@article {57656, title = {The role of ambient sound levels, signal-to-noise ratio, and stimulus pulse rate on behavioural disturbance of seabass in a net pen}, year = {2019}, abstract = {

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.

}, keywords = {anthropogenic noise, Dicentrarchus labrax, Fish behaviour, signal-to-noise ratio}, doi = {10.1016/j.beproc.2019.103992}, url = {https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0376635719303298}, author = {Hubert, J. and Neo, Y.Y. and Winter, H.V. and Slabbekoorn, H.} } @article {57651, title = {Does bat response to traffic noise support the misleading cue hypothesis?Abstract}, year = {2019}, abstract = {

The world has become a noisier place due to the increase in urbanization. Noise is generally considered an impediment, altering an animal\’s behavior through masking or distraction. But noise can also provide useful information about the environment. For animals that rely on natural environmental noise as an indicator of favorable foraging conditions, increasing levels of anthropogenic noise might mislead informed decision-making. Bats use rain noise, a natural environmental cue, to delay their emergence from the roost, presumably to avoid sensory and metabolic costs associated with foraging in heavy rain. Here we tested the \“misleading cue hypothesis,\” asking whether traffic noise is mistaken for rain noise by bats. Given the acoustic similarity between rain noise and traffic noise, we predicted that bats would confuse the two. We conducted a playback experiment using rain, traffic, and ambient noise at natural roosts of common big-eared bats (Micronycteris microtis, Phyllostomidae) and recorded bat emergence behavior. In contrast to their response to rain noise, the bats did not delay roost emergence in response to traffic noise. Thus, we found that bats were able to discriminate between traffic noise and rain noise and were not misled by similarity in acoustic parameters in the two noise types, when emerging from their roost. Emerging bats did show more exploration flights during traffic noise than during rain noise, but not during ambient noise, suggesting that they perceive traffic noise as a novel acoustic cue. Our data provide new insights into perception of traffic noise by bats.

}, keywords = {anthropogenic noise, bats, evolutionary trap, Micronycteris microtis, misleading cues, Traffic noise}, doi = {10.1093/beheco/arz148}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/beheco/article/30/6/1775/5574811}, author = {Geipel, Inga and Amin, Bawan and Rachel A. Page and Halfwerk, Wouter}, editor = {Candolin, Ulrika} } @article {57628, title = {Exploring the soundscape of small freshwater lakes}, year = {2019}, abstract = {

Monitoring freshwater ecosystems using passive acoustics is a largely unexplored approach, despite having the potential to yield information about the biological, geological and anthropogenic activity of a lake or river system. The state of Minnesota, located in the upper Midwest of the USA and nicknamed \‘land of 10,000 lakes\’, provides an interesting case study for soundscape research, because lakes offer ecological, recreational and economic value throughout the area. The underwater soundscape was monitored at fifteen small lakes \<10 km2 on representative days in winter (during 100\% ice cover) and summer 2018 using a hydrophone suspended 2 m below the water\&$\#$39;s surface. Median broadband sound pressure level (100\–12,000 Hz) was significantly lower in winter (57.2 dB re 1\μPa) compared to summer (66.7 dB re 1\μPa), possibly because low frequency wind sounds were reduced in winter. Recordings suggest small freshwater lakes in Minnesota have a relatively pristine soundscape, where vocalizing aquatic animals may hold acoustic niches. However, sound from anthropogenic activity was also present in the study lakes. Ice auger and motorboat sound increased the intensity of the soundscape by 10 dB and overlapped the frequency range (300\–1000 Hz) of biological sounds in the environment, that may be important to aquatic life. Understanding current baseline sound levels in ecologically significant freshwater lakes, like those in this study, is the first step in determining any potential consequences of anthropogenic sound. Moving forward, baseline sound levels provide vital evidence for scientists and governing bodies to make proactive decisions for soundscape conservation.

