bioacoustics

American  

[bahy-oh-uh-koo-stiks, -uh-kou-] / ˌbaɪ oʊ əˈku stɪks, -əˈkaʊ- /

noun

(used with a singular verb)

1. the science of sounds produced by or affecting living organisms, as for communication or echolocation.

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Other Word Forms

• bioacoustical adjective

Etymology

Origin of bioacoustics

First recorded in 1955–60; bio- + acoustics

Example Sentences

Similar developments have been reported in research on other large carnivores, including spotted hyaenas, and reinforce the expanding value of bioacoustics in ecological science.

From Science Daily • Nov. 22, 2025

We had already used machine intelligence to analyze the codas, recorded using bioacoustics, and determined that both the clicks and the intervals between clicks are important.

From Salon • May 29, 2025

But three strandings close to his lab enabled lead author Coen Elemans, professor of bioacoustics at the University of Southern Denmark, to collect fresh vocal tracts from a recently deceased humpback, minke, and sei whale.

From National Geographic • Feb. 21, 2024

Bennett is working with Laura Kloepper, a bioacoustics expert from the University of New Hampshire, to get a better handle on the population count.

From Seattle Times • May 11, 2023

There is obvious hazard in trying to assign a particular meaning to this special kind of sound, and problems like this exist throughout the field of bioacoustics.

From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas