How rat poison endangers wildlife, and using sound to track animal populations

Rodenticides are building up inside unintended targets, including birds, mammals, and insects; and bringing bioacoustics and artificial intelligence together for ecology

First up this week, producer Kevin McLean and freelance science journalist Dina Fine Maron discuss the history of rodent control and how rat poisons are making their way into our ecosystem.

Next on the episode, host Sarah Crespi talks with Jeppe Rasmussen, a postdoctoral fellow in the behavior ecology group at the University of Copenhagen, about why researchers are training artificial intelligence to listen for seals, frogs, and whales.

Additional sound in this segment (some played, some mentioned):

·      Monk seal noises care of Jeppe Rasmussen

·      Frog and crickets from Pond5 

·      Lyrebird sounds (Youtube link)

·      Cod fish sounds (Fishbase link)

This week’s episode was produced with help from Podigy.

About the Science Podcast

Authors: Kevin McLean, Sarah Crespi, Dina Fine Maron 

Episode page: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.zq42hy5

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