}, keywords = {Ambient sound, anthropogenic noise, freshwater, Lakes, underwater sound}, doi = {10.1016/j.ecoinf.2019.101018}, url = {https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1574954119303292}, author = {Putland, R.L. and Allen F. Mensinger} } @article {57603, title = {Experience modulates an insect{\textquoteright}s response to anthropogenic noise}, year = {2019}, abstract = {

In response to anthropogenic noise, vertebrates express modified acoustic communication signals either through individual plasticity or local population adaptation. In contrast, how insects respond to this stressor is poorly studied. Field crickets Gryllus bimaculatus use acoustic signals to attract and locate mates and are commonly found in noisy roadside environments, offering a powerful system to study the effects of anthropogenic noise on insect communication. Rapid repetition of sexual calls (chirps) is essential to attract females, but calling incurs energetic costs and attracts predators. As a result, males are predicted to reduce calling rates when background noise is high. Here, we combine observations and experimental playbacks to show that the responses of field cricket males to anthropogenic noise also depend on their previous experience with passing cars. First, we show that males living on highway edges decrease their chirp rate in response to passing cars. To assess whether this behavioral response depends on previous exposure to car noise, we then broadcast recordings of car noise to males located at different distances from the road and, therefore, with different previous exposure to car noise. Although all tested individuals responded to broadcasted traffic noise, males closest to the road decreased their chirp rate less than individuals calling further from the road. These results suggest that regular exposure to anthropogenic noise may decrease individuals\’ sensitivity and behavioral responses to noise, allowing them to maintain effective signaling rates. Behavioral plasticity modulated by experience may thus allow some insect species to cope with human-induced environmental stressors.

}, keywords = {acoustic adaptation, anthropogenic noise, behavioral plasticity, Gryllus bimaculatus, Insect, sexual signals}, doi = {10.1093/beheco/arz159}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/beheco/advance-article/doi/10.1093/beheco/arz159/5574703}, author = {Gallego-Abenza, Mario and Mathevon, Nicolas and Wheatcroft, David}, editor = {Candolin, Ulrika} } @article {57582, title = {Habitat-related differences in song structure and complexity in a songbird with a large repertoire}, journal = {BMC Ecology}, volume = {19}, year = {2019}, month = {Jan-12-2019}, abstract = {

Background

Urbanisation has been shown to influence many aspects of animal vocal communication. Much attention has been paid to anthropogenic noise, which is often described as one of the most challenging disturbances for urban dwellers. While a large body of literature describes associations between vocal behavior of avian populations and background noise level, most of these studies were conducted on species with relatively simple songs and small repertoire sizes. This study focuses on the song thrush, Turdus philomelos, a common Eurasian songbird with a complex singing style and large syllable repertoire. Our objective was to determine whether frequency, repertoire and temporal organisation of song parameters vary between birds inhabiting urban and adjacent forest habitats in which ambient noise levels differ.

Results

Songs of urban males were found to be more complex than in conspecifics from natural forest populations. Urban dwellers possessed greater syllable repertoires and repeated syllable sequences more often. In addition, they used a smaller proportion of whistles and a higher proportion of twitter syllables when singing compared to the nonurban males. Moreover, we found significant differences in the minimum and peak frequency of the whistle syllable between studied populations.

Conclusions

These findings may be an example of adaptation of acoustic communication in noisy urban environments, but we also discuss other possible explanations. We emphasize the need for further investigation into the relationships between birdsong and habitat characteristics, male quality, population density and ambient noise level in populations occupying urban and nonurban habitats.

}, keywords = {animal communication, anthropogenic noise, birdsong, songbirds, Turdus philomelos, Urban ecology, urbanisation}, doi = {10.1186/s12898-019-0255-7}, url = {https://bmcecol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12898-019-0255-7}, author = {Deoniziak, Krzysztof and Osiejuk, Tomasz S.} } @article {57407, title = {Anthropogenic noise does not surpass land cover in explaining habitat selection of Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido)}, journal = {The Condor}, year = {2019}, month = {May-10-2019}, abstract = {

