Application of automatic recorder and sound analysis in surveying the presence and distribution of targeted bird species in ngoc linh nature reserve quang nam province

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would like to express my gratitude to Assoc., Prof., Dr.Vu Tien Thinh, my research supervisor, without his supports, encouragements and patient guidance, I would not have been able to complete my thesis on time for graduation I am so grateful to Prof., Lee Macdonald for his enthusiastic guidance to help us acquire initial knowledge about how to write a thesis proposal I would like to extend my thanks to Ms Nguyen Thi Hoa and Mr Tran Van Dung, members of the Department of Wildlife in Vietnam National University of Forestry for guiding me to apply RAVEN software on process of analyzing data There are no words to show my appreciation to them for assisting and helping me during the period of two months when I did my research in the office of the Department of Wildlife I desire to show how grateful I am to our teacher, Ph.D., Stephen J Leisz, a teacher from Colorado State University for helping me to improve my writing skills Last but not least, there are no words to show my appreciation to my friends and family for always getting ready to help me during the entire process of doing research and going field works ABSTRACT For monitoring and protecting endangered species, it is necessary to figure out accurate information on their presence and the habitats where they live While traditional survey method faces a number of difficulties during surveying, using automatic recorders in researching offer significant promise for detecting bird species In this study I examined the utility of automatic recorders and the associated classification software (RAVEN software) as a way to survey for wildlife, using 21 targeted bird species, divided into orders and families as examples The survey was conducted at 11 study sites which belong to three communes in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam province from 4th to 23th of June, 2016 After data analyzing process, there are bird species, divided into orders and families in total of 21 targeted bird species in four different habitat types in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam However, the frequency of presence among them is not the same While some birds appear many times in a recording and various recordings, the others only appear a few times in all recordings There are differences among the active time during surveying time (3.00-9.00 AM) of detected bird species Some species often sing or call in the morning The other detected birds usually vocalize at dawn After surveying, almost detected birds live in Tra Tap commune and a small number of them live in Tra Linh and Tra Leng commune In addition, Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest contributes the highest percentage of detected birds in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve By contrast, Secondary Vegetation makes up the smallest proportion of those TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ABSTRACT TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES CHAPTER INTRODUCTION CHAPTER STUDY GOAL AND OBJECTIVE 2.1 Goal 2.2 Objectives CHAPTER STUDY SITES AND METHODOLOGY 3.1 Selection of study site 3.1.1 Ngoc Linh Natural Reserve 3.1.2 The division of habitat types in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve to place automatic recorders in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 10 3.2 Research methodology 17 3.2.1 Field survey 17 3.2.2 Extracting data from recorders 20 3.3 Data analysis method 25 3.3.1 Determining the composition of detected bird species 25 3.3.2 Determining the distribution of detected bird species 25 CHAPTER RESULT 27 4.1 Sounds of targeted bird species 27 4.2 Presence of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 29 4.3 The distribution of detected bird species 31 4.3.1 Spatial distribution 31 4.3.2 Distribution in relation to habitat 32 CHAPTER DISCUSSION 34 5.1 The presence of birds in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam province and the detection from automated recorder 34 5.2 Factors affect the distribution of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province 35 5.2.1 Factors affect spatial distribution of targeted bird species 35 5.2.2 Factors affect the distribution of targeted bird species in four different habitats 35 CHAPTER CONCLUSION 39 REFERENCES APENDIX LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1 Meteorological data from weather station in Tra My district Table 3.2 Plants found in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Table 3.3 Vertebrate species recorded in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve Table 3.4 Composition of saplings in High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest 11 Table 3.6 List