A collaboration which will see advanced listening devices installed on ten farms across Cumbria and beyond to record the dawn chorus has been agreed.
Carbon Calling, an event championing regenerative farming, has announced a partnership with Chirrup.ai, a nature-tech company helping land managers track biodiversity through birdsong.
The collaboration will see monitoring devices trialled on ten farms to bring valuable insights into the health and biodiversity of farming landscapes.
Chirrup.ai uses smart listening technology combined with ecological expertise to monitor and suggest ways to improve biodiversity.
By identifying bird species and ecological soundscapes the hope is land managers will be able to make decisions that benefit both nature and farming.
The devices will be recording the dawn chorus daily for just over two weeks with the information interpreted by a programme to identify what farmland indicator species are present on each farm.
The data collected can be used for baselining, benchmarking and monitoring trends in species richness over time.
“We’re really excited about this partnership, Chirrup is exactly the kind of technology that will resonate with the farmers at Carbon Calling,” Liz Genever, co-founder of Carbon Calling, said: “It’s accessible, evidence-based and focused on delivering real ecological improvements on the ground.”
The devices will be on farms for two weeks in May and June, then Chirrup.ai will collate and process the data, benchmarking each farm against each other and others in their European database, giving valuable insights into each farm’s ecological footing.
“We’re thrilled to be collaborating with Carbon Calling this year, demonstrating the positive effects on nature that farms can achieve, and supporting farmers who are taking steps to enhance biodiversity,” Mhairi Cameron, research and development coordinator at Chirrup.ai, said.
The trial’s findings will be showcased at the forthcoming Carbon Calling Conference taking place near Penrith from 24th–26th June which brings together farmers, scientists and land managers to explore and share ideas around regenerative agriculture, soil health, and environmental resilience.
