Over the course of his career, the ecologist and bio-acoustician has made hundreds of thousands of hours of audio recordings of rare and critically en

Artificial intelligence is becoming more important in the fight to save critically endangered marine animals

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2024-09-26 15:30:05

Over the course of his career, the ecologist and bio-acoustician has made hundreds of thousands of hours of audio recordings of rare and critically endangered marine mammals that call that ocean home.

The sounds he records provide crucial clues about the habits and whereabouts of whales, dolphins and seals that are often heard, but rarely seen.

"We generally have one opportunity per year. We get these huge volumes of data coming back from Antarctica," Dr Miller said.

Dr Brian Miller says the technology "allows us to get on with the task" of understanding deep sea creatures and their ecology. (ABC News: Clancy Balen )

The Southern Ocean is a notoriously difficult and expensive place to get to, with safe passage only possible during a short window over the summer months.

When Dr Miller does eventually make it to there, he sends half a dozen recording devices — ex-military hydrophones known as sonobuoys — into the dark, freezing ocean, where they record for a up to a year at a time.