Bobbi Estabrook

I became interested in bioacoustics as an undergraduate after reading about Katy Payne’s pioneering research on elephant infrasound and learning about the African elephant poaching crisis. That led me to attend the Sound Analysis Workshop hosted in 2007, where my interest in bioacoustics grew. I began working at the K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics in 2008, where I use passive acoustic technology in the context of ecology and conservation. Most of my current research is focused on baleen whale spatiotemporal acoustic occurrence in anthropogenically active marine environments in order to better understand habitat use and inform management decisions. In much of my research, I measure ambient noise levels to characterize noise conditions of marine habitats before, during, and after invasive industrial operations.

Year Hired: 2008

Contact Information
K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
159 Sapsucker Woods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA.
Phone: +1.607.254.1134
Email: bobbi.estabrook@cornell.edu

Degree(s): M.S., Department of Natural Resources, Cornell University, in progress

Organizations: Member of the Society for Marine Mammalogy

Social Media: ResearchGate

Recent Publications

Estabrook, B.J. et al. (2025) ‘Passive acoustic monitoring of baleen whale seasonal presence across the New York Bight’, PLOS ONE, 20(2), p. e0314857. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0314857.

Estabrook, B.J. et al. (2022) ‘Dynamic spatiotemporal acoustic occurrence of North Atlantic right whales in the offshore Rhode Island and Massachusetts Wind Energy Areas’, Endangered Species Research, 49, pp. 115–133. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3354/esr01206.

Shabangu, F.W. et al. (2022) ‘Acoustic detectability of whales amidst underwater noise off the west coast of South Africa’, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 184, p. 114122. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114122.

Morano, J.L. et al. (2020) ‘Seasonal movements of Gulf of Mexico sperm whales following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and the limitations of impact assessments’, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 161(Part A). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111627.