of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 21 Table 3.7 Data sheet is used to collect information in each study site 25 Table 3.8 The list of detected bird species by using automatic recorders 25 Table 3.9 Bird distribution in different habitats in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 26 Table 4.1 The comparison between the sonogram of detected birds and the sonogram of sample targeted birds 27 Table 4.2 The active time during surveying time (3.00-9.00 AM) of each detected bird species 29 Table 4.3 List of detected bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 30 Table 4.4 Distribution of detected birds in different communes in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 31 Table 4.4.The distribution of detected bird species in different habitats in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 33 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 3.1 Map of Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve Figure 3.2 High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 12 Figure 3.3.Canopy Cover at 1,400 m 13 Figrure 3.4 Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 14 Figure 3.5 Canopy Cover at 900 m 15 Figure 3.6 Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 16 Figure 3.7 Secondary Vegetation in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 17 Figure 3.8 An automatic recorder was attached to a tree in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 18 Figure 3.9 Map of study sites in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 20 Figure 3.10 Spectrogram (frequency vs time) displays of two broad categories of discrete sound unit shapes 21 Figure 3.11 RAVEN software 23 Figure 3.12 Low quality recording 23 Figure 3.13 The process of converting spectrogram’s frequency by Audacity software 24 Figure 3.14 Spectrogram Correlation process 24 Figure 4.1 Spatial distribution map of detected birds in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 32 CHAPTER INTRODUCTION Bird (Aves) is a group of endothermic vertebrates, characterized by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a lightweight but strong skeleton Their bodies are covered with feathers and they have wings Feathers have three functions: flight, temperature regulation and display There are about 9,000 different species of birds, divided into 24 orders and 146 families, making them become the most diverse class of endothermic vertebrates which includes mammal and bird Vietnam is one of the countries which have the rich bird diversity in the world They are easy to observe and identify because most species are active in the daytime The avifauna of Vietnam includes a total of 848 species, of which 12 species are endemic : Annam partridge (Arborophila merlini), Chestnut-eared laughingthrush (Garrulax Konkakinhensis), Collared laughingthrush (Garrulax yersin), Edwards’ pheasant (Lophura Edwardsi), Golden-winged laughingthrush (Garrulax ngoclinhensis), Grey-crowned crocias (Crocias Langbianis), Orange-breasted laughingthrush (Garrulax annamensis), Pale-throated wren-babbler (Spelaeornis Kinneari), White-throated wren-babbler (Rimator pasquieri), Vietnamese Greenfinch (Carduelis monguilloti), Vietnamese Cutia (Cutia legallen), Black-crowned Fulvetta (Alcippe klossi) and species are rare or accidental Of those, there are 43 species are globally threatened (birdlist.org) Currently, in Vietnam, there are many national parks and Biosphere Reserves with diverse bird species Ngoc Linh (Quang Nam) Nature Reserve is located in Tra Leng, Tra Don, Tra Tap, Tra Cang and Tra Linh communes, Nam Tra My district, Quang Nam province Ngoc Linh (Quang Nam) Nature Reserve is situated on the eastern side of Mount Ngoc Linh, the western face of which is included within Ngoc Linh (Kon Tum) Nature Reserve, Kon Tum province (Tordoff et al, 2000) Ngoc Linh (Quang Nam) Nature Reserve supports high levels of endemism in plants and animals The Nature Reserve supports populations of several plant species that are endemic to Vietnam, including Pinus dalatensis and Panax vietnamensis Also, Ngoc Linh (Quang Nam) supports a population of the recently discovered, endemic mammal species, Annamite Muntjac (Muntiacus truongsonensis) Furthermore, the nature reserve supports one bird species, Golden-winged Laughingthrush (Garrulax ngoclinhensis), whose known global range is restricted to the central Annamites Due to the presence of Golden-winged Laughingthrush and three other restricted-range bird species, Ngoc Linh (Quang Nam) Nature Reserve qualifies for inclusion in the Kon Tum Plateau Endemic Bird Area (EBA), the most recently discovered of Vietnam's four EBAs (Tordoff et al, 2000) In addition, together with parts of the contiguous Ngoc Linh (Kon Tum) Nature Reserve, the site qualifies as an important Bird Area (Tordoff et al, 2002) Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve has recorded 194 bird species belonging to 