Mapping the Southern Residents’

Acoustic Habitat

Mapping the Southern Residents’

Acoustic Habitat

Increasing awareness of anthropogenic noise

Brett BeckerBellingham, Washington

Increasing awareness of anthropogenic noise

Brett BeckerBellingham, Washington

Recent studies on sound in the marine

environment

Recent studies on sound in the marine

environment

• Significant amount of research is being done attempting to characterize human made marine noise and its effects on sea creatures.

• Workshop on the Effects of Anthropogenic Noise in the Marine Environment (Gisner 1998)

Oceans of Noise: A Whale Dolphin Conservation report (Simmonds, Dolman & Weilgart 2004)

What is Anthropogenic

noise?

What is Anthropogenic

noise?• Human pollution of the acoustic

environment is on the rise in recent decades.

• Industrial noise.

• Noise ordinance laws reflect general cultural dissatisfaction with increased levels of noise pollution.

What else do humans have to add?

Interactive research

Interactive research

• Peter Beamish

• “Rhythm Based Communication” (RBC)

• Jim Nolman

• Music as a means to inter-species communication

• David Dunn

Humans are a part of the larger “eco-systemic mental structure”

Effects of noise on humans

Effects of noise on humans

• Increased stress hormones

• Higher blood pressure

• Learned helplessness

Masking

Sound in waterSound in water

• Sound travels 5 times as fast in water than in air

• Electromagnetic waves like light do not travel well in water

Underwater organisms rely on sound waves the way we do light waves.

Passive use of sound by marine fauna

Passive use of sound by marine fauna

• Detection of predators

• location and detection of prey.

• Proximity perception of co-species in school

• Perception of changing environmental conditions

“Acoustic illumination” akin to daylight vision

Active use of sound by marine fauna

Active use of sound by marine fauna

• Communication with co-species for breeding and feeding.

• Territorial and social relations

• Echolocation

• Stunning and apprehending prey

• Alarm calls

• Long distance navigation

Defense

Sources of anthropogenic

noise

Sources of anthropogenic

noise• Vessel traffic (tankers, cargo, fishing, whale

watching, recreational)

• “single largest contributor to the total acoustic budget of the ocean” (Gisner 1998)

• Other sources• Sonar• Seismic surveys• Drilling, Pile Driving

Explosions

attempts to map noise

attempts to map noise

• Tend to visual orientation

• Tend to limit focus to physical properties properties of sound (intensity, frequency)

• Limits

• Easily forgotten

Over simplification

frequency mapfrequency map

Loudness mapLoudness map

New tools for a new day

New tools for a new day

• Listening is important

• Provides direction experience

• Presents whole acoustic ecosystem

• Internet & satellite GPS

Help create ‘global village’

Puget Soundscape map

Puget Soundscape map• Integrates actual recordings

• Locates recordings in GPS coordinates

• Available for all anthros with internet

Allows for further recordings to be added

the processthe process• Utilized all recordings made by crew

• Files selection technique• sample as microcosm• 30 seconds• mp3 compression

Google Maps API

The mapThe map

http://homepage.mac.com/brettbecker/soundscape/pugetsoundscape.html

What i heardWhat i heard

• There is a massive amount of boat noise out there

• It is monotonous

• Low information content

People are unaware of or have grown apathetic of noise pollution

The message = hope

The message = hope

• Increases global awareness of marine noise

• public awareness = noise ordinance?

• Remember the other higher life forms

• Listen more

What are we contributing to global chorus?