We were blown away by the volume and quality of the grant applications that we received in this past quarter for our first Wildlife Acoustics Product Grant application cycle. We received over 80 applications from all over the world. There were projects about koalas, penguins, and even crocodiles!

A handful of WA staff volunteered our time to diligently read the applications and make the tough decision of which to choose. In the end, we were happy to be able to provide Wildlife Acoustics gear to two projects this quarter.

Mark Danaher, Friends of the Florida Panther Refuge:

Project: Investigation of Eumops floridanus on the Florida Panther Wildlife Refuge

Danaher and his team will use the awarded Wildlife Acoustics products to study the location and behaviour of one of the rarest mammals in the US, the Florida bonneted bat. Only two natural roosts have been documented for the species in the past 35 years, one of which was Florida Panther refuge, where this study will be conducted. Observations made about the behaviour of the bat are crucial to informing land management decisions for this species, which is thought to have the most limited geographic distribution of any bat in the country.

Products Awarded:

• Kaleidoscope Pro 3 Analysis Software with North American Classifiers
• Song Meter SM3BAT ultrasonic recorder
• Echo Meter Touch ultrasonic module
• 2 SMM-U1 ultrasonic mics w/3 meter cables and windscreens
• SMM-A1 external acoustic mic w/3 meter cable

To find out more about Friends of FL Panther Refuge, click here

Dr. Desley Whisson, Deakin University

Project: Bioacoustic monitoring of koala populations

The aim of this project is to test the use of bioacoustics as a reliable method of assessing koala population sizes. The researchers will record male breeding season bellows with the Song Meter SM3 acoustic recorders and assess the effectiveness of bioacoustics in koala surveys. If recording these bellows is an accurate indicator of population location and density, bioacoustics could replace traditional methods as a more efficient and affordable option for future koala surveys.

Products Awarded:

• 2 Song Meter SM3 acoustic recorders

For more information about this project, click here

We will be keep in touch with these projects and will post updates when we can! Stay tuned, and don’t forget to send in your applications for the Q4 grant by November 15th, 2015.

Good Luck! We look forward to reading the next round of applications!