33 families of 11 sets; including 10 species in Red book Vietnam; species in IUCN; 09 species in Decree 32 In Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam province, there are many studies on bird species which were conducted, such as Tordoff et al, (2000); Tordoff et al, (2002); Le Trong Trai, (1999) etc However, most of the surveys were conducted more than a decade ago Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve is facing many difficulties in monitoring its diversity It covers a large area and contains a variety of high mountains Besides, surveying on bird species by the traditional methods may lead to a range of limitations and often not give accurate information, resulting in numerous difficulties for conservation Some methods can hurt the bird Besides, the investors could have trouble if they research in bad weather conditions or in the night The management of endangered bird species requires detailed information on the distribution and abundance of the species that is often hard to obtain When bird species communicate by using sounds, one option is to use automatic sound recorders to take information on the species for long periods of time with low effort Using automatic recorder and sound analysis is a new method in surveying presence of birds Autonomous acoustic recorders are widely available and can provide a highly efficient method of species monitoring, especially when coupled with software to automate data processing Automated examination of acoustic recordings with a field listening survey, using commercially-available autonomous recorders and custom call detection and classification software (Andrew et al, 2013) This method was used in many researches on bird in many other different countries However, it is not a common method in Vietnam Facing this reality, with the desire to have more accurate information in terms of presence and distribution of some birds in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, I decided to conduct the study: “Application of automatic recorder and sound analysis in surveying the presence and distribution of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam province” CHAPTER STUDY GOAL AND OBJECTIVE 2.1 Goal Applying automatic recorder and sound analysis method in surveying birds, providing information for the study and protection of bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province 2.2 Objectives Determining the presence of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province Determining the distribution of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province 4.3 The distribution of detected bird species 4.3.1 Spatial distribution We have a table showing the distribution of detected birds in three communes in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve: Table 4.4 Distribution of detected birds in different communes in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve Communes in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve No Species name Tra Tap Crested Argus x Mountain Scops Owl x Collared owlet x Red-headed trogon x Mountain Fulvetta x Buff-breasted Babbler x Golden babbler x Golden-breasted fullvetta x Pin-striped tit-babbler Tra Linh Tra Leng x x x x x x The table illustrates that the number of bird species in Tra Tap commune makes up the largest percentage (8 species) in total number of detected bird species in Ngoc Linh nature reserve Meanwhile, the figures of those in Tra Linh and Tra Leng commune contribute a small proportion with three species in each commune 31 Tra Leng Tra Tap Tra Linh Figure 4.1 Spatial distribution map of detected birds in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 4.3.2 Distribution in relation to habitat In order to exist and grow up, the bird species need a range of basic natural conditions such as food sources, water sources, shelters and safety etc Different species of bird suit different types of natural habitat Although there is much overlap in the resources that different habitats provide (e.g insect food), some habitats are rich in certain resources The process of natural selection removes these species which not adapt with a particular habitat Adaptation to the environment is demonstrated by the distribution of them on the different types of habitat Therefore, the research in this aspect is essential for the protection of the habitats where many bird species come for food and living 32 Table 4.4.The distribution of detected bird species in different habitats in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve No Species Habitat types High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest x x x x Crested Argus Mountain Scops Owl Collared owlet x Red-headed trogon x x Mountain Fulvetta x x Buff-breasted Babbler x x Golden babbler x x Goldenbreasted fullvetta Pin-striped titbabbler x x Secondary Vegetation x x x x The table illustrates the distribution of