Fish Choruses Research Articles

Soundscape diversity in the Great Barrier Reef: Lizard Island, a case study

Passive acoustic monitoring can provide valuable information on coral reefs, and examining the acoustic attributes of these ecosystems has the potential to provide an insight into their status and condition. From 2014 to 2016, a series of underwater recordings were taken at field sites around Lizard Island in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Six individual fish choruses were identified where each chorus displayed distinct acoustic characteristics. Choruses exhibited diurnal activity and some field sites displayed consistently higher diversity of choruses and levels than others, suggesting that particular locations are important aggregation areas for soniferous fish species. During peak activity, choruses were a prominent component of reef soundscapes, where received levels of a chorus reached upwards of 120 dB re 1μPa rms over the 450–650 Hz band, equating to a 40 dB increase above ambient noise levels of ≈80 dB re 1μPa rms. Three out of the six detected choruses exhibited spectral and temporal characteristics similar to choruses previously documented at these sites and elsewhere, produced by planktivorous fish species. Three of these choruses appear to be undocumented and could hold information on the presence, abundance and dispersal patterns of important fish species, which may have potential long-term management applications. Future research should focus on extricating the temporal patterns associated with bioacoustic activity and determining the potential environmental drivers of biological choruses. Additionally, developing appropriate techniques for direct identification of vocalizing species would strongly increase the management applicability of passive acoustic monitoring.

Sparsified nightly fish chorusing in the Dry Tortugas during elevated background noise levels due to a tropical storm

Determining how fish respond to naturally occurring noise disturbances can provide insight into the biological mechanisms underlying the response of fish to anthropogenic noise. Data collected from passive acoustic monitoring in the Dry Tortugas, FL, showed that a tropical storm significantly increased levels of low-frequency noise over a four-day period. The nightly fish chorus occurring at this site, likely from Black Drums (Pogonias cromis), was significantly reduced during this storm event, with fewer than 10% of grunts detected during the storm’s peak as compared to pre- and post-storm levels. We applied Soundscape Control Charts, a new method to quantify the effects of natural and anthropogenic disturbances. Most commonly used in the industrial sector as alarm systems, control charts identify when a system deviates from its normal state. In this study, Soundscape Control Charts quantified the effects of this tropical storm on the communication of fish. This serendipitous dataset suggests that fish communication is negatively impacted by naturally occurring noise disturbances, and is evidence for the need to preserve marine acoustic habitats in order to facilitate animal communication.

Nocturnal patterns in fish chorusing off the coasts of Georgia and eastern Florida

Fish chorusing is a major component of the marine acoustic environment, and much of this chorusing activity happens at night. These nocturnal sounds are commonly associated with reproductive behavior. For many co-occurring taxa, increases in vocal activity may intensify acoustic competition within a constrained signaling environment; for nocturnal species, there is a limited time window for these critical behaviors, and competition to be heard by conspecifics likely increases. Using passive acoustic recording units deployed in the nearshore waters off Georgia and eastern Florida, we evaluated the nocturnal acoustic habits of fishes and examined how the sounds from nocturnal fish chorusing contribute to the overall soundscape. We examined long-term spectrograms for spatial and temporal patterns of fish calling. Black drum [Pogonias cromis (Linnaeus, 1766)] and toadfish (Opsanus sp.) dominated the nocturnal acoustic scene, but calls of other identified [e.g., red drum, Sciaenops ocellatus (Linnaeus, 1766); silver perch, Bairdiella chrysoura (Lacepede, 1802)] and unidentified calling species also occur. We examined the acoustic indices of entropy, acoustic diversity, and acoustic complexity to compare nocturnal and diurnal fish calling activity across the region. When sustained fish chorusing activity increases, entropy and acoustic diversity decrease, but acoustic complexity increases. With the acoustic differences in composition of nocturnally- and diurnally-active species groups, there is a different nocturnal soundscape than during the day. Passive acoustic surveys represent an exciting approach to understand the nocturnal reproductive activity of coastal fishes.