Over the last century, increasing human populations and conversion of grassland to agriculture have had severe consequences for numbers of Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido). Understanding Greater Prairie-Chicken response to human disturbance, including the effects of anthropogenic noise and landscape modification, is vital for conserving remaining populations because these disturbances are becoming more common in grassland systems. Here, we evaluate the effect of low-frequency noise emitted from a wind energy facility on habitat selection. We used the Normalized Difference Soundscape Index, a ratio of human-generated and biological acoustic components, to determine the impact of the dominant acoustic characteristics of habitat relative to physical landscape features known to influence within\–home range habitat selection. Female Greater Prairie-Chickens avoided wooded areas and row crops but showed no selection or avoidance of wind turbines based on the availability of these features across their home range. Although the acoustic environment near the wind energy facility was dominated by anthropogenic noise, our results show that acoustic habitat selection is not evident for this species. In contrast, our work highlights the need to reduce the presence of trees, which have been historically absent from the region, as well as decrease the conversion of grassland to row-crop agriculture. Our findings suggest physical landscape changes surpass altered acoustic environments in mediating Greater Prairie-Chicken habitat selection.

}, keywords = {acoustic habitat selection, anthropogenic noise, avoidance behavior, prairie grouse, resource selection, Soundscape, wind energy, woody encroachment}, issn = {0010-5422}, doi = {10.1093/condor/duz044}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/condor/advance-article/doi/10.1093/condor/duz044/5581578}, author = {Raynor, Edward J and Harrison, Jocelyn Olney and Whalen, Cara E and Smith, Jennifer A and Schacht, Walter H and Tyre, Andrew J and Benson, John F and Brown, Mary Bomberger and Powell, Larkin A} } @article {57346, title = {Evidence for differing trajectories of songs in urban and rural populations}, journal = {Behavioral Ecology}, year = {2019}, month = {Jul-08-2020}, abstract = {

Learned traits, such as foraging strategies and communication signals, can change over time via cultural evolution. Using historical recordings, we investigate the cultural evolution of birdsong over nearly a 50-year period. Specifically, we examine the parts of white-crowned sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys nuttalli) songs used for mate attraction and territorial defense. We compared historical (early 1970s) recordings with contemporary (mid-2010s) recordings from populations within and near San Francisco, CA and assessed the vocal performance of these songs. Because birds exposed to anthropogenic noise tend to sing at higher minimum frequencies with narrower frequency bandwidths, potentially reducing one measure of song performance, we hypothesized that other song features, such as syllable complexity, might be exaggerated, as an alternative means to display performance capabilities. We found that vocal performance increased between historical and contemporary songs, with a larger effect size for urban songs, and that syllable complexity, measured as the number of frequency modulations per syllable, was historically low for urban males but increased significantly in urban songs. We interpret these results as evidence for males increasing song complexity and trilled performance over time in urban habitats, despite performance constraints from urban noise, and suggest a new line of inquiry into how environments alter vocal performance over time.

}, keywords = {anthropogenic noise, birdsong, Cultural evolution, sexual selection, Urbanization, vocal performance}, issn = {1045-2249}, doi = {10.1093/beheco/arz142}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/beheco/advance-article/doi/10.1093/beheco/arz142/5551107}, author = {Moseley, Dana L and Jennifer N. Phillips and Derryberry, Elizabeth P and David A. Luther}, editor = {Candolin, Ulrika} } @article {53352, title = {Ecology of fish hearing}, journal = {Journal of Fish Biology}, year = {2018}, month = {May-11-2019}, abstract = {

Underwater sound is directional and can convey important information about the surrounding environment or the animal emitting the sound. Therefore, sound is a major sensory channel for fishes and plays a key role in many life-history strategies. The effect of anthropogenic noise on aquatic life, which may be causing homogenisation or fragmentation of biologically important signals underwater is of growing concern. In this review we discuss the role sound plays in the ecology of fishes, basic anatomical and physiological adaptations for sound reception and production, the effects of anthropogenic noise and how fishes may be coping to changes in their environment, to put the ecology of fish hearing into the context of the modern underwater soundscape.