bird in different habitat in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve We can see that there are a large percentage of birds which are capable of living in two separate habitats such as Crested Argus, Red-headed trogon, Mountain Fulvetta, Buffbreasted Babbler and Pin-striped tit-babbler Noticeably, Golden babbler is able to live in three types of forest; even Mountain Scops Owl may live in all four habitats in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 33 CHAPTER DISCUSSION 5.1 The presence of birds in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam province and the detection from automated recorder One of the possible reasons for high detection of 10 species could be that these birds has loud vocalization which can be heard from a long distance such as Crested Argus, Mountain Scops Owl, Collared owlet, Red-headed trogon Interestingly, Pin-striped titbabbler has not only loud vocalization but also high density in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve It is more feasible to detect them in this area Therefore, it is clear that the distance from where the birds vocalize to the automatic recorders and bird density play important roles in the bird detection There are 11 species, families that are not recorded and detected by Raven software There are some reasons leading to this result Their bird songs might be recorded in the low quality of recording that RAVEN software could not have adequate features of sound to detect Another reason is their absence in this time It is not the right time for them to sing or to call because of short recording period (19 days) Additionally, they may not live closely to the sites that I placed the automatic recorders or they not live in the study sites at all The differences of active time during the surveying time among detected birds are because of their behaviors For example, most Owls are active at dawn, spending the daytime at a quiet, inconspicuous roost Crested Argus has similar behaviors like other pheasant such as finding food on the ground during the daytime and sleeping on high branches at nighttime Using automatic recorders can be considered an effective survey method for a wide range of reasons The primary reason is that it is suitable for surveying bird species that not vocalize regularly Another clear reason is that surveying with automatic recorders causes less human disturbance than traditional surveys Therefore, it is more feasible to survey birds naturally In addition, they can be beneficial when surveys are carried out in untouched areas which are difficult to access It is just required to deploy and pick up the recorders or replacing the batteries several times Besides, it is not necessary for specialist surveyors to 34 deploy or retrieve the recorders We just took the staffs in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve and local people advice to deploy the recorders at a given location without any detailed knowledge of the targeted species Data could be analyzed more easily for species where a recognizer has been built if vocalizations of these species are not so complex Another benefit is that by using automatic recorder for surveying birds, the cost of surveying can be reduced This method is less time-consuming and requires lower effort For instance, a traditional field survey for bird in one site by using field surveyors would carry out from 3.00 to 9.00 AM and would require hours each day In contrast, it is just required two visits during the time survey: one visit to deploy the devices, another visit to collect the devices by using automated recorders – which just take two hours The process of analyzing data is estimated about 1.5 hours per device each day Therefore, by our theoretical example above, a saving of 2.5 hours work would be made using automatic recorders, which saves roughly 42 % of time 5.2 Factors affect the distribution of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province 5.2.1 Factors affect spatial distribution of targeted bird species While the number of bird species in Tra Tap commune contributes the largest proportion (8 species), the figures of those in Tra Linh and Tra Leng commune have a small proportion with three species in each commune This can be explained that the number of recorders put in each commune in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve is different, impacting on the result of spatial distribution of targeted bird species There are six automatic recorders put in Tra Tap commune, whereas in Tra Linh commune has three recorders and the number of those in Tra Leng commune is two 5.2.2 Factors affect the distribution of targeted bird species in four different habitats The reasons why the group of bird species that is considered the most typical and common species for a habitat, also may be found in other habitats at a certain moment are various This is likely to be caused by