Panama Katydids
Uncovering katydid diversity and behavior on Barro Colorado Island using advanced acoustic monitoring and machine learning to reveal their hidden role in tropical ecosystems.
Katydid biodiversity is exceptionally high on Barro Colorado Island, a Smithsonian-run research station located on an island in the Panama Canal. Katydids also happen to be tough to observe through traditional methods due to their cryptic and nocturnal nature.
Because they produce sound, we can use passive acoustic monitoring as well as focal recordings in the field and audio and movement monitoring in our “24-hour studio” to better understand katydid behavior and communication. Machine learning helps us turn those individual species recordings into tools for finding the same species in recordings of the entire environment.
A few interesting findings:
- Over 80 katydid species were found on the island
- Katydids in the tropics sing very briefly to avoid predation, calling frequently but in extremely short bursts—amounting to just a few seconds of sound per night!
- Some species use vibratory signals to avoid detection by predators
Katydids and other insects are a key middle link in the tropical food chain, and this project contributes to understanding insect decline and its cascading effects on tropical ecosystems.
Read more about how we’re using AI with this multi-year dataset here.