Descriptive Entry

This accession consists of records documenting the research of Eugene S. Morton, biologist, while working for General Electric Company (GE) in 1964 and during his pre-doctoral fellowship in the 1970s. Both sets of research were performed at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. While working for GE, Morton studied methods by which sound could be used to determine if troops were waiting in ambush. The tapes were made through long cables and with microphones recording from 100kHz to 20Hz. The recordings document the sounds of many bird species, some of which no longer exist on Barro Colorado Island (Panama). Morton's fellowship research also recorded bird sounds and helped to found the field of bio-sound propagation. Materials include 1" magnetic tapes, 1/4" audiotapes, graphs, and data rolls.