Passive acoustic monitoring as a tool to support Sfenisciformi conservation

Name: Francesca

Surname: Terranova

Tutor (surname): Favaro

The order Sphenisciformes, commonly known as penguins, includes aquatic, flightless birds. Ten out of 18 species of penguins to date are classified as vulnerable or endangered on the IUCN Red List. These species have to face problems mostly linked to human activity: pollution, decreasing of fish stocks, and habitat degradation connected to climate change. In this context it is crucial to study and monitor penguin colonies avoiding animal disturbance. Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM), is a cutting edge monitoring technique to infer information about penguins’ behavior and abundance  through the sounds they emit.

 

The African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) is one of the most endangered species, with a population of 1.5 million pairs in 1900 decreased to 21 000 pairs nowadays.
This project aims to study the conservation status of the African penguin through Passive Acoustic Monitoring.The methodology will include data collection in ex-situ (Zoomarine) and  in-situ african penguin colonies (in South-Africa and Namibia). More specifically, my goal is to develop a PAM tool to estimate: 1) the number of breeding individuals per colony, identifying individually distinctive  calls, 2) The breeding success of the colonies, identifying the number of chicks through their begging calls, 3) the body condition of penguins, linked to the nutritional status.This project will involve collaboration with Zoomarine Roma and SANCCOB (The Southern African Foundation for the Conservation of Coastal Birds).

The results will assist local authorities involved in the conservation of the African penguin in the management of the extant colonies and will open new avenues for developing an acoustic monitoring protocol for the African penguin that can potentially be extended to other species of seabirds.