Maddie Matei

Associate Scientist

Email: mm@smruconsulting.com

Madalina (Maddie) Matei is an Associate Scientist at SMRU Consulting Europe. She specializes in bioacoustics and the development of passive acoustic routines for the detection, classification, and localisation of marine mammals using machine learning and the open-source software PAMGuard. Her main interest is in designing robust monitoring routines that can aid mitigation decisions and protect marine mammals from underwater noise.

Maddie has experience designing passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) arrays for recording and localising marine mammals as well as analysing the resulting acoustic datasets for species composition and soundscape characterisation. She has also led or assisted with field activities related to the deployment, servicing and recovery of PAM systems for archival and real-time monitoring. Other key skills include analyses of acoustic and kinetic data collected by animal-borne tags, quantifying the effects of noise on marine mammals, and estimating field metabolic rates.

  • Degrees and Education

    • 2020: University of St Andrews, BSc (Hons) Marine Biology

    • 2020 – 2022: University of St Andrews, MSc (by Research) Biology (killer whale bioacoustics)

    Skills and Expertise

    • Passive acoustic detection, classification and localization: design of passive acoustic arrays for characterising site species composition and analysis of data to detect, classify and localise vocalizing cetaceans in 2D and 3D; development of acoustic classifiers using PAMGuard and machine learning; quantification of vocalisation production rates

    • Underwater noise monitoring and impact analysis: design of passive acoustic arrays for monitoring responses of marine mammals to underwater noise; analysis of acoustic data to measure underwater noise and assess behavioural disturbance and hearing loss in marine mammals; analysis of data to quantify the acoustic benefits of voluntary vessel slowdowns

    • Animal-borne tag data analysis: analysis of movement and acoustic data from marine mammal tags for cue rate and cost of locomotion analyses

    • Fieldwork: preparation, deployment, servicing and recovery of passive acoustic monitoring moorings; marine mammal visual surveys

    • Data handling: managing databases for bioacoustics studies and creating automated routines for data analysis

  • Brown, A. M., M. Ryder, K. Klementisová, U. K. Verfuss, A. K. Darius-O'Hara, A. Stevens, M. Matei, and C. G. Booth. 2023. An exploration of time-area thresholds for noise management in harbour porpoise SACs: literature review and population modelling. Report Number SMRUC-DEF-2022-001. Prepared for Defra. SMRU Consulting. 131pp plus appendices.

    Chudzinska, M., M. Matei, R. Charish, E. Gregory, F. Wilder, L. Palmer, I. Haber, M. Quinn, A. Darias O’Hara, K. Majewska, K. Klementisova, J. Clarkson, and C. Booth. 2026. Measuring the effect of construction of two offshore wind farms in the Forth and Tay on marine mammals using passive acoustic monitoring. SMRU Consulting.

    Grooms, C. H., M. Matei, J. N. Dolman, Z. Li, J. D. Wood, A. O. MacGillivray, S. Tabbutt, A. E. Houweling, J. L. Wladichuk, D. J. Tollit, R. Charish, M. Quinn, and A. Stevens. 2024. ECHO Program 2023 Voluntary Vessel Slowdown Hydroacoustic Studies: Chapter 1. Hydroacoustic Monitoring. Technical report by JASCO Applied Sciences and SMRU Consulting for Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.

    Hastie, G., M. Matei, A. Benhemma-Le Gall, A. Brown, I. Graham, P. Thompson, and C. Booth. 2026. Acoustic array configurations for dose-response studies: impact gradient designs influence predictions of noise impacts on cetaceans.in A. Popper, J. A. Sisneros, P. Lepper, and K. J. Vigness-Raposa, editors. The Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life IV. Springer Cham.

    Hastie, G., M. Matei, A. Benhemma-Le Gall, A. Brown, I. Graham, P. Thompson, and C. Booth. in review. Effects of acoustic logger array design on studies of cetacean responses to anthropogenic noise. Ecological Applications.

    Majewska, K., A. M. Brown, R. Charish, M. Quinn, and M. Matei. 2025. Evidence review of harbour porpoise disturbance ranges in the context of the assessment and management of impulsive noise in Special Areas of Conservation: unexploded ordnance clearance, explosives for decommissioning, seismic (airgun) survey, sub-bottom profilers, ultra-short baseline acoustic positioning, acoustic deterrent devices, multi-beam echosounders, and military sonar. JNCC Report No. 798. JNCC, Peterborough.

