Date: 11/4/24 11:25 am From: Glenn Etter <glennetterjr...> Subject: Re: [VTBIRD] Terra Tracking stations
Wow, thanks to both of you for these detailed descriptions! I think this
might be something that many schools would be interested in purchasing, if
budget allowed. Well, I hope so! It would be great for place-based learning
in middle and high schools, and probably even in elementary schools -
students would get a much better sense of the wildlife visitors around
their place of learning, and they might also start to look more closely for
the same visitors around their homes.
On Mon, Nov 4, 2024 at 12:50 PM Lewis Grove <zugunlew...> wrote:
> Hi Ruth and all,
>
> I purchased a Terra unit on release day a few weeks back and have been
> running it in my yard in Waterbury since then. The automatic ID feature is
> roughly equivalent to Merlin; it makes some mistakes, but it also does well
> to alert me to potential rarer or less-conspicuous visitors to the yard
> that I had not yet noticed. I generally work from home and have enjoyed
> piping the audio through my speakers or headphones to listen to my yard
> during the day. My understanding is that Terra's plan is to eventually
> incorporate Benjamin Van Doren's automated Nighthawk algorithm too, for
> automated nocturnal flight call ID (no more sorting through detections!).
> The units are also built with stereo mics so they can roughly
> identify individuals spatially; the long-term dream is to be able to
> conduct simultaneous, robust point counts across huge geographic areas, all
> at the push of a button.
>
> As noted, the units also include the ability to detect organisms carrying
> certain kinds of transmitter tags, meaning that you can significantly
> contribute to wildlife research by adding a backyard Terra. These generally
> work on the Motus network (https://motus.org/); even just the pre-orders
> for Terras are expected to have roughly doubled the size of the Motus
> network in the US overnight! You can also buy stronger antennas which
> expand the range of detection for tags. The Motus network has
> revolutionized the study of migratory birds; the audio features of Terra
> are fantastic, but I'm most excited that I can contribute to high-level,
> globally important bird conservation datasets from my own backyard.
>
> One slight caveat is that Terra is an offshoot of Cellular Tracking
> Technology (CTT), so the units only work with CTT tags (though this is an
> awful lot of the tags out there). As noted, CTT's tags have even recently
> been deployed on monarch butterflies (the tags are about 0.050 grams!).
> Project Monarch is still in its infancy (
> https://www.capemaypointsciencecenter.org/project-monarch), but eventually
> the tags and Terras could help us unlock longtime mysteries around insect
> and bat migrations.
>
> In short, if it was not clear, I can't recommend Terras enough! (As this is
> a glowing review of a commercial product on a listserv, I will just also
> say that I have no financial stake in the company whatsoever.)
>
> Good birding,
> Lewis Grove
> Waterbury
>
> On Sat, Nov 2, 2024 at 2:36 PM R Stewart <2cnewbirds...> wrote:
>
> > Do you know about this tracking technology?
> >
> > When attending the recent Cape May Birding Festival, we were introduced
> to
> > the product of a local Cape May company, the Terra (sound) tracking
> > system. It has the ability to recognize sounds going over/near its
> > location... birds, animals, insects... and even tagged butterflies using
> > radio transmissions. The database of sounds is their own collection, not
> > those at McCaulay Lib at Cornell.
> > The AI programming has the ability to record and archive an unfamiliar
> > sound and wait for more of the same sound and ID it later.
> >
> > Here's a link to the work that is going on in this company. The terra
> > stations are being sold through NJ Audubon. At the Festival, I was told
> > there are 3-5 'listeners' in VT. (Not me, yet). Know what's happening
> in
> > the skies without freezing or roasting or being attached by insects....
> 😊
> >
> > https://www.terralistens.com/ > >
> > https://featheredgeoptics.org/terra-station/ > >
> >
> > --
> > Ruth Stewart
> > E. Dorset VT
> >
>