}, keywords = {anthropogenic noise, fish hearing, sound detection, sound production}, doi = {10.1111/jfb.13867}, url = {http://doi.wiley.com/10.1111/jfb.13867}, author = {Putland, R. L. and Montgomery, J. C. and Radford, C. A.} } @article {53349, title = {Effects of hydroelectric turbine noise on the behaviour of Leporinus taeniatus (Characiformes: Anostomidae) in captivity}, journal = {Journal of Ethology}, year = {2018}, month = {Oct-11-2019}, abstract = {

Hydroelectric power plants (HPP) constitute one of the main forms of energy generation in the world, and its operation produces underwater noise through generators and turbines, which can potentially impact the aquatic fauna. Anthropogenic noise is a stressful factor and can affect behaviour, physiology and acoustic communication of many animal species. However, the noise impact produced by HPP on fishes has not been studied yet. In this research we investigated the noise impact of hydroelectric turbines on the behaviour of Leporinus taeniatus held captive in Brazil. We tested the hypothesis that noise could disturb fishes\’ behaviour by affecting school organization, fish position in the tank and the speed of swimming. Two groups of 10 individuals were exposed to 30 sessions of noise played at an intensity of 100 dB re 1 \µPa, during 40 s on days 0, 7 and 14. Behavioural data were obtained before, during, and after noise exposure. Results showed that the fish swam significantly faster, moving to the bottom and swimming in depolarised shoals during noise exposure in both groups. Temporal analysis showed that during noise exposure fish swam faster, were less stationary and used the bottom of the tanks more throughout sampling period. These data provide evidence that fish behaviour can be affected by the aversive stimulus of the noise of a hydroelectric turbine in operation. It also suggests that sound pollution issues should be taken into consideration when regulating the use of natural areas for HPP.

}, keywords = {anthropogenic noise, Brazil, Characins, Fish behaviour, Hydroelectric impact, S{\~a}o Francisco River basin}, issn = {0289-0771}, doi = {10.1007/s10164-018-0568-6}, url = {http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10164-018-0568-6}, author = {Duarte, Marina H. L. and Melo, Rafael M. C. and Marina D. A. Scarpelli and Carvalho, Thiago M. A. and Padovese, Linilson R. and Bazzoli, Nilo and Rizzo, Elizete} } @article {53324, title = {Dolphins simplify their vocal calls in response to increased ambient noise}, journal = {Biology Letters}, volume = {14}, year = {2018}, month = {Sep-05-20182022}, pages = {20180484}, abstract = {

Ocean noise varies spatially and temporally and is driven by natural and anthropogenic processes. Increased ambient noise levels can cause signal masking and communication impairment, affecting fitness and recruitment success. However, the effects of increasing ambient noise levels on marine species, such as marine mammals that primarily rely on sound for communication, are not well understood. We investigated the effects of concurrent ambient noise levels on social whistle calls produced by bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the western North Atlantic. Elevated ambient noise levels were mainly caused by ship noise. Increases in ship noise, both within and below the dolphins\&$\#$39; call bandwidth, resulted in higher dolphin whistle frequencies and a reduction in whistle contour complexity, an acoustic feature associated with individual identification. Consequently, the noise-induced simplification of dolphin whistles may reduce the information content in these acoustic signals and decrease effective communication, parent\–offspring proximity or group cohesion.

}, keywords = {acoustic communication, anthropogenic noise, bottlenose dolphin, vocal modification}, issn = {1744-9561}, doi = {10.1098/rsbl.2018.0484}, url = {http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org/lookup/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2018.0484https://syndication.highwire.org/content/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2018.0484}, author = {Fouda, Leila and Wingfield, Jessica E. and Fandel, Amber D. and Garrod, Aran and Hodge, Kristin B. and Rice, Aaron N. and Bailey, Helen} } @article {53118, title = {Anthropogenic noise disrupts mate searching in Gryllus bimaculatus}, journal = {Behavioral Ecology}, year = {2018}, month = {Apr-10-2018}, abstract = {

Many animals use acoustic communication as a means of sending important biological information, such as their location, to potential receivers. However, anthropogenic noise is known to affect the ability of some species to either produce or receive signals, which may influence their reproductive success. In this study, we investigate the effect of anthropogenic noise on the mate-searching behaviors of the field cricket Gryllus bimaculatus. To accomplish this, phonotaxis trials were conducted with female field crickets under different acoustic conditions, and their ability to detect and move towards conspecific male calls was assessed. The presence of traffic noise reduced the likelihood that the female would approach the male calls and also reduced the time that the female spent attending to the calling stimulus before making her decision. However, the presence of white noise did not reduce the likelihood of approaching the calling speaker, indicating that the average amplitude of anthropogenic noise is, alone, not important in this conflict, but frequency and fluctuations in the stimulus or other characteristics might be. This study supports the hypothesis that anthropogenic noise does indeed influence the detectability of acoustic mate location signals, thus disrupting mate searching behavior.

