The article highlights the Soil Acoustic Meter (SAM), an innovative hand-held device launched under our sister company, Soil Acoustics Ltd., uses ecoacoustics to assess soil health and biological activity by recording the sounds of invertebrates in the topsoil.
The SAM records three-minute audio samples of soil invertebrate activity. These sounds are then analysed using automated algorithms to produce a Soil Acoustic Quality Index (SAQI) score, benchmarked against a comparative database of over 3,000 soil samples. With an integrated GPS chip, SAM tags each recording with its location, enabling tailored soil monitoring protocols.
This method offers a much quicker, less invasive alternative to traditional worm pit methodologies, allowing users to measure the impact of soil treatments, compare farming practices and link biological activity to increased yields. Simply put, healthy soils are noisy soils.
Following a fantastic response at Groundswell and CropTec, we’ve introduced a Kickstarter campaign to bring SAM to market by summer 2025. Farmers and consultants who pre-order through the Kickstarter will receive unlimited data uploads and reporting for 12 months, with multi-buy discounts available for agronomists.
Our latest feature in CPM Magazine underscores the potential of soil acoustics to transform how we monitor and manage soil biodiversity, supporting sustainable practices that benefit both productivity and ecosystem resilience.
Read the latest issue of CPM Magazine here.
To record the sounds of your own soil, order your own Soil Acoustic Meter here.
The Baker Consultants team is highly experienced and we are passionate about what we do. If you need advice related to ecology, surveys or conservation, then please get in touch with us via our contact form on the website, or you can call us on +44 (0)1629 593958 or email us on info@bakerconsultants.co.uk.