The role of ambient sound levels, signal-to-noise ratio, and stimulus pulse rate on behavioural disturbance of seabass in a net pen

Publication Type:Journal Article
Year of Publication:2019
Auteurs:Hubert, Neo, Winter, Slabbekoorn
Trefwoorden:anthropogenic noise, Dicentrarchus labrax, Fish behaviour, signal-to-noise ratio
Samenvatting:

Anthropogenic sources increasingly contribute to the underwater soundscape and this may negatively impact aquatic life, including fish. Anthropogenic sound may mask relevant sound, alter behaviour, physiology, and may lead to physical injury. Behavioural effect studies are often seen as critical to evaluate individual and population-level impact. However, behavioural responsiveness likely depends on context and characteristics of sound stimuli. We pose that ambient sound levels, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and pulse rate interval (PRI), could affect the behavioural response of fish. To study this, we experimentally exposed groups of tagged European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) to different impulsive sound treatments that varied in pulse level, elevated background level, SNR, and PRI. Upon sound exposure, the seabass increased their swimming depth. The variation in the increase in swimming depth could not be attributed to pulse level, background level, SNR or PRI. It may be that the current range of sound levels or PRIs was too narrow to find such effects.

URL:https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0376635719303298
DOI:10.1016/j.beproc.2019.103992
BioAcoustica ID: 
Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith