Soundscapes from a Saltwater Marsh Creek Captured by a Hydrophone Array

A seven-hydrophone array was deployed in a shallow saltwater creek at the University of South Carolina Baruch Marine Field Laboratory in the North Inlet-Winyah Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve near Georgetown, South Carolina, USA, and sounds were recorded for 24 h from June 01 through June 02, 2017, to identify and localize soniferous animals in the water and to serve as a proof of concept for future studies. The array was calibrated by producing sounds at known locations and using triangulation to determine the hydrophone positions. Similarly, the calibrated hydrophone positions were used to determine the positions of soniferous animals from the signal delays between the different hydrophones using triangulation. The locations of three fish, including one that was moving as it vocalized, are shown.