Listening forward: emerging roles of bioacoustics in ecology, evolution, and conservation

Abstract Bioacoustics is increasingly shifting from a mostly descriptive pursuit to one that can anticipate ecological change. Recent innovations—from autonomous recording units and edge-computing sensors to speech-inspired feature extraction and machine-learning techniques like transfer learning, unsupervised discovery, and explainable AI—are transforming the study of animal communication. These advances let us work at scales previously difficult to imagine. Automated species recognition, individual identification, and even tracking cultural evolution over decades are now within reach. Entire ecosystem soundscapes can be mapped with unprecedented resolution. Looking ahead, global listening networks, adaptive acoustic indices, and live biodiversity dashboards seem increasingly realistic. We may soon build digital models that simulate communication networks under future scenarios. Closer integration with genomics, physiology, and robotics could link vocal traits to their genetic, physiological, and ecological drivers. Challenges remain, including data governance, acoustic privacy, and equitable access to the planet’s sonic heritage. Bioacoustics may be on the way to becoming a predictive, integrative science — one particularly well suited to monitoring, interpreting, and helping safeguard life’s communication systems in a rapidly changing world.