Bioacoustic Monitoring of Mangrove Restoration in the BVI
Coastal restoration ecologist Dr. Gregg Moore (Department of Biological Sciences) and marine acoustician Dr. Michelle Fournet (Department of Biological Sciences/ Center for Acoustics Research and Education) of the at the University of New Hampshire forged an unlikely partnership to advance the study of tropical mangrove recovery in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) this week. Fournet is helping Moore add a critical new perspective to his restoration work in the region – monitoring the soundscape of the waters around mangrove roots. Their question: Can acoustic monitoring detect key benthic organisms that distinguish between damaged systems, recovering systems, and natural healthy systems. The idea builds off Fournet’s work in South Florida (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272771422002062). Over a brief visit in December, the pair visited several mangrove sites and deployed hydrophones that will be recording marine life vocalizing among the tangled roots of the mangrove over the next 5-6 weeks. Their hope is the recorders will capture valuable data that will help their understanding of a more complete assessment of ecological recovery and the associated ecosystem services restored mangroves can provide.
Moore and Fournet are partnering with Susan Zaluski, Head of Marine & Maritime Studies at the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College's Centre for Applied Marine Studies in Tortola. Zaluski has been a champion of mangrove restoration in the BVI since 2017 when back-to-back hurricanes Irma and Maria made devasting landfalls. Moore began working in the region at Zaluski’s request following impactful series of events, providing guidance on planning and implementing a mangrove restoration strategy for the Territory. Building on this work, UNH formed a Memorandum of Agreement to promote exchanges for both research and training collaborations between the two institutions in 2019. 
Their hope is the MOU will continue to create opportunities for students and faculty alike. Towards this goal, Moore recruited a masters’ candidate from the region, Nia Jeffers, who had been the mangrove nursery manager at the College. Jeffers’ thesis research is focused on comparing various techniques to increase mangrove restoration planting success. In addition to benefits for Moore’s ongoing mangrove restoration initiatives in the BVI, the acoustic monitoring expertise Fournet brought the region is expected to be important to student research projects present and future.