoretical results were proven through measures accomplished in an experimental setup composed of a steel tube finished in sand box, simulating the condition of infinite tube. To determine the location of the point source on the surface, the process of inverse solution was adopted, that is to say, known the signals of the sensor disposed in the tube surface, it is determined through the theoretical model where the source that generated these signals can be.

Vazamentos em tubos pressurizados geram ondas acústicas que se propagam através das paredes destes tubos, as quais podem ser captadas por acelerômetros ou por sensores de emissão acústica. O conhecimento de como estas paredes podem vibrar, ou de outro modo como as ondas acústicas se propagam neste meio, é fundamental em um processo de detecção e localização da fonte de vazamento. Neste trabalho, foi implementado um modelo analítico, através das equações de movimento da casca cilíndrica, com o objetivo de entender o comportamento da superfície do tubo em função de uma excitação pontual. Como a superfície cilíndrica é um meio fechado na direção circunferencial, ondas que iniciaram sua jornada, a partir de uma fonte pontual sobre a superfície, se encontrarão com outras que já completaram a volta na casca cilíndrica, tanto no sentido horário como no anti-horário, gerando interferências construtivas e destrutivas. Após um tempo suficiente, uma estacionariedade é atingida, criando pontos de picos e vales na superfície da casca, os quais podem ser visualizadas através de uma representação gráfica do modelo analítico criado. Os resultados teóricos foram comprovados através de medidas realizadas em uma bancada de testes composta de um tubo de aço terminado em caixa de areia, simulando a condição de tubo infinito. Para proceder à localização da fonte pontual sobre a superfície, adotou-se o processo de solução inversa, ou seja, conhecidos os sinais dos sensores dispostos na superfície do tubo, determina-se através do modelo teórico onde a fonte que gerou estes sinais pode estar. / Leaks in pressurized tubes generate acoustic waves that propagate through the walls of these tubes, which can be captured by accelerometers or by acoustic emission sensors. The knowledge of how these walls can vibrate, or in another way, how these acoustic waves propagate in this material is fundamental in the detection and localization process of the leak source. In this work an analytic model was implemented, through the motion equations of a cylindrical shell, with the objective to understand the behavior of the tube surface excited by a point source. Since the cylindrical surface has a closed pattern in the circumferential direction, waves that are beginning their trajectory will meet with another that has already completed the turn over the cylindrical shell, in the clockwise direction as well as in the counter clockwise direction, generating constructive and destructive interferences. After enough time of propagation, peaks and valleys in the shell surface are formed, which can be visualized through a graphic representation of the analytic solution created. The theoretical results were proven through measures accomplished in an experimental setup composed of a steel tube finished in sand box, simulating the condition of infinite tube. To determine the location of the point source on the surface, the process of inverse solution was adopted, that is to say, known the signals of the sensor disposed in the tube surface, it is determined through the theoretical model where the source that generated these signals can be.

In a world confronting climate change and rapidly shifting land uses, effective methods for monitoring natural resources are critical to support scientifically-informed management decisions. By taking audio recordings of the environment, scientists can acquire presence-absence data to characterize populations of sound-producing wildlife over time and across vast spatial scales. Remote acoustic monitoring presents new challenges, however: monitoring programs are often constrained in the total time they can record, automated detection algorithms typically produce a prohibitive number of detection mistakes, and there is no streamlined framework for moving from raw acoustic data to models of wildlife occurrence dynamics. In partnership with a proof-of-concept field study in the U.S Bureau of Land Management’s Riverside East Solar Energy Zone in southern California, this dissertation introduces a new R software package, AMMonitor, alongside a novel body of work: 1) temporally-adaptive acoustic sampling to maximize the detection probabilities of target species despite recording constraints, 2) values-driven statistical learning tools for template-based automated detection of target species, and 3) methods supporting the construction of dynamic species occurrence models from automated acoustic detection data. Unifying these methods with streamlined data management, the AMMonitor software package supports the tracking of species occurrence, colonization, and extinction patterns through time, introducing the potential to perform adaptive management at landscape scales.

