Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2017, Volume 38
Kathleen A. Nolan, Kristy Biolsi, & Allen J. Burdowski
Abstract
Participants in this workshop recorded vocalizations of sea lions, birds, and other animals at the Houston Zoo. Audacity, a free downloadable software, was used to record and analyze these vocalizations. We recorded animals of interest and then returned to a computer lab to analyze the data. The Audacity files were opened and the sound tracings converted to spectrograms. Minimum and maximum frequencies were recorded. Patterns in the vocalizations such as growls, trills, or repetitions such as barks, or pecking noises of a woodpecker were discussed. An additional program, Praat, (free downloadable program) was used to fine-tune data from recordings and assist in presentations. This very interactive exercise engages students in the study of animals with a wide-range of implications, including behavior and conservation. In addition to the in-situ work, we used the Cornell Macaulay Sound Library. Students might directly record (and then analyze) sounds from this and other libraries.