}, keywords = {acoustic signals, anthropogenic noise, Gryllus bimaculatus, mate searching, sexual signals}, issn = {1045-2249}, doi = {10.1093/beheco/ary126}, url = {https://academic.oup.com/beheco/advance-article/doi/10.1093/beheco/ary126/5115667}, author = {Bent, Adam M and Ings, Thomas C} } @article {52799, title = {Freshwater ecoacoustics as a tool for continuous ecosystem monitoring}, journal = {Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment}, year = {2018}, month = {03/2018}, abstract = {

Abstract
Passive acoustic monitoring is gaining popularity in ecology as a practical and non-invasive approach to surveying ecosystems. This technique is increasingly being used to monitor terrestrial systems, particularly bird populations, given that it can help to track temporal dynamics of populations and ecosystem health without the need for expensive resampling. We suggest that underwater acoustic monitoring presents a viable, non-invasive, and largely unexplored approach to monitoring freshwater ecosystems, yielding information about three key ecological elements of aquatic environments \– (1) fishes, (2) macroinvertebrates, and (3) physicochemical processes \– as well as providing data on anthropogenic noise levels. We survey the literature on this approach, which is substantial but scattered across disciplines, and call for more cross-disciplinary work on recording and analysis techniques. We also discuss technical issues and knowledge gaps, including background noise, spatiotemporal variation, and the need for centralized reference collection repositories. These challenges need to be overcome before the full potential of passive acoustics in dynamic detection of biophysical processes can be realized and used to inform conservation practitioners and managers.

}, keywords = {anthropogenic noise, fishes, freshwater, macroinvertebrates, monitoring, physicochemical}, doi = {10.1002/fee.1779}, url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.1779}, author = {Linke, Simon and Gifford, Toby and Desjonqu{\`e}res, Camille and Tonolla, Diego and Aubin, Thierry and Barclay, Leah and Karaconstantis, Chris and Kennard, Mark J. and Rybak, Fanny and Sueur, Jerome} } @article {52562, title = {Chronic anthropogenic noise disrupts glucocorticoid signaling and has multiple effects on fitness in an avian community}, journal = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences}, year = {2018}, month = {Aug-01-2018}, pages = {201709200}, abstract = {

Anthropogenic noise is a pervasive pollutant that decreases environmental quality by disrupting a suite of behaviors vital to perception and communication. However, even within populations of noise-sensitive species, individuals still select breeding sites located within areas exposed to high noise levels, with largely unknown physiological and fitness consequences. We use a study system in the natural gas fields of northern New Mexico to test the prediction that exposure to noise causes glucocorticoid-signaling dysfunction and decreases fitness in a community of secondary cavity-nesting birds. In accordance with these predictions, and across all species, we find strong support for noise exposure decreasing baseline corticosterone in adults and nestlings and, conversely, increasing acute stressor-induced corticosterone in nestlings. We also document fitness consequences with increased noise in the form of reduced hatching success in the western bluebird (Sialia mexicana), the species most likely to nest in noisiest environments. Nestlings of all three species exhibited accelerated growth of both feathers and body size at intermediate noise amplitudes compared with lower or higher amplitudes. Our results are consistent with recent experimental laboratory studies and show that noise functions as a chronic, inescapable stressor. Anthropogenic noise likely impairs environmental risk perception by species relying on acoustic cues and ultimately leads to impacts on fitness. Our work, when taken together with recent efforts to document noise across the landscape, implies potential widespread, noise-induced chronic stress coupled with reduced fitness for many species reliant on acoustic cues.

}, keywords = {acoustic environment, anthropogenic noise, birds, perceived predation risk, stress response}, issn = {0027-8424}, doi = {10.1073/pnas.1709200115}, url = {http://www.pnas.org/lookup/doi/10.1073/pnas.1709200115https://syndication.highwire.org/content/doi/10.1073/pnas.1709200115}, author = {Kleist, Nathan J. and Guralnick, Robert P. and Cruz, Alexander and Lowry, Christopher A. and Francis, Clinton D.} }