Use of passive acoustic monitoring to characterize fish spawning behavior and habitat use within a complex mosaic of estuarine habitats

Structurally complex estuarine habitats, such as seagrass beds, salt marshes, and oyster reefs, are used by fish for foraging, avoiding predators, and spawning. Here, we used passive acoustics to characterize spatiotemporal patterns in the soundscape of an estuarine reserve that contained a mosaic of habitat types, and focused on relating characteristics of the soundscape [e.g., low-frequency (150–1500 Hz) sound pressure levels (SPLs), amount of fish chorusing] to patterns in the seascape (percent cover of estuarine habitats surrounding the recording sites). Over a 3-mo period, 2-min duration underwater sound recordings were made every 20 min at eight sites within Middle Marsh in Back Sound, North Carolina, USA. While habitat composition was not related to spatial patterns in low-frequency SPLs, there was a positive and statistically significant relationship between the percent recordings with fish chorusing, and percent cover of seagrass for silver perch [Bairdiella chrysoura (Lacepede, 1802)], spotted seatrout [Cynoscion nebulosus (Cuvier, 1830)], and other fish, irrespective of spatial scale (10 vs 25 m). Moreover, silver perch and spotted seatrout, soniferous species that share similar spawning locations, exhibited temporal partitioning in the soundscape with seatrout calls occurring just before sunset and peaking several hours after sunset, and declining sharply as perch chorusing increased after sunset with a peak at midnight. Overall, local habitat composition and the soundscape at these sites were not highly correlated; where major sound producing fish species are transient, other seascape characteristics, such as proximity to channels, likely have a larger influence on the resulting soundscape.

Temporal and spectral patterns of fish choruses in two protected areas in southern Atlantic

The Laje de Santos Marine State Park (LSMSP) and Xixová-Japuí State Park (XJSP) are two protected areas (PAs) located in the southern Atlantic Brazilian coast. One month of continuous underwater sound recordings allowed determining that durable fish choruses was a major contributor of LSMSP and XJSP soundscapes. The choruses showed well defined daily periodicities and exceeded background ambient noise for some hours every day, principally at dawn and dusk. This work describes the daily temporal patterns and spectral characteristics of the studied PAs choruses. Annotations of some chorus temporal descriptors (start, peak and end time instants) allow obtaining a precise statistical representation of diel chorus occurrence. Average Power Spectral Density and cepstral analysis were used to determine quantitative values for choruses spectral characterization. Results show that the passive acoustic technique could be a cost-effective method for management and fish monitoring in PAs.

Passive Acoustic Observations in the Shallow Waters of Northwest Bay of Bengal to Study the Effects of Impact Pile Driving on Fish Chorus

AbstractAmbient noise time series measurements were recorded in the shallow water of Northwest Bay of Bengal. A few data sets revealed the presence of impact pile-driving noise. The site is also known for the presence of the speciesTerapon theraps(Family:Terapontidae), and the fish chorus was recorded during the measurement period. Sound metrics of impact pile-driving noise were calculated to assess their potential impacts on fish chorus. Averaged peak sound pressure level reached 162 dB re 1 μPa, and single-strike sound exposure level is about 134 dB re 1 μPa2s, leading to a cumulative sound exposure level of approximately 148 dB re 1 μPa2s. The impact pile-driving signal has the highest energy in lower frequency band over 0.05‐1 kHz. It is observed thatT. therapsfish chorus also displays their pulse repetition rate and swimbladder spectral peaks at lower frequencies. Detailed analysis of the entire data sets indicates that the fishes were exposed to the pile-driving noise, which would have an impact on the chorus made by them.

Fine‐scale habitat use in Indo‐Pacific humpback dolphins, Sousa chinensis, may be more influenced by fish rather than vessels in the Pearl River Estuary, China

AbstractShifts in habitat use and distribution patterns in dolphins are often concerns that can result from habitat degradation. We investigated how potential changes to a habitat from human activity may alter dolphin distributions within Lingding Bay in the Pearl River Estuary, China, by studying the relationship between fish choruses, vessel presence and Indo‐Pacific humpback dolphin (Sousa chinensis) detection rates. Analyses revealed temporal and spatial variation within fish choruses, vessel presence and dolphin detection rates. After accounting for any temporal autocorrelation, correlations between fish choruses and dolphin detection rates were also found; however, no relationship between fish choruses and vessel presence or dolphin detection rates and vessel presence were observed. Furthermore, fewer dolphins were detected at sites where fish activity was less intense. Thus fish activity, rather than vessels, may be a key factor influencing the distribution of the dolphins within the estuary. These findings emphasize the risk of potential shifts in habitat use for Indo‐Pacific humpback dolphins due to detrimental changes to prey availability and dolphin feeding grounds from human activity, such as overfishing and coastal developments, within the estuary. This is a critical conservation issue for this dolphin population that is facing intense anthropogenic pressure.