Despite the extensive Brazilian coast areas, little is known on underwater acoustic environments in Brazil. Acoustic environments (or soundscape) are composed by biological, geological and man-made sound sources. Soundscapes are strongly linked to ecosystems dynamics, and follow temporal patters that can vary at daily and seasonal scales. Thus, for soundscape characterization, it is necessary to undertake sound recordings for long periods, which demands innovative analyzing methods. Accordingly, the present research focuses in two principal objectives: (1) to develop methods for analyzing long-term acoustic recordings and, (2) to characterize marine soundscapes of selected points in São Paulo State. Four deployment sites were selected for the underwater acoustic monitoring: a point located at the channel entrance of the Santos Harbor, and three marine Protected Areas (PAs) in Sao Paulo state. As a result, the largest underwater acoustic database from Brazilian seas was acquired. The present work used Power Spectral Density (PSD), Sound Pressure Level (SPL) and Spectrograms to develop an innovative methodology for analyzing long-term acoustic data. In addition, a new visualization tool and a method for automatic detection of dawn and dusk choruses are presented. The achieved results validated the proposed methodology as an effective tool for analyzing long-term acoustic data. The area close to the first site, the vicinity of Santos Harbor, was dominated by ship noise, which values reach levels that can affect some species of fish and marine mammals. The soundscapes of the other three remaining measurement sites were dominated by fish and crustacean choruses, with daily and seasonal patterns (related to sunrise and sunset). For the monitored regions, the present work signifies the first contribution for cataloguing fish choruses, and establishes a baseline for the study of their underwater acoustic environment. Although the proposed methodology has used long-term undersea acoustic datasets as case-study, it can also be extended for monitoring other aquatic or terrestrial ecosystems. Finally, the research indicates to Brazilian environmental agencies and to the related scientific community that passive acoustic monitoring is a noninvasive and cost-effective tool that can be used for the management of PAs and points of economic relevance. / Apesar da ampla área dos mares brasileiros, pouco se conhece sobre paisagens acústicas submarinas no Brasil. Estas paisagens são compostas por sons de origens biológicas, geológicas e as produzidas pelo homem. As paisagens acústicas estão fortemente ligadas à dinâmica dos ecossistemas, mostrando padrões temporais diários e sazonais. Para caracterizar paisagens acústicas é necessário realizar gravações de sons por períodos de tempos prolongados, o que demanda métodos de análise inovadores. Neste sentido, a presente pesquisa visa dois objetivos principais: (1) desenvolver métodos para a análise de gravações acústicas de longa duração, (2) caracterizar a paisagem acústica do litoral do estado de São Paulo. Quatro pontos de coleta foram selecionados para monitoramento acústico passivo: um ponto situado no canal de entrada do Porto de Santos e os outros três em áreas de proteção marinhas (APM) do estado de São Paulo. Como resultado foi obtida a base de dados de sons submarinhos mais extensa dos mares brasileiros. Do ponto de vista da análise destes dados, o presente trabalho baseia-se no cálculo da Densidade Espectral de Potência, Níveis de Pressão Sonora e Espectrogramas, obtendo métodos de análise novedosos a partir técnicas tradicionais. Neste contexto a tese apresenta uma ferramenta para a visualização de dados acústicos e um método para a detecção automática de coros biológicos matutinos e vespertinos. Os resultados obtidos permitiram validar a efetividade dos métodos propostos na descrição e análise de dados acústicos de longa duração. O ambiente acústico nas proximidades do Porto de Santos foi dominado por ruído de embarcações, alcançando valores de níveis sonoros capazes de afetar algumas espécies de peixes e mamíferos marinhos. As paisagens acústicas dos três pontos restantes foram dominadas por coros de peixes e crustáceos, com padrões diários e sazonais (relacionados ao nascer e pôr do sol). O presente trabalho constitui a primeira pesquisa que cataloga coro de peixes e que estabelece uma referência para o estudo do ambiente acústico das regiões monitoradas. Embora os métodos apresentados usaram como estudo de caso dados de sons submarinos, a sua aplicação pode ser estendida para o monitoramento de outros ambientes aquáticos ou terrestres. Por último, a pesquisa mostra aos órgãos ambientais brasileiros que o monitoramento acústico passivo é uma ferramenta eficaz para o manejo e monitoramento de áreas protegidas e pontos de relevância econômica.

No description available.

No description available.

Uma nova metodologia para a medida não intrusiva da fração volumétrica e da área interfacial é proposta neste trabalho, com base em redes neurais para processar respostas obtidas de sinais acústicos. A distribuição geométrica das fases dentro do escoamento é mapeada pela velocidade local de propagação acústica, considerada na equação diferencial que governa o problema. Esta equação é resolvida numericamente pelo método de diferenças finitas com as condições de contorno reproduzindo a estratégia de pulso/eco. Um número significativo de distribuições das velocidades de propagação foi considerado na solução da equação diferencial para construir uma base de dados, da qual os parâmetros da rede podem ser ajustados. Especificamente, o modelo neural é construído para mapear características extraídas dos sinais obtidos de quatro sensores acústicos, localizados no contorno externo do domínio de sensoriamento, estimando a fração volumétrica e a área interfacial correspondentes. Estas características correspondem às amplitudes e aos tempos de chegada dos três maiores picos da onda acústica. Os resultados numéricos mostram que o modelo neural pode ser treinado em um tempo computacional razoável e é capaz de estimar os valores da fração volumétrica e da área interfacial dos exemplos do conjunto de teste. / A new methodology for measuring the volumetric fraction and interfacial area in two-phase flows is proposed in this work, based on neural network for processing the responses obtained from an acoustic interrogation signal. The geometrical distribution of the phases within the flow is mapped by the local acoustic propagation velocity which is considered in the governing differential equation. This equation is solved numerically by the finite difference method with boundary conditions reproducing the pulse/echo strategy. A significant number of propagation velocities distributions were considered in the solution of the differential equation in order to construct a database from which the neural model parameters could be adjusted. Specifically, the neural model is constructed to map the features extracted from the signals delivered by four acoustic sensors, placed on the external boundary of the sensing domain, into the corresponding volumetric fraction and interfacial area. These features correspond to the amplitudes and the times of arrival on the three first peaks of the acoustic wave. Numerical results showed that the neural model can be trained in a reasonable computational time and it is capable of estimating the values of the volumetric fraction and the interfacial area of examples of the set of test.