GUANO Metadata Fields - SM5

Song Meter SM5 User Guide
Core Product
SM5
Accessory

GUANO is an open-source metadata format for bioacoustic recordings. The Song Meter SM5 and other Song Meter recorders use the GUANO format to attach information about the recorder to each recording file.

The GUANO specification defines common fields used by multiple manufacturers, as well as namespaces for manufacturer-specific metadata fields. Metadata fields specific to Wildlife Acoustics products are indicated by the namespace WA.

GUANO metadata can be viewed in Kaleidoscope (with or without a paid license) and in other audio analysis software that supports the format.

Figure 1. Viewing GUANO Metadata in Kaleidoscope. In the Kaleidoscope viewer, you can view GUANO metadata by scrolling down in the Notes field.
The Notes field is below the spectrogram and the spectrogram view controls. The GUANO metadata begins with the text GUANO|Version:.

Full-spectrum .wav files saved by the Song Meter SM5 include the GUANO fields listed below. This list does not include any additional fields written by Kaleidoscope or other analysis software.

Table 1. Standardized GUANO Fields in Unedited SM5 Recordings
Field Name Data Type Description
GUANO|Version text GUANO metadata version in use. Currently 1.0
Firmware version text Firmware version installed on the recorder at the time of recording.
Length float Duration of the audio file in seconds.
Loc Position float float WGS84 latitude and longitude saved to the recorder as of when the recording ended.
Make text Manufacturer of the recorder hardware (Wildlife Acoustics, Inc.)
Model text Model name or number of the recording hardware
Original Filename text File name of the recording as originally saved to the SD card by the Song Meter SM5. This metadata field will remain even if the file name is later edited.
Samplerate integer

Sample rate of the recording in Hz.
Serial text Serial number of the recorder
Temperature Int float Reading from the recorder's internal temperature sensor in degrees Celsius at the time of the recording's end.
Timestamp

UTC relative datetime

YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ss.ssssss±[hh]:[mm]

 Date and time at which the recording started, including the UTC offset determined by the Time Zone setting.
Table 2. Wildlife Acoustics GUANO Namespace Fields in Unedited SM5 Recordings
Field Name Data Type Description
WA|Song Meter|Audio settings JSON-encloded text Per-channel array of audio settings used by the SM5. See Table 3 for details.
WA|Song Meter|Prefix text The custom Recorder name assigned to the SM5 at time of recording
WA|Song Meter|Time synch text
none
The SM5's clock was not synchronized to GPS/GLONASS when the recording began.
start
The SM5's internal clock was synchronized to GPS/GLONASS when the recording started, but it lost synchronization for at least a portion of the recording duration.
all
The SM5 kept its internal clock synchronized with GPS/GLONASS time for the full duration of the recording.
Table 3. WA|Song Meter|Audio Settings Fields
Field Name Data Type Description
rate integer

Sample rate of the recording in Hz.
gain float

Sum of the gain provided by the Gain setting and the acoustic Preamplifier setting, if applicable.
hpf float Cutoff frequency of the recorder's high-pass filter, in Hz.
mic text Name of the microphone model used.