Temporal patterns in the soundscape of the shallow waters of a Mediterranean marine protected area.

The study of marine soundscapes is an emerging field of research that contributes important information about biological compositions and environmental conditions. The seasonal and circadian soundscape trends of a marine protected area (MPA) in the Mediterranean Sea have been studied for one year using an autonomous acoustic recorder. Frequencies less than 1 kHz are dominated by noise generated by waves and are louder during the winter; conversely, higher frequencies (4–96 kHz) are dominated by snapping shrimp, which increase their acoustic activity at night during the summer. Fish choruses, below 2 kHz, characterize the soundscape at sunset during the summer. Because there are 13 vessel passages per hour on average, causing acoustic interference with fish choruses 46% of the time, this MPA cannot be considered to be protected from noise. On the basis of the high seasonal variability of the soundscape components, this study proposes a one-year acoustic monitoring protocol using the soundscape methodology approach and discusses the concept of MPA size.

Fish choruses off Port Hedland, Western Australia

Australian waters are home to a number of vocal species of fish. Cataloguing the acoustic characteristics and temporal patterns of choruses and their locations can provide significant information for long-term monitoring of vocal fishes and their ecosystems. In coastal waters off Port Hedland, Western Australia, two seafloor positioned sea-noise loggers, located 21.5 km apart in 8 and 18 m of water, recorded for an 18-month period. Numerous sound sources were detected, including mooring and vessel noise, humpback whale song and a large variety of fish signal types. Seven fish choruses were identified, occurring predominantly between late spring and early autumn (wet season) and displaying energy from 50 Hz to >4 kHz. Many of these choruses exhibited acoustic characteristics similar to choruses previously reported elsewhere, for some of which the source species or families have been identified. Distinct diurnal patterns in the choruses were observed, associated with sunrise or sunset and in some cases, both. While choruses were predominantly recorded on different days, there were at total of 80 days when more than one chorus was present at the same site. Some pairs of choruses present on the same day exhibited various combinations of temporal and frequency partitioning, while others displayed predominant overlap in both spaces.

Temporal soundscape patterns and processes in an estuarine reserve

MEPS Marine Ecology Progress Series Contact the journal Facebook Twitter RSS Mailing List Subscribe to our mailing list via Mailchimp HomeLatest VolumeAbout the JournalEditorsTheme Sections MEPS 550:25-38 (2016) - DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps11724 Temporal soundscape patterns and processes in an estuarine reserve Shannon W. Ricci1,*, David B. Eggleston1,2, DelWayne R. Bohnenstiehl1, Ashlee Lillis1,3 1Department of Marine, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695-8208, USA 2Center for Marine Sciences and Technology, North Carolina State University, Morehead City, North Carolina 28557, USA 3Present address: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, USA *Corresponding author: swbrown@ncsu.edu ABSTRACT: Underwater acoustic recordings can be used to measure the distribution and activity of sound-producing species and investigate variability in the physical and biological characteristics of marine ecosystems. This study characterized the summer soundscape of a coastal estuarine reserve, Middle Marsh, near Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina, USA. Passive recorders were deployed at 8 sites, within a mixture of seagrass, saltmarsh, oyster reef and soft-bottom habitats, and sampled for 2 min every 20 min between June and August 2014. Sound pressure levels (SPLs) in a high-frequency band (7-43 kHz) exhibited a periodicity of once per day, being 11 dB higher during the nighttime. This pattern is correlated with snapping shrimp sounds, with an average excess of ~12% more snaps detected at night. The same analysis for SPLs in a low-frequency band (150-1500 Hz) revealed a periodicity of twice per day, with diurnal sound levels varying by up to 29 dB. Temporal variability in the low-frequency soundscape is correlated with fish chorusing, as well as tidal water level, which may influence both the presence and absence of fish and the propagation of sound in the water column. The greatest SPLs are observed in association with periods of high biological activity during nighttime high tides. Sampling marine animals and their activities over ecologically relevant time scales is challenging using conventional techniques (trawls and throw traps) within complex shallow water habitats, particularly at night. Soundscape monitoring provides an additional method to assess spatiotemporal variation in essential fish habitat use within a complex mosaic of habitat types. KEY WORDS: Passive acoustics · Habitat-related sound · Soundscapes · Estuarine habitats Full text in pdf format Supplementary material PreviousNextCite this article as: Ricci SW, Eggleston DB, Bohnenstiehl DR, Lillis A (2016) Temporal soundscape patterns and processes in an estuarine reserve. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 550:25-38. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps11724 Export citation RSS - Facebook - Tweet - linkedIn Cited by Published in MEPS Vol. 550. Online publication date: May 25, 2016 Print ISSN: 0171-8630; Online ISSN: 1616-1599 Copyright © 2016 Inter-Research.