the frequent and continuous movement of bird species 35 in the process of feeding, nesting, mating, resting In addition, the habitats generally close to each other, therefore it is easy to explain that a bird species can appear in the different habitats According to the survey, the distribution of targeted bird species which were detected in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province depends on a range of factors including food resources, shelters, temperature, moisture and level of influence of human in a particular habitat Firstly, the higher elevation is, the smaller the number of bird species are The habitats that have low temperatures can adversely affect the process of metabolism and energy exchange in the body of birds So, almost bird species not choose to live there Secondly, after comparing the diversity of the flora and the variety of birds, it can be seen that they are proportional to each other It means the more diverse the flora in one habitat type is, the higher value of diversity the bird composition has Particularly, Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest has the highest diversity of plant species, so the diversity of species composition of this habitat is also the greatest (8 species and families) Secondary Vegetation habitat has the smallest diversity in terms of flora and bird composition (one species and one family) The specific explanation in each habitat will be described below: 5.2.2.1 High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest By using RAVEN software, there are three species (accounting for 33.3%), divided into two families (accounting for 40.0%) which are detected in this habitat They are Mountain Scops Owl in the family Strigidae, Golden babbler and Pin-striped tit-babbler in the family Timaliidae It is obvious that in this type of forest, the number of bird species and families is relatively small which is one-third as many as these of Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest However, the percentage of bird composition in High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest is higher than that of Secondary Vegetation These features may be explained by some clear reasons The primary reason is that this habitat distributed at a high elevation (above 1,700m ASL) Meanwhile, bird is an endotherm or "warm-blooded" species which maintains its body at a metabolically favorable 36 temperature Almost birds are usually not suitable to live in places where the temperature is too low This can adversely affect to the metabolism of material and energy of them Another clear reason is that the flora in this type of habitat is not too diverse; just consist of few broadleaf trees and conifers, resulting in a decrease in the amount of food resource and shelters for birds Additionally, trees in this forest type exhibit stunted and xerophytic morphology due to strong winds, low nutrient availability and periods of drought It impacts negatively on birdlife 5.2.2.2 Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest This type of forest has the largest amount of bird species with species (accounting for 88.9%) divided into families (accounting for 100%) in total bird species that were detected The numerous species consist of Crested Argus, Mountain Scops Owl, Collared owlet, Red-headed trogon, Mountain Fulvetta, Buff-breasted Babbler, Golden babbler and Pin-striped tit-babbler Compared to the other habitats, it is an ideal place for bird species to find food source and build their nests by some following benefits: Firstly, Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest is the richest forest habitat in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, which has bushy canopy cover and a complicated forest structure with the richness in the composition of flora species Secondly, this forest type is distributed far from habitation leading to low levels of disturbance with human impact limited to hunting and non-timber forest product collection Moreover, the temperature at the elevation in this habitat is likely to be more stable and suitable to almost bird species to live than that of High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest 5.2.2.3 Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest Following Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest, Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest habitat makes up a significant percentage in the total number of bird species with species (accounting for 77.8%) divided into families (100.0%) These data are twice as many as those of High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest 37 Although local people are generally live near this type of forest, leading to a large forest area have been cut and cleared for cultivation Meanwhile, rich forest still remains with a large area which encourages birds come there to live and build the nest It should be acknowledged