Assessing the exposure of animals to acoustic disturbance: Towards an understanding of the population consequences of disturbance

Costa, Daniel P.; Hückstädt, Luis A.; Schwarz, Lisa; Friedlaender, Ari S.; Mate, Bruce R.; Zerbini, Alexandre N.; Kennedy, Amy S.; Gales, Nicolas J.

doi:10.1121/2.0000298

Cited by 12 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…The spatial and temporal overlap between the stressor and the focal animals determines the probability of exposure. This overlap is influenced by the patterns by which the stressor is produced at the source and propagates through the environment (Merchant, Faulkner, & Martinez, ) and the animals' residence time in the area where exposure may occur (Costa, Hückstädt, et al., ). Residence time is determined inter alia by the size of individual home ranges, the motivation underlying the use of the area of interest (e.g., whether the area contains foraging patches or is used solely for transit), and any migratory behavior.…”

Section: Estimating Levels Of Exposure In the Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: E S Timating Le Vel S Of E Xp Osure In the P Opul Ati Onmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Understanding the population consequences of disturbance

Pirotta

Booth²,

Costa

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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202

217

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Managing the nonlethal effects of disturbance on wildlife populations has been a long‐term goal for decision makers, managers, and ecologists, and assessment of these effects is currently required by European Union and United States legislation. However, robust assessment of these effects is challenging. The management of human activities that have nonlethal effects on wildlife is a specific example of a fundamental ecological problem: how to understand the population‐level consequences of changes in the behavior or physiology of individual animals that are caused by external stressors. In this study, we review recent applications of a conceptual framework for assessing and predicting these consequences for marine mammal populations. We explore the range of models that can be used to formalize the approach and we identify critical research gaps. We also provide a decision tree that can be used to select the most appropriate model structure given the available data. Synthesis and applications: The implementation of this framework has moved the focus of discussion of the management of nonlethal disturbances on marine mammal populations away from a rhetorical debate about defining negligible impact and toward a quantitative understanding of long‐term population‐level effects. Here we demonstrate the framework's general applicability to other marine and terrestrial systems and show how it can support integrated modeling of the proximate and ultimate mechanisms that regulate trait‐mediated, indirect interactions in ecological communities, that is, the nonconsumptive effects of a predator or stressor on a species' behavior, physiology, or life history.

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Section: Estimating Levels Of Exposure In the Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: E S Timating Le Vel S Of E Xp Osure In the P Opul Ati Onmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding the population consequences of disturbance

Pirotta

Booth²,

Costa

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

Self Cite

202

217

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Similarly, the probability of exposure to disturbance within a given location appeared to matter more than the effect exposure had on feeding performance. Exposure rates to stressors have been shown to have a strong influence on the predicted effects of disturbance (Christiansen and Lusseau 2015, Costa et al 2016, Nabe-Nielsen et al 2018, Pirotta et al 2018a. Applications of our model to management requires information on the characteristics of the stressors and the associated dose-response curves (Harris et al 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Anthropogenic disturbance in a changing environment: modelling lifetime reproductive success to predict the consequences of multiple stressors on a migratory population

Pirotta

Mangel

Costa

et al. 2019

Oikos

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107

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Animals make behavioural and reproductive decisions that maximise their lifetime reproductive success, and thus their fitness, in light of periodic and stochastic variability of the environment. Modelling the variation of an individual's energy levels formalises this tradeoff and helps to quantify the population‐level consequences of stressors (e.g. disturbance from human activities and environmental change) that can affect behaviour or physiology. In this study, we develop a dynamic state variable model for the spatially explicit behaviour, physiology and reproduction of a female, long‐lived, migratory marine vertebrate. The model can be used to investigate the spatio‐temporal patterns of behaviour and reproduction that allow an individual to maximise its overall reproductive output. We parametrised the model for eastern North Pacific blue whales Balaenoptera musculus, and used it to predict the effects of changing environmental conditions and increasing human disturbance on the population's vital rates. In baseline conditions, the model output had high fidelity to observed energy dynamics, movement patterns and reproductive strategies. Simulated scenarios suggested that environmental changes could have severe consequences on the population's vital rates, but that individuals could tolerate high levels of anthropogenic disturbance. However, this ability depended on where, when and how often disturbance occurred. In scenarios with both environmental change and anthropogenic disturbance, synergistic interactions caused stronger effects than in isolation. In general, larger body size offered a buffer against stochasticity and disturbance, and, consequently, we predicted juveniles to be more susceptible to disturbance. We also predicted that females prioritise their own survival at the expense of the current reproductive attempt, presumably the result of their long lifespan. Our approach provides a general framework to make predictions of the cumulative and synergistic effects of human disturbance and climate change on migratory populations, which can inform effective management and conservation efforts.

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“…For example, Costa et al (2016) demonstrated that a small affected area and short activity period may result in many individuals being disturbed if the activity overlaps with a migration corridor and time period. This will be determined by a variety of factors that affect the distribution of individuals in space and time, including the size of a population's range, the size of individual home ranges, and individual movement patterns.…”

Section: Identifying a "Set Threshold" For Questionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This will be determined by a variety of factors that affect the distribution of individuals in space and time, including the size of a population's range, the size of individual home ranges, and individual movement patterns. For example, Costa et al (2016) demonstrated that a small affected area and short activity period may result in many individuals being disturbed if the activity overlaps with a migration corridor and time period. However, these individuals may only be briefly exposed to disturbance.…”

Section: Decision Framework Questionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A decision framework to identify populations that are most vulnerable to the population level effects of disturbance

Wilson

Harwood

Booth

et al. 2019

Conservat Sci and Prac

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We present a decision framework to identify when detailed population-level assessments are required to understand the potential impacts of a disturbanceinducing activity on a marine mammal population and discuss how the framework can be applied to other taxa. Species at high risk of population-level effects can be identified using information on the number of individuals that are likely to be disturbed by the activity, total population size, the probability of repeated disturbance, the species' reproductive strategy, and the life stages (e.g., feeding, pregnant, and lactating) of the individuals most likely to be exposed. This hierarchical approach provides those responsible for conducting impact assessments with a time-efficient, cost-effective and reproducible workflow that allows them to prioritize their efforts and assign funds to those species with the most pressing conservation needs. A fully worked case study using marine mammals in the vicinity of a naval training activity is supplied.anthropogenic disturbance, conservation management, impact assessment, life-history strategy, noise, population consequences of disturbance, reproductive strategy, risk assessment

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Assessing the exposure of animals to acoustic disturbance: Towards an understanding of the population consequences of disturbance

Cited by 12 publications

References 57 publications

Understanding the population consequences of disturbance

Understanding the population consequences of disturbance

Anthropogenic disturbance in a changing environment: modelling lifetime reproductive success to predict the consequences of multiple stressors on a migratory population

A decision framework to identify populations that are most vulnerable to the population level effects of disturbance

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