Characterizing diversity and variation in fish choruses in Darwin Harbour

AbstractThe diversity, intensity, and periodicity of fish sounds can provide a wealth of information on spatial and temporal distribution of soniferous fish and, on occasion, which environmental factors these choruses are driven by. Such information can help predict species presence and understand their movement patterns in the long term. At three sites in Darwin Harbour, Australia, sea-noise loggers on the harbour floor recorded ambient noise over a 2-year period. Many fish calls and nine different chorus types were detected over 50 Hz to 3 kHz. Source species were speculated for four of the choruses and source levels, a precursor to passive acoustic abundance estimates, were identified for two of these. Other calls displayed similarities to choruses detected elsewhere in Australia. All choruses displayed diel cycles with semi-lunar patterns present for three of the chorus types. Time of sunset and temperature were also significantly related to the presence of the most predominant chorus and while not statistically significant, height of high tide and salinity also appeared related. A lack of frequency and temporal partitioning in calling across the choruses in hours of darkness (after sunset) illustrates the complexity of monitoring communities of different vocal species. The study has outlined some of the patterns biological sounds exhibit, which has significant implications for sampling strategies when using soundscapes for temporal and spatial predictive modelling.

Underwater soundscape of marine protected areas in the south Brazilian coast

The Laje de Santos Marine State Park (LSMSP) and Xixová-Japuí State Park (XJSP) are two protected areas (PA), close to the Santos Bay in the south Brazilian coast. The region encompasses both important biodiversity and anthropogenic activities. This study aims to serve as a first reference survey of the underwater soundscape of these PAs. Additionally it evaluates the presence of the anthropogenic and biological sound in these areas. One month of continuous recorded underwater sound, at selected locations in XJSP and LSMSP, is used in this study. The data were characterized by its spectral content and by the temporal evolution of Sound Pressure Levels (SPL). Both locations showed sound events with daily periodicities, mainly related with boats and fish chorus.

Humans, Fish, and Whales: How Right Whales Modify Calling Behavior in Response to Shifting Background Noise Conditions.

This study investigates the role of behavioral plasticity in the variation of sound production of southern right whales (Eubalaena australis) in response to changes in the ambient background noise conditions. Data were collected from southern right whales in Brazilian waters in October and November 2011. The goal of this study was to quantify differences in right whale vocalizations recorded in low background noise as a control, fish chorus noise, and vessel noise. Variation in call parameters were detected among the three background noise conditions and have implications for future studies of noise effects on whale sound production.

A severe red tide (Tampa Bay, 2005) causes an anomalous decrease in biological sound.

Although harmful algal blooms (HABs) are known to cause morbidity and mortality in marine organisms, their sublethal effects are poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to compare ambient noise levels during a severe HAB event in Tampa Bay, Florida, to those during non-HAB periods. Passive acoustic monitoring was conducted using bottom-mounted autonomous acoustic recorders during a severe HAB in summer 2005, and in summers 2006, 2011 and 2012 (non-severe HAB years). Ambient noise levels were significantly higher during the non-HAB years due to an abundance of snapping shrimp (Alpheidae) sounds and fish chorusing. The difference of sound intensity between the study years is most likely attributable to effects of the HAB on the abundance and/or behaviour of fish and snapping shrimp as a result of mortality and stress-induced behavioural modifications.

Dynamics of soundscape in a shallow water marine environment: a study of the habitat of the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin.