    Malinka, C., M. Quinn, M. Matei, S. Tabbutt, R. Charish, and J. Wood. 2023. Quiet Sound Trial Slowdown 2022. SMRU Consulting report to Quiet Sound.

    Malinka, C. E., S. Tabbutt, M. Matei, J. Clarkson, and J. D. Wood. 2026. Near Real-Time Passive Acoustic Mitigation Monitoring: Three Case Studies. Pages 1-12 in A. N. Popper, J. A. Sisneros, P. A. Lepper, and K. J. Vigness-Raposa, editors. The Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life IV. Springer Nature Switzerland, Cham.

    Matei, M. 2022. KillerClick: Automatic detection and classification of the echolocation clicks of the Southern Resident killer whales. Master's thesis. University of St Andrews.

    Matei, M., R. Charish, M. Quinn, F. Wilder, S. Tabbutt, and J. Wood. 2024. Quiet Sound Vessel Slowdown 2023. SMRU Consulting report to Quiet Sound.

    Matei, M., M. Chudzinska, P. Remmers, M. A. Bellman, A. K. Darias-O'Hara, U. Verfuss, J. Wood, N. Hardy, F. Wilder, and C. Booth. 2024. Range-dependent nature of impulsive noise (RaDIN). Offshore Renewables Joint Industry Programme (ORJIP) for Offshore Wind, Carbon Trust.

    Matei, M., and D. Gillespie. 2023. Minesto cetacean 3D localisation report. Report number: SMRUC-MIN-2023-002. Report to Minesto February 2023.

    Matei, M., K. Klementisová, M. Quinn, E. Marwood, I. Haber, E. Gregory, M. E. Chudzinska, S. Simmons, and A. Brown. 2026. Harbour porpoise responses to unabated impact piling of monopile foundations at the Dogger Bank C offshore wind farm - Report to Dogger Bank Wind Farm Limited. Report Number: SMRUC-DBC-2025-029.

    Matei, M., C. Malinka, R. Charish, M. Quinn, S. Tabbutt, C. Ogilvy, and J. Wood. 2025. Quiet Sound Vessel Slowdown 2024-25. SMRU Consulting report to Quiet Sound.

    Quinn, M., R. Charish, M. Matei, A. Stevens, and D. Tollit. 2024. June-November: SRKW presence at Lime Kiln State Park and in Haro Strait in summer and fall 2023. SMRU Consulting.

  • Key Projects

    • Firth of Forth and Tay Passive Acoustic Monitoring – analysis of dolphin and porpoise acoustic presence from a regional passive acoustic monitoring array that collected data for six years, before, during, and after the construction of two offshore windfarms (Seagreen and Neart na Gaoithe)

    • ACCURATE DTAG analysis – analysis of beaked whale cue production rates from animal-borne tags

    • 3S DTAG analysis – annotation of anthropogenic noise from tags deployed on killer whales

    • Whale Real-Time Alert System – development of a classification routine to send alerts for killer whales and humpback whales from the Lime Kiln cabled hydrophone

    • Ardersier real-time Passive Acoustic Monitoring during dredging operations

    • Multi-species detection, classification and localisation of cetaceans

    • Arven Baseline passive acoustic monitoring

    • Inch Cape post-consent passive acoustic monitoring

    • Burrard Inlet cetacean and noise passive acoustic monitoring

    • Minesto cetacean monitoring and 3D localisation

    • ECHO Slowdowns – assessment of acoustic benefit of vessel slowdowns and killer whale acoustic monitoring

    • Quiet Sound voluntary vessel slowdowns – assessment of acoustic benefit of vessel slowdowns and killer whale acoustic monitoring

    • Quiet Sound vessel slowdown expansion desktop study

    • Cetacean diving and swimming behaviour encyclopaedia update

    • DEFRA Special Area of Conservation time-area thresholds

    • Population Consequence on multiple stressors (PCoMS) for Gulf of Mexico sperm whales

    • Sperm whale field metabolic rates

    • Improving Density Estimates from Digital Aerial Surveys (‘IDEAS’)

    • WWF North Atlantic Blue Corridors – identifying feasible methods for monitoring marine mammals around vessel corridors

    • JNCC guidance for assessing injuries to marine mammals from explosives

  • Phone: +44 (0)1334 466012

    Email: mm@smruconsulting.com

    Mail: Scottish Oceans Institute

    East Sands

    University of St Andrews

    KY16 8LB

    Scotland