that birds meet their needs in this habitat because plant species in Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest are relatively diverse, consisting of a variety of different families Noticeably, the value of its canopy cover even is higher than that of Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest with approximately 85% Besides, the temperature at this elevation is relatively warm, fits a variety of birds well Because of the beneficial conditions above, almost bird species which are detected during the survey live in this habitat, such as Crested Argus, Mountain Scops Owl, Redheaded trogon, Mountain Fulvetta, Buff-breasted Babbler, Golden babbler, Golden-breasted fullvetta Therefore, local government should enhance effective solutions to expand and protect the area of Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest 5.2.2.4 Secondary Vegetation This habitat makes up the smallest proportion of the number of bird species with one species (accounting for 11.1%) and one family (accounting for 20.0%) The only one bird species is found in this type of forest is Mountain Scops Owl in the family Strigidae This bird is also relatively prevalent in other habitats The reasons for the status above are relatively apparent Local famers rotational swidden cultivation, giving rise to a significant area of secondary vegetation in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve Therefore, it is undeniable that this action destroyed seriously the bird habitats Although this area contains scrub and scattered broadleaf trees However, in some places where soil fertility has been relatively depleted due to over-exploitation or repeated burning, the areas of grassland have become smaller The habitat of birds is increasingly narrow It is obvious that this area is not an ideal place for bird to live and build their nest because it suffers the serious influences from local people 38 CHAPTER CONCLUSION By using automatic recorder and RAVEN software to detect birds, of 21 target bird species we detected the sound of species including Mountain Scops Owl, Collared owlet, Crested Argus, Red-headed trogon, Golden babbler, Mountain Fulvetta, Buff-breasted Babbler, Golden-breasted fullvetta and Striped Tit-Babbler Their frequency of occurrence of bird varies among species Some birds appear many times in one and many recordings such as Mountain Scops Owl, Collared owlet, Crested Argus, Red-headed trogon and Golden babbler Meanwhile, the rest only appears a few times in all recordings The active time during surveying time (3.00-9.00 AM) of detected bird species is different Some species usually call or sing in the morning including Mountain Scops Owl, Collared owlet, Red-headed trogon, Mountain Fulvetta, Buff-breasted Babbler, Goldenbreasted fullvetta and Pin-striped tit-babbler Besides, the rest such as Golden babbler and Crested Argus which have different behaviors in terms of vocalization’s time, sing or call in the morning While the number of bird species in Tra Tap commune makes up the largest percentage (8 species) in total number of detected bird species, the number of those in Tra Linh and Tra Leng commune contributes a small proportion with three species in each commune While the percentage of bird species and families which are detected in Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen is the highest in four types of forest, Secondary Vegetation contributes the smallest proportion of these Following this, the second and third ranked diversity of bird composition are Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest and High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest 39 REFERENCES Tordoff, A W., Tran Hieu Minh and Tran Quang Ngoc, 2000, “A feasibility study for the establishment of Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam province, Vietnam” Hanoi: BirdLife International Vietnam Programme and the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute In Vietnamese Tordoff, A W ed., 2002, “Directory of important bird areas in Vietnam: key sites for conservation” Hanoi: BirdLife International in Indochina and the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources Andrew et al, 2013, “A practical comparison of manual and autonomous methods for acoustic monitoring” Keith, “Acoustic surveys of birds using electronic recordings: new potential from an omnidirectional microphone system” Mieke C Zwart et al, 2014, "The Use of Automated Bioacoustic Recorders to Replace Human-Wildlife Surveys: An Example Using Nightjars" Brandes, 2008, “Automated sound recording and analysis techniques for bird surveys and conservation” Bird Conservation International Acedevo et al, 2009, “Automated classification of bird and amphibian calls using machine learning: a comparison of methods” Ecological Informatics Bardeli, 2010, “Detecting bird sounds in a complex acoustic environment and application to bioacoustics