Existing hydrophone network
Assets that could help implement a underwater noise indicator within the Marine Water Quality Vital Sign

Outline (focus on real-time, continuous assets in WA):

1. Non-WA, Non-Orcasound assets you should know about
2. Orcasound: a tool for SRKW+ research, management, and education
3. Orcasound: a tool for characterizing underwater noise in critical habitat of Southern Resident killer whales (SRKWs)
4. Vital Sign Revision Project and potential noise indicators

About me:

• UW Oceanography, PhD (2003)
• 15+ years SRKW bioacoustic research/teaching and coordinating Orcasound
• President, Beam Reach (WA Social Purpose Corporation)
• Chair of Marine Mammal Work Group within the Puget Sound Ecosystem Monitoring Program (2018-present)

Non-WA or Non-Orcasound assets...

...that could help implement noise indicators, establish baselines, and monitor noise levels

Orcasound

An evolving tool for SRKW conservation

The product of ~20 years of community scientists listening for whales, Orcasound is now a cooperative hydrophone network and an open source hardware/software project.

Orcasound 2021 map and membership

Cooperative of researchers, educators, & community scientists

Orca Network Port Townsend Marine Science Center Beam Reach & Colorado College The Center for Whale Research The Whale Trail Oceans Initiative Orca Behavior Institute Whale Scout Deep Green Wilderness Friends of Lime Kiln Society (FOLKS) Cetacean Research Technology Pacific Mammal Research LAB-core System Hydrophones Vashon Nature Center Sound Action (2021 pilot node on Vashon) Physical exhibits include: Seattle Aquarium; Port Townsend Marine Science Center; Langley Whale Center; Lime Kiln Visitor's Center (via FOLKS)

Past | Current | Planned (2022)

You can join Orcasound, too! Just e-sign the MOA and heed the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license.

Orcasound hardware evolution

A listening node for less than $1000 (U.S.)!

Basic ingredients (and costs): ($ 50) DIY stand ($300 x2) Hydrophones -- dual for redundancy, stereo listening, & bearing ($125) Pisound board -- 48/96/192 kHz/channel, stereo 24-bit ADC ($ 35) Raspberry Pi 3b+/4 -- single board computer ($ 35) Audio cables & waterproof box installed near the shoreline ($ 75) Power over Ethernet -- from box to 24-hour UPS & Internet router 60% of cost is hydrophones! DIY Guide: How to build your own hydrophone node! Research nodes cost 5-10x more... ...for calibrated hydrophones sensitive from 10 Hz - 100 kHz.

Orcasound software evolution

2017 challenge: Can we make it easy to listen, cloud-based, & scalable?

Free open-source software to stream audio that "just works" on all devices/browsers

• Linux, Docker
• ffmpeg -- encodes audio data in two formats:
  • Compressed & lossy: HLS segments (HTTP Live Streaming)
  • Compressed, lossless: FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec)

Amazon S3 for archiving data in the cloud

• Orcanode scripts upload data files to Simple Storage Services (S3)
• HLS & FLAC filenames contain datetime
• Data buckets are public and accessible via AWS command line interface

Orcanode Github repository

What's next for Orcasound?

Make “listening for whales” interactive and inform real-time end-users

For free live-listening, browse to: live.orcasound.net

Orcasound 1.0 player published Nov., 2018. Orcasound 2.0 launched fall, 2019.

Version 3.0 now in beta testing includes dynamic map, moderation UI, and new notification features.

Orcasound for characterizing vessel noise

The bad news: Vessel noise dominates in Puget Sound & can mask both calls & clicks

Frequencies of vessel noise overlap with SRKW hearing and signals Veirs, Veirs, & Wood (2016, PeerJ) Typical ship:

Squeaky ship:

Vessel noise mitigation

The good news: there are many ways to "more than mitigate" vessel noise.

Operational (temporary) and technological (permanent) options (see Williams+2019)

The Quiet Sound program will consider these options for Puget Sound commercial ships.

Orcasound's Shipnoise.net project developed a prototype in Dec., 2020, for ranking ships based on how much they raise noise levels above a node's "urban ambient" baseline level.

Broadband received level peaks

Ships and boats have similar maxima, but ships last longer

Validating noise peaks & speed with AIS, cameras, and radar

Slow boats have lower maxima, but usually last longer than fast boats...

Images from the U.Vic./NEMES automated camera at Orcasound Lab. Smooth curve (black) is 1200-second running average broadband dB level. Now also tracking boat type & speed with M2 AIS/radar/camera system./p>

Monitoring ship noise in SRKW habitat

Urban ambient noise level: a baseline for "delta" noise metrics

Maximum received noise level vs duration From ASA 2019 talk by V.Veirs with ref. to Holt et al., 2017, "Noise levels received by endangered killer whales..."

Monitoring aircraft noise in Seattle

Orcasound ambient noise studies

Across Puget Sound, mean noise levels vary seasonally & geographically.

Hourly means (of 2-second samples) at Orcasound Lab vary seasonally during daytime "boating hours" (11 a.m. to sunset)

Spatial varition in annual (2008) mean broadband noise levels.

Source: Beam Reach reports to NOAA (2006-2008)

Zones of bioacoustic impact from noise

Injury (acoustic trauma, or stranding) Deafening (permanent or temporary threshold shift) Behavioral change (can also be due to physical proximity or interference) Masking of signals and cues Stress (e.g. from chronic noise) Audibility

Potential impacts of noise on southern resident killer whales (SRKWs)

Injury (L112? J34?) Stranding (observed in other toothed whales, but not SRKWs) Deafening (permanent or temporary) What explosives were used near SRKWs during the capture era, and previously? Pile driving? MFA sonar: (HMS Ottawa, 2012) Naval detonations: (HMS Ottawa, 2012) Behavioral change (can also be due to physical proximity or interference) Masking of signals and cues (mostly by vessels) Stress (e.g. from chronic noise)

Right whale stress fell after 9/11 decreased ship noise in 2001 (Rolland et al., 2012)