Tuesday, 11 November 2025 Strengthening international cooperation: Hosting Dr. Carolline Zatta Fieker at UP FAMNIT

At the end of October, the Department of Biodiversity at UP FAMNIT hosted Dr. Carolline Zatta Fieker, a researcher at the National Institute of Pantanal Research (INPP) and a member of the Computational Bioacoustics Research Unit (Co.BRA), which operates within the Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), Cuiabá, Brazil. The visit took place within the framework of the Erasmus+ program, KA171 scheme, which enables mobility and strengthens cooperation between partner institutions outside the EU.

Dr. Zatta Fieker is a researcher whose work covers ecology, ornithology, fire ecology, and vertebrate bioacoustics. At FAMNIT, she gave two lectures in which she presented contemporary research approaches to the study of biodiversity and her experiences from one of the most biologically diverse areas in the world – the Brazilian Pantanal. Her lectures provided insight into this very different world, including the challenges and interesting aspects faced by researchers in this area.

In the first lecture, entitled Listening to Wildlife: Biodiversity Assessment with Passive Acoustic Monitoring, Dr. Zatta Fieker presented passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) as an innovative tool for biodiversity research. Based on her research in the Pantanal, she presented practical examples of the use of this method and highlighted advances in acoustic technology and analytical approaches. The lecture emphasized the growing importance of bioacoustics in ecology and conservation.

Her second lecture, The Pantanal: Ecological Overview and Wildlife Monitoring Approaches, provided an in-depth presentation of the Pantanal— the world’s largest tropical wetland, renowned for its exceptional biodiversity and seasonal floods that shape local habitats. She introduced participants to the unique features of this ecosystem and the methods essential for studying wildlife in such an environment, including the use of drones, bioacoustics, and camera traps.

Here are some highlights from the lectures, which Dr. Zatta Fieker brought to both students and department staff. We would like to thank the lecturer for a successful event and hope for similar collaborations in the future.