Editorial
The born of a journal is always an opportunity to advancing the scientific knowledge because a journal coagulates ideas and facts. With this in mind, the Journal of Ecoacoustics (Jea) aims to open a new season of theoretical, empirical and applied studies in Ecoacoustics, a very recent ecological discipline that represents the continuation of bioacoustics studies into the ecological realm.
Sounds are important semiotic mechanisms which assure in the most parsimonious way, the exchange of information between organisms and their external world. In particular, inter-individual communication and completion of the environmental perception are the two most important processes in which sounds are utilized by soniferous organisms.
Ecoacoustics may be defined as the investigation of the ecological role/effect of natural and manmade sounds. Ecoacoustics is deep-rooted in biological, anthropological and cognitive domains. Under the ecoacoustic umbrella different theories, topics, methods, techniques, and applications find appropriate conceptual niches.
Recent advancements in ecoacoustics have demonstrated the capacity of this discipline to enounce important theories, to test powerful metrics of sound analysis associated to rigorous statistics, to experiment acoustic sensors and recording digital devices, to design networks of automated acoustic monitoring, and to propose remote sensory methods for data collection in hostile and wild areas (including tropical forests, deserts, deep oceans and arctic regions).
The unprecedented human intrusion in natural systems is producing effects that sensory ecology, in particular acoustic information, perceives in advance before that ecological consequences on population dynamics and community composition become evident and irreversible.
The anticipatory capacity of the ecoacoustics approach due to the plasticity of the acoustic display, represents an extraordinary potentiality for environmental monitoring, saving a strategic time that can be used to adopt efficient policies of environmental protection and to plan remediation actions.
Journal of Ecoacoustics intends to enhance the visibility of the ecoacoustics fields, publishing perspectives, original research, and reviews from terrestrial, aquatic and marine environments. The journal will be a venue for the scientific community to share opinions and data and to develop the ecoacoustics field further.
The development of a common narrative which spans from species conservation to cultural heritage of acoustics sites, until the art inspiration and methods in sonic representation are ambitious objectives that should characterize Journal of Ecoacoustics as a "transcultural" tool, respecting the need of scientific innovation and rigour in ecology. Journal of Ecoacoustics, will guest studies that cover a broad range of topics like:
Theory in ecoacoustics
Terrestrial, aquatic and marine ecoacoustic communities
Invertebrates and vertebrate ecoacoustics
Urban ecoacoustics
Effects of human sonic intrusion
Applied ecoacoustics to land management
Acoustic biodiversity assessment
Climate change and effects on ecoacoustics communities
Soundscape conservation and protection
Acoustic cultural heritage
Ecoacoustics and arts
Ecoacoustics indices/metrics
Methods in passive acoustic recording and monitoring.
The policy of Journal of Ecoacoustics encourages scholars to submit papers assuring a quick revision associated with useful suggestions and comments to improve the manuscripts.
Journal of Ecoacoustics has an international editorial board that guarantees a competent and accurate revision of the submitted papers, confirming a high scientific standard of the accepted papers. When possible Journal of Ecoacoustics offers the opportunity to publish without charges to authors thanks to the generosity of public and private sponsors.
The Editor-in-Chief
