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The Sound of Water: Why Should We Be Listening in to Wetlands?

Episode:
15
The Sound of Water: Why Should We Be Listening in to Wetlands?

Guests:
Skye Wassens and Mitchell Whitelaw, Sounds of Water Project

Freshwater ecologist Dr. Skye Wassens and design Professor Mitchell Whitelaw share their remarkable Sounds of Water project, which captures and visualises the acoustic life of the Nap Nap swamp wetlands as environmental flows arrive from the Murrumbidgee. From Southern Bell frogs to native animals responding to returning water, the episode makes a compelling case for listening as a powerful way to understand and connect with wetland ecosystems.

Show Notes

In this episode, Siwan chats with freshwater and wildlife ecologist Dr Skye Wassens and Professor of Design Mitchell Whitelaw. Skye and Mitchell share their recent work on the Sounds of Water project, which visualises the different sounds of the Nap Nap swamp wetlands as it receives environmental water flows from the Murrumbidgee River. The work is hoping to immerse listeners in the sounds of the wetlands. Have a listen for yourself to hear the amazing Southern Bell frogs and other native animals responding to water flowing through their habitat at Nap Nap.

Resources:

Dr Skye Wassens is an internationally recognised ecologist, specialising in the ecology and conservation of wetland dependent amphibians. She is an Associate Professor at Charles Sturt University, as well as being a lead scientist for the Murrumbidgee Flow-MER program, which monitors environmental water outcomes for aquatic species in the Murray Darling Basin.
Mitchell Whitelaw is a Professor of design at the Australian National University. His work involves integrating design, culture and data using digital platforms, such as web based visualisations, to communicate a variety of content. Mitchell is passionate about enabling people to connect with nature, and he seeks innovative ways to do this.

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The Sound of Water:
Environmental Flows in Nap Nap Swamp

Nap Nap swamp is on Nari Nari country in south-western New South Wales. Nap nap means “very swampy” in traditional language. It’s one of many Murrumbidgee wetlands that receive environmental flows — water allocated by the Commonwealth to sustain these ecologically important places. Audio recorders let us listen in to life at Nap Nap, and how it responds to these environmental flows. Experience the sound of water HERE.