Laura Figueroa Discusses Capabilities of Bioacoustic Technology in Conservation
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What if a tree falls in the woods, and something was always there to hear it? A new conservation initiative in Guatemala's Maya Biosphere Reserve—a protected area spanning 5.3 million acres—is using artificial intelligence to help combat environmental crime. The project deploys bioacoustic monitoring devices that can detect sounds linked to illegal logging, hunting, and other threats, allowing rangers to respond more quickly.
AI models trained to recognize these acoustic signatures continuously "listen" for suspicious activity across the reserve. The effort is supported by the Bezos Earth Fund's $100 million AI for Climate and Nature Grand Challenge, which funds innovative AI-driven solutions to biodiversity loss, climate change, and food insecurity.
Laura Figueroa, an assistant professor in the College of Natural Sciences's Department of Environmental Conservation who uses bioacoustics in her research related to conservation ecology and entomology, spoke with Mongabay about the many minute sounds that bioacoustic technology needs to distinguish in an area such as the Maya Biosphere Reserve:
“We’re talking about areas that have some of the highest levels of biodiversity on the planet, so there’s a lot going on. You have inadvertent sounds that are produced when organisms fly. You have bats trying to echolocate to find their prey. There’s just so much happening both at big scales and with small invertebrates that are also making sounds.”
— Laura Figueroa speaking with Mongabay
Read more in Mongabay.