Which birds adjust the frequency of vocalizations in urban noise?

Hu, Yang; Cardoso, Gonçalo C.

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.12.036

Cited by 130 publications

(92 citation statements)

References 35 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Research addressing noise impacts on adult birds has found wide variation among species in the response to noise, with some species showing increased abundance and others showing decreased abundance in noisy areas (e.g. Francis et al, 2009) as well as wide variation in the degree of behavioral plasticity in response to noise (Francis et al, 2011;Hu and Cardoso, 2010). Therefore, further studies are needed to determine whether the observed lack of (or positive) impact of noise on nestling development is generalizable to other species of birds.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of experimentally elevated traffic noise on nestling white-crowned sparrow stress physiology, immune function, and life-history

Crino

Johnson

Blickley

et al. 2013

Journal of Experimental Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

SUMMARYRoads have been associated with behavioral and physiological changes in wildlife. In birds, roads decrease reproductive success and biodiversity and increase physiological stress. Although the consequences of roads on individuals and communities have been well described, the mechanisms through which roads affect birds remain largely unexplored. Here, we examine one mechanism through which roads could affect birds: traffic noise. We exposed nestling mountain white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys oriantha) to experimentally elevated traffic noise for 5days during the nestling period. Following exposure to traffic noise we measured nestling stress physiology, immune function, body size, condition and survival. Based on prior studies, we expected the traffic noise treatment to result in elevated stress hormones (glucocorticoids), and declines in immune function, body size, condition and survival. Surprisingly, nestlings exposed to traffic noise had lower glucocorticoid levels and improved condition relative to control nests. These results indicate that traffic noise does affect physiology and development in white-crowned sparrows, but not at all as predicted. Therefore, when evaluating the mechanisms through which roads affect avian populations, other factors (e.g. edge effects, pollution and mechanical vibration) may be more important than traffic noise in explaining elevated nestling stress responses in this species.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of experimentally elevated traffic noise on nestling white-crowned sparrow stress physiology, immune function, and life-history

Crino

Johnson

Blickley

et al. 2013

Journal of Experimental Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Here, the fundamental question we consider is the effect of the noise treatment under normative conditions, and not variation in song features of exemplar songs. This strategy helps inform how changing acoustic conditions impact typical songs and may better generalize across species, because some species appear not to modify vocalizations in response to noise (Hu and Cardoso 2010, Francis et al 2011b, 2012b.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anthropogenic noise weakens territorial response to intruder's songs

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. Noise pollution degrades natural acoustic conditions, potentially interfering with bird communication. However, exactly how noise impacts the ability of the signal receiver to detect and discriminate vocalizations from conspecifics remains understudied in field settings. We performed a natural experiment to determine the effect of noise pollution on the territory-defense behaviors of two emberizid sparrows exposed to carefully constructed playbacks of conspecific intruder songs. Although all birds reacted to the playbacks, response latency increased with noise levels. This suggests that noise interferes with signal reception and may indicate impaired signal discrimination. We place these results in the context of a receiver's "listening area" and the significant impact of noise pollution on this receiver-centric perceptual acoustic range. This work informs conservation efforts and provides a much needed fieldbased examination of the disruptive impact of noise pollution on behaviors directly related to reproduction and fitness.

show abstract

“…A comparison between urban and rural great tits found that frequency shifts to avoid masking occur in cities in Europe [15], but the phenomenon depends heavily on species identity [9,23]. Urban noise may mask lower frequencies in birds' songs, and therefore silvereyes in cities may sing at higher frequencies to avoid this masking.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geographically pervasive effects of urban noise on frequency and syllable rate of songs and calls in silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis)

2011

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Recent studies in the Northern Hemisphere have shown that songbirds living in noisy urban environments sing at higher frequencies than their rural counterparts. However, several aspects of this phenomenon remain poorly understood. These include the geographical scale over which such patterns occur (most studies have compared local populations), and whether they involve phenotypic plasticity or microevolutionary change. We conducted a field study of silvereye (Zosterops lateralis) vocalizations over more than 1 million km 2 of urban and rural south-eastern Australia, and compared possible effects of urban noise on songs (which are learned) and contact calls (which are innate). Across 14 paired urban and rural populations, silvereyes consistently sang both songs and contact calls at higher frequencies in urban environments. Syllable rate (syllables per second) decreased in urban environments, consistent with the hypothesis that reflective structures degrade song and encourage longer intervals between syllables. This comprehensive study is, to our knowledge, the first to demonstrate varied adaptations of urban bird vocalizations over a vast geographical area, and to provide insight into the mechanism responsible for these changes.

show abstract

Which birds adjust the frequency of vocalizations in urban noise?

Cited by 130 publications

References 35 publications

The effects of experimentally elevated traffic noise on nestling white-crowned sparrow stress physiology, immune function, and life-history

The effects of experimentally elevated traffic noise on nestling white-crowned sparrow stress physiology, immune function, and life-history

Anthropogenic noise weakens territorial response to intruder's songs

Geographically pervasive effects of urban noise on frequency and syllable rate of songs and calls in silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About