It said individual owlets could not be differentiated by the human ear, but AI could pick out different frequencies in their hissing noises.
Mr Jayathunge said: “It has great potential for citizen science as it doesn’t require expensive and specialist equipment.
“Anyone could gather recordings and send them for analysis.”
The project is supported by Brian Cresswell, a former director of wildlife tracking firm Lotek UK.
He said: “This basic data is important for monitoring breeding success of barn owls, which can vary greatly between years and breeding sites.
“There may also be potential for the hissing analyses to determine how hungry the owlets are.”
The university said the technology was in the early stages of development, although results so far had been “very encouraging”.
