Bird song and anthropogenic noise: vocal constraints may explain why birds sing higher-frequency songs in cities

Nemeth, Erwin; Pieretti, Nadia; Zollinger, Sue Anne; Geberzahn, Nicole; Partecke, Jesko; Miranda, Ana Catarina; Brumm, Henrik

doi:10.1098/rspb.2012.2798

Cited by 170 publications

(126 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…Where explicitly studied, the Lombard effect has been demonstrated in all nonhuman mammalian species (Hotchkin & Parks, 2013), including several cetacean species (Holt et al, 2009;Parks et al, 2011;Scheifele et al, 2005). In several bird and mammal species, the Lombard effect is associated with a range of other changes in vocal output, including a rise in fundamental frequency (Dabelsteen, 1984;Hotchkin, Parks, & Weiss, 2015;Nelson, 2000;Nemeth et al, 2013;Ritschard & Brumm, 2011;Tressler & Smotherman, 2009). Dolphins can readily adjust the amplitude of their calls (Au & Benoit-Bird, 2003;Tyack, 1985).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in bottlenose dolphin whistle parameters related to vessel presence, surface behaviour and group composition

et al. 2016

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Cetacean watching from tour boats has increased in recent years and has been promoted as an ethically viable alternative to cetacean viewing in captive facilities or directed take. However, short-and long-term impacts of this industry on the behaviour and energetic expenditure of cetaceans have been documented. Although multiple studies have investigated the acoustic 1 response of dolphins to marine tourism, there are several covariates that could also explain some of these results and should be considered simultaneously. Here, we investigated whether common bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, inhabiting Walvis Bay, Namibia vary their whistle parameters in relation to boat presence, surface behaviour and/or group composition. We detected an upward shift of up to 1.99 kHz in several whistle frequency parameters when dolphins were in the presence of one or more tour boats and the research vessel. No changes were demonstrated in the frequency range, number of inflection points or duration of whistles. A similar, although less pronounced difference was observed in response to engine noise generated by the research vessel when idling, suggesting that noise alone plays an important role in driving this shift in whistle frequency. Additionally, a strong effect of surface behaviour was observed, with the greatest difference in whistle parameters detected between resting and other behavioural states that are associated with higher degrees of emotional arousal. Group composition also contributed to the variation observed, with the impact of boats dependent on whether calves were present or not. Overall these results demonstrate high natural variation in the frequency parameters of whistles utilized by dolphins over varying behavioural states and group composition. Anthropogenic impact in the form of marine tour boats can influence the vocalization parameters of dolphins and such changes could have a long-term impact if they reduce the communication range of whistles or increase energy expenditure. Key wordsbottlenose dolphin, marine tourism, Namibia, Tursiops truncatus, vocal behaviour Wildlife tourism involving cetacean (whale, dolphin and porpoise) watching has experienced rapid growth since the 1990s (Hoyt, 2001;O'Connor, Campbell, Cortez, & Knowles, 2009). 2Globally, boat-based cetacean watching generates an estimated 2.2 billion US dollars annually (IWC, 2014). Revenue can provide a valuable subsidy to fishing communities and in some cases wild cetacean viewing has replaced direct hunting of whales and dolphins (Amir & Jiddawi, 2001;Berggren et al., 2007). Compared with captive facilities, responsible boatbased cetacean watching has been promoted as an ethically acceptable option for observing dolphins, providing a valuable forum for environmental education and promotion of conservation efforts (IFAW, 1997). However, a considerable body of work has shown that boats and boat-based cetacean watching can have multiple negative impacts on the behaviour of the focal individual, population or species (Parsons,...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changes in bottlenose dolphin whistle parameters related to vessel presence, surface behaviour and group composition

et al. 2016

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“…The energy of the birdsong of the three communities concentrates in the frequency range of 2000 to 8000 Hz (Franco and Slabbekoorn, 2009;Pohl et al, 2013;Nemeth et al, 2013;Schmidt et al, 2013), and the frequencies between 2000-8000 Hz are especially impacted by the shape, material and height of noise barriers between the noise source and bird breeding habitat. (Slabbeckoorn and Ripmeester, 2008).…”

Section: Actual Urban Morphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In European cities, heterogeneity of avifauna species in towns is low, especially in the centre, indicating simple urban bird communities and the replacement of specialist species by generalist species (Clergeau et al, 2006;Pellissier et al, 2012). Secondly, urban noise has caused a reduction in avian species richness and the adaption of birdsong to higher frequencies (Francis et al, 2009;Pohl et al, 2013;Nemeth et al, 2013). …”

Section: Actual Urban Morphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrated effects of urban morphology on birdsong loudness and visibility of green areas

Hao

Kang

Krijnders³

2015

Landscape and Urban Planning

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Abstract:The aim of this study is to determine how to increase birdsong loudness and the visibility of green areas in low-density residential areas by controlling urban morphological parameters. The spatial sound level distributions of birdsong at 12 sites sampled from a GIS database of Assen, the Netherlands, were simulated by noise mapping techniques and calculated using a MATLAB program on spatial sound level matrices. The visibilities of green areas are analysed and calculated by Visibility Analysis Graph in Space Syntax. Correlation analyses were conducted between the obtained data on spatial sound level indices, the mean visibility and urban morphological parameters. The results show that birdsong loudness has significant positive linear relationships with urban morphological parameters, including Building Plan Area Fraction (R 2 =0.491), Green Area Perimeters (R 2

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“…Interestingly, the second note had also the highest pitch, which hints at a coupling between amplitude and pitch that has previously been described in songbirds (Dabelsteen 1984;Nelson 2000;Goller and Cooper 2008;Ritschard and Brumm 2011;Nemeth et al 2013) and a Dove (Elemans et al 2008). This comparative view suggests that, in the absence of any vocal adjustments to counter it, frequency-amplitude coupling is a general trait of bird vocalizations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

On the natural history of duetting in White-browed Coucals: sex- and body-size-dependent differences in a collective vocal display

Brumm

Goymann

2017

J Ornithol

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Avian duets have long fascinated biologists, but much remains unknown about what information may be contained in these collective displays and how duet structures vary between taxa. In this study, we describe the structure and performance rules of duets in White-browed Coucals Centropus superciliosus, a tropical non-parasitic Cuckoo. We recorded vocal behaviours of 11 focal pairs and measured temporal, frequency, and amplitude characteristics of their duets. Molecular sexing and radio telemetry revealed that duets were initiated by both sexes, but the majority of them were led by the male. Moreover, we found that duet contributions were sex specific with females producing lower-pitched songs than males, reflecting the general size dimorphism in this species. Finally, we also found that song peak frequencies varied with body size within each sex, suggesting that songs used in duets may act as index signals of body size. We speculate that sexual selection has driven White-browed Coucals to sing as low as possible, a notion that is further supported by our observation of special singing postures that may help in lowering song pitch even further.

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Bird song and anthropogenic noise: vocal constraints may explain why birds sing higher-frequency songs in cities

Cited by 170 publications

References 72 publications

Changes in bottlenose dolphin whistle parameters related to vessel presence, surface behaviour and group composition

Changes in bottlenose dolphin whistle parameters related to vessel presence, surface behaviour and group composition

Integrated effects of urban morphology on birdsong loudness and visibility of green areas

On the natural history of duetting in White-browed Coucals: sex- and body-size-dependent differences in a collective vocal display

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