monitoring” Pattern Recognition Letters Charif et al, 2010, “Raven Pro 1.4 user's manual” The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA 10.Celis-Murillo et al, 2009, “Using soundscape recordings to estimate bird species abundance, richness, and composition” Journal of Field Ornithology 11 Swiston, 2009, “Comparison of manual and automated methods for identifying target sounds in audio recordings of pileated, pale-billed, and putative ivory-billed woodpeckers” Journal of Field Ornithology 40 12 Waddle et al, 2009,“Ecacy of automatic vocalization recognition software for anuran monitoring” Herpetological Conservation and Biology 13 http://birdlist.org/vietnam.htm 14 http://www.iucnredlist.org/ 41 APENDIX Data in study sites is described in the following tables: Table Bird song detected in site in village 4, Tra Leng commune No Species name Golden babbler Mountain Scops Owl Crested Argus Day Time of detection 23/6/2016 05:03:51 - 05:04:13 23/6/2016 5:24:41 - 05:24:51 23/6/2016 06:00:13 - 06:00:19 23/6/2016 05:07:13 - 05:07:16 23/6/2016 07:21:07 - 07:21:10 23/6/2016 05:16:30 - 05:16:32 23/6/2016 07:21:40 - 07:21:42 Table Bird song detected in site in village 4, Tra Leng commune No Species name Day Time of detection Mountain Scops Owl 23/6/2016 03:02:05 - 03:02:07 Table Bird song detected in site in Village 4, Tra Linh commune No Species name Day Time of detection Mountain Scops Owl 15/6/2016 03:05:03 - 03:26:53 15/6/2016 03:05:03 - 03:26:53 15/6/2016 05:00:54-05:00:57 15/6/2016 07:04:50 - 07:29:20 16/6/2016 03:30:25 - 03:35:09 16/6/2016 03:03:03 - 03:03:09 16/6/2016 04:00:10 - 04:30:00 15/6/2016 06:30:16 - 06:33:11 16/6/2016 05:24:58 - 05:25:01 15/6/2016 05:15:29 - 05:15:50 Pin-striped tit-babbler Golden babbler 42 Table Bird song detected in site in Tra Tap commune No Species name Day Time of detection Buff-breasted Babbler 5/6/2016 06:46:51 - 06:46:57 Mountain Fulvetta 5/6/2016 06:43:06 - 06:43:08 Red-headed trogon 5/6/2016 07:30:04 - 07:32:19 Table Bird song detected in Village 4, Tra Tap commune No Species name Day Time of detection Collared owlet 19/6/2016 04:47:14 - 04:47:17 19/6/2016 06:17:05 - 06:20:27 19/6/2016 06:57:29 - 06:57:31 Red-headed trogon 19/6/2016 05:47:35 - 05:47:38 Mountain Fulvetta 19/6/2016 06:11:10 - 06:11:15 Buff-breasted Babbler 19/6/2016 07:05:21 - 07:05:25 Mountain Scops Owl 19/6/2016 04:18:32 - 04:18:34 Table Bird song detected in site in Village 4, Tra Tap commune No Species name Day Time of detection Golden babbler 5/6/2016 05:15:58 - 05:15:59 Mountain Scops Owl 5/6/2016 03:34:23 - 03:34:25 5/6/2016 04:32:18 - 04:31:39 5/6/2016 05:36:20 - 05:36:24 5/6/2016 05:36:30 - 05:36:32 5/6/2016 07:10:29 - 7:25:13 5/6/2016 07:34:20 - 07:42:07 5/6/2016 08:43:49 - 08:43:51 Red-headed trogon Crested Argus Mountain Fulvetta 5/6/2016 06:02:54 - 06:02:58 Buff-breasted Babbler 5/6/2016 06:46:42 - 06:46:47 07:10:29 - 07:11:05 Golden-breasted Fulvetta 5/6/2016 43 06:02:54 - 06:02:58 Table Bird song detected in site in Village 2, Tra Tap commune No Species name Day Time of detection Collared owlet 19/6/2016 04:50:26 - 04:50:32 19/6/2016 06:20:10 - 06:20:16 20/6/2016 04:42:46 - 04:42:52 20/6/2016 04:50:49 - 04:50:59 19/6/2016 03:28:12 - 03:28:46 20/6/2016 05:24:21 - 05:24:27 Mountain Scops Owl Table Bird song detected in site 10 in Village 4, Tra Tap commune No Species name Day Time of detection Mountain Scops Owl 5/6/2016 03:52:19 - 03:52:31 5/6/2016 04:01:04 - 04:30:04 5/6/2016 06:00:04 - 06:18:22 5/6/2016 06:32:26 - 06:3230 5/6/2016 07:03:22 - 07:03:24 5/6/2016 07:33:19 - 07:03:21 5/6/2016 08:03:62 - 08:04:04 5/6/2016 08:32:08-08:32:10 Crested Argus Table Bird song detected in site 11 in village 2, Tra Tap commune No Species name Day Time of detection Golden babbler 19/6/2016 05:17:15 - 05:29:53 19/6/2016 06:55:59 - 06:59:54 19/6/2016 04:00:04 - 07:04:26 19/6/2016 08:18:38 - 08:28:29 19/6/2016 06:06:44 - 06:06:46 Crested Argus 44 Some pictures from our field survey: Figure Automatic recorders were attracted to the trees in in Medium to High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve Figure High Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve Figure Automatic recorders were attached to the trees in Low Montane Broadleaf Evergreen Forest in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve 45 ... Determining the presence of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province Determining the distribution of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province. .. ? ?Application of automatic recorder and sound analysis in surveying the presence and distribution of targeted bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam province? ?? CHAPTER STUDY GOAL AND. .. Goal Applying automatic recorder and sound analysis method in surveying birds, providing information for the study and protection of bird species in Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, Quang Nam Province 2.2