Passive acoustic monitoring of the Tasmanian Azure Kingfisher - Preliminary results

Objective: This project aimed to review the spatial distribution of the Tasmanian Azure Kingfisher and initiate a long-term, state-wide monitoring program. The three-year first phase (September 2025–August 2028) will: (i) identify optimal monitoring locations; (ii) evaluate the feasibility and performance of passive acoustic monitoring for this subspecies; and (iii) improve understanding of its ecology, including spatial distribution, calling behaviour, and habitat characteristics and preferences. This work has been funded by project partner organisations and individuals working on the species on a voluntary basis. Progress report: The document presents the preliminary results of the monitoring using data from the 2025-26 surveys. We will add subsequent reports associated with this project. Recogniser: This is a BirdNet Custom Classifier trained with data collected as part of this project, to recognise call from the Tasmanian Azure Kingfisher. We recommend a minimum confidence threshold of 0.98. The recogniser can be used with the BirdNet Analyzer. Current version: v20261016 Please reference this work as: Gros, C., & Ogilvie, J. E. (2026). Passive acoustic monitoring of the Tasmanian Azure Kingfisher - Preliminary results. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23682139 Funding: from the Bob Brown Foundation and Wedgetail Foundation.