Why in news?
Chhattisgarh’s Forest Department is preparing an acoustic-monitoring project in Bhoramdeo Wildlife Sanctuary. Special recorders will capture bird and other animal sounds across selected forest sites. The department is procuring the devices after receiving project approval. A field survey will decide their final grid and placement.
What the proposed project involves
Forest staff plan to place audio recorders from core areas towards the surrounding buffer landscape. The machines can operate for long periods without a person standing nearby. They store sounds with their recording times. Experts can later compare those sounds with verified calls and field records.
The current report describes an approved project that remains under preparation. It does not say the network is already operational. Device procurement and the site survey must come first. The number of stations will depend upon terrain, habitat coverage and the eventual sampling design.
The work is expected to focus strongly on birds, including species active after dark. Recordings may also capture insects, frogs and vocal mammals. Such detections depend upon call strength, weather and microphone position. A silent animal can remain present without appearing in the acoustic record.
How passive acoustic monitoring works
Passive acoustic monitoring uses fixed microphones to record a surrounding soundscape. A soundscape includes biological calls, weather and human-made noise. Software can scan long recordings for likely patterns. Trained listeners must still verify uncertain or easily confused detections.
This method can sample dawn, dusk and night without repeated human visits. It can also cover several places during the same period. Standard recording schedules make comparisons easier across seasons. Camera traps remain useful because they provide different evidence about animals and movement.
Acoustic data cannot automatically reveal the number of animals present. One bird may call repeatedly, while several birds may remain quiet. Wind, rain and vehicles can hide weaker sounds. Distance from the microphone also changes whether the same call is detected.
Where is Bhoramdeo Wildlife Sanctuary?
Bhoramdeo lies in Bodla tehsil of Kabirdham district in north-western Chhattisgarh. Official records give the protected area as 351.24 square kilometres. Older records may use the district name Kawardha. Kabirdham is the present district name, while Kawardha remains its headquarters.
The sanctuary occupies the Maikal hill landscape near the Madhya Pradesh boundary. Kanha Tiger Reserve lies across that interstate side. Achanakmar Tiger Reserve lies farther east within Chhattisgarh. Forest connections between these protected landscapes support wider animal movement and dispersal.
The official Gazette lists sal, mahua, palas, dhawra and char among major plants. It records leopards, chital, nilgai, barking deer, sloth bears and striped hyenas. Bird records include fish owls, woodpeckers, kingfishers, peafowl and vultures. Ranidarha and Durduri waterfalls add wet features to the forest landscape.
Why the location matters
The Union government notified Bhoramdeo’s eco-sensitive zone in March 2025. It covers 179.317 square kilometres and extends up to 8.3 kilometres. Its width becomes zero beside Kanha on the western and north-western boundary. This reflects direct contact with another protected landscape across Madhya Pradesh.
Recordings may help establish seasonal patterns for species that are rarely seen. They can also record traffic, machinery or other human noise. Repeated data may reveal changes in activity or site use. However, a decline in calls needs field investigation before its cause is assigned.
The project can strengthen an existing checklist if its reference library is reliable. Some species produce several calls, while different species can sound alike. Regional variation further complicates automatic identification. Local naturalists and taxonomic experts should therefore remain part of validation.
Building a dependable monitoring programme
Each station needs documented coordinates, height, direction and recording settings. Teams should also record vegetation, rainfall and nearby disturbance. Consistent procedures allow later comparisons between sites. Calibration checks are necessary because microphones lose sensitivity or fail in humid conditions.
Large audio collections create a demanding data-management task. Files need secure storage, searchable labels and backed-up copies. Automated classifiers can reduce listening time but may produce false matches. Published results should state the error checks and the evidence behind each identification.
Monitoring also needs a clear conservation response. A record is most useful when it informs patrols, habitat repair or research priorities. Sensitive locations should not be disclosed carelessly. Public summaries can share ecological findings without exposing nesting or breeding sites.
Conclusion
Bhoramdeo’s planned recorder network can reveal wildlife that ordinary daytime surveys miss. Its value will depend upon careful placement, calibration and expert verification. Acoustic detections should complement cameras and direct field work. Repeated, transparent surveys can turn forest sounds into dependable evidence for landscape conservation.