Photo credit: Eriks Abzinovs from Pexels
by Arline L. Bronzaft, Ph.D., Board of Directors, GrowNYC, and Co-founder, The Quiet Coalition
Bernie Krause, an American musician and soundscape ecologist, began recording the natural soundscape over fifty years ago when he founded the Wild Sanctuary. Thus, it was with alarm that he noted that the drought of a local creek in Northern California silenced the chirping and singing that had been long associated with that park. Climate change, according to Emily Anthes, “will silence some species in their traditional habitats and force them to seek new ones.” Such shifts, she says, could “make it more difficult for wild creatures to attract mates, avoid predators and stay oriented.”
Anthes writes about the harmful effects of climate change on the lives of frogs, birds, shrimp, and whales. She points to the fact that climate change affects the sounds that animals make and it is this ability to make certain sounds that is critical to their survival. Under stress, “the Earth’s sonic landscape faces disruption.” She concludes her piece by stating that “[n]oise decreases the capacity of animals to discriminate information.”
Like the animals described in Anthes’ article, noise also disrupts the health and well-being of humans. Furthermore, man-made noise also intrudes on the capacity of birds and whales to communicate with each other. And let us not forget that climate change, for the most part, results from human activities.
What do I expect readers to bring away from my review of this article? First, that by tuning into the sounds of birds, frogs, whales and other species, we will learn the important role sounds play in their survival and, hopefully, this will lead to actions to protect these animals, especially in their natural habitats. During this COVID-19 pandemic so many people have stated how much they enjoy the singing of birds and the chirping of insects. These sounds, they say, are soothing and pleasurable. Let’s work together after the lockdown is over to lessen the urban din that drowns out these calming sounds.
