Orca Vocalization and Localization
(Research project sponsored by Colorado College)
The hydrophone node at Orcasound (the home and laboratory of Dr. Val Veirs) is located between Snug Harbor and Andrew's Bay, ~6km N of the Lime Kiln Lighthouse. The node hosts an array of 4-8 hydrophones that stretch ~200m along shore at depths of 5-20m. There have been multiple hydrophone deployments, repairs, and acoustic research projects at Orcasound, beginning in about 2000.
The current dual-hydrophone system consists of two ITC hydrophones with custom pre-amps mounted on PVC tripods 1-2 m above the gravel bottom. Cables traverse the rocky intertidal within iron protectors and then run ~100m to a data-logging and streaming computer. Custom software written in Visual Basic by Val Veirs assesses average underwater sound levels and automatically detects "unusual" sounds. The stream is distributed by spacialnet.com for $23/month.
Each sound file (.mp3 format) is named with year, month, day, start time, end-time, and duration encoded in the file name. The date format is YYMMDD, start/end times are 24-hr format (PDT time zone), and the duration format is HHMMSS. These sounds are presented using a Flash-based player called Wimpy...
| File name | Description |
| 071020_0936-1700_071622_os_JKL.mp3 | Very long recording with clear initial calls that become increasingly faint. Calls are audible for a long time (~2h) and the recording includes a variety of vessel noises. (Recording may not be continuous due to software/storage issues.) |
| 071020_1800-1831_003109_os_JKL.mp3 | Great calls and clicks from multiple pods with low background noise |
| 071020_1832-1954_012137_os_JKL.mp3 | Great calls and clicks from multiple pods with low background noise |
| 080401_1438-1500_004255_os_J.mp3 | Call and clicks during an early spring visit by J pod with intermittent boat noise (and ship noise at the end) |
(Research project sponsored by Colorado College)