Noise pollution from vehicles, oil and gas fields and urban
sprawl is becoming a major threat to wildlife. In Canada,
traffic noise is causing the number of frog species to decline.
In Africa, the numbers and different species of primates is
falling if the animals live near roads. In The Netherlands, 60%
of bird species avoid roads. In response to urban
noise, some birds have to sing at higher frequencies,
so they are better able to
hear each
other.
But not all animals are able to adapt. Female grey tree frogs
that are exposed to the sounds of passing traffic take longer
to find males. We need to become
conscious of the fact that noise pollution also
effects the ability of owls and bats to find and hunt their
prey. Both species are unable to change their calling habitats
to overcome the din from the roads, potentially compromising
their ability to reproduce.
In BBC News, Matt Walker quotes researcher Jesse Barber as
saying, "Many animal species evolved hearing sensitive
enough to take advantage of the quietest conditions; their
hearing is increasingly compromised by noise."
Did you hear the story about the
edge news
website that everyone loved but which went under anyway?
That could happen to us if we don't get more support so
subscribe
today! And please click on the "donate" tab on our
homepage too.
Art credit: Dreamstime.com
For more information, click here.