The underwater acoustic field is an important ecological element for many aquatic animals. This research examines the soundscape of a critically endangered Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin population in the shallow water environment off the west coast of Taiwan. Underwater acoustic recordings were conducted between late spring and late fall in 2012 at Yunlin (YL), which is close to a shipping lane, and Waisanding (WS), which is relatively pristine. Site-specific analyses were performed on the dynamics of the temporal and spectral acoustic characteristics for both locations. The results highlight the dynamics of the soundscape in two major octave bands: 150-300 Hz and 1.2-2.4 kHz. The acoustic energy in the former frequency band is mainly associated with passing container vessels near YL, while the latter frequency band is from sonic fish chorus at nighttime in both recording sites. In addition, large variation of low frequency acoustic energy throughout the study period was noticed at WS, where the water depths ranged between 1.5 and 4.5 m depending on tidal cycle. This phenomenon suggests that besides certain sound sources in the environment, the coastal soundscape may also be influenced by its local bathymetry and the dynamics of the physical environment.

Variations of soundscape in a shallow water marine environment for the Chinese white dolphin

For acoustically oriented animals, sound field can either provide or mask critical information for their well-being and survival. In addition, understanding the variations of the soundscape in the Chinese white dolphin habitat is important to monitoring the relationship between human activities, calling fish, and dolphins, thus assist in coastal conservation and management. Here, we examined the soundscape of a critically endangered Chinese white dolphin population in two shallow water areas next to western coast of Taiwan. Two recording stations were established at Yunlin, which is close to an industrial harbor, and Waisanding, which is nearby a fishing village, in summer 2012. Site specific analyses were performed on variations of the temporal and spectral acoustic characteristics for both locations. The results show different soundscapes for the two sites from different recurring human activities. At Yunlin, high acoustic energy was usually dominated by cargo ships producing noise below 1 kHz. At Waisanding, much higher frequency noise, up to 16 kHz produced by passing fishing boats were detected. In addition, a diurnal cycle of the acoustic field between 1200 and 2600 Hz was observed. It is established that this sound was produced by fish chorus that were observed in both locations.

The ambient acoustic environments at two locations in Laguna San Ignacio, Baja, Mexico

Each winter gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) breed and calve in Laguna San Ignacio, with the lagoon's northern section more heavily used by mothers rearing calves. The southern section of the lagoon is open to milling and ecotourism traffic, while the northern section is restricted to vessel transits only. Ambient acoustic data from autonomous underwater recorders have been collected between 2008 and 2013 at Punta Piedra (southern section) and Camp Kuyima (northern section). Multiple sources of acoustic sound exist in the lagoon, including tidal flows, fish chorusing, gray whale vocalizations, snapping shrimp, daily land/sea breezes, and panga activity. Here the cumulative distributions of rms sound pressure levels from all deployments during daytime and nighttime are presented for several frequency bands that represent contributions from the varying source mechanisms. Since concurrent data from both restricted (northern) and unrestricted (southern) sections exist, comparing sound level distributions between sites can provide insight into the relative contributions of various mechanisms to the overall ambient noise environment. These data have established a baseline for monitoring trends and changes in acoustic environments of the lagoon in anticipation of future tourist development. [Work sponsored by LSIESP and Ocean Foundation.]

Quantifying ocean noise and its spatiotemporal variability on Australia’s Northwest Shelf

The Northwest Shelf is an extensive oil and gas region off Western Australia. The Centre for Marine Science and Technology at Curtin University has recorded underwater noise in this region for 14 years on behalf of industry and government. Under the Collaborative Environmental Research Initiative (CERI), this data is being shared and synthesized to quantify the marine soundscape and to describe spatiotemporal variability. Automatic software analysis tools were developed to process the data. Power spectrum density percentiles were computed for all sites on a monthly basis, and compared. Distinct spectral features were identified. Factors contributing to the observed spatiotemporal variability ranged from long-term offshore oil and gas installations to fish choruses. [Work supported by Chevron Australia.]

New observations and modeling of an unusual spatiotemporal pattern of fish chorusing off the southern California coast

The purpose of this paper is to present new results on an unusual spatiotemporal pattern of fish chorusing off the southern California coast. Characteristics of this fish chorus have been reported previously; it occurs at night in the late spring and summer months in shallow, sandy bottom regions just outside the surf zone. The background sound levels increase by up to 30 dB and cycle in level with a period of 30–35 s all night long. In this paper, recent results from measurements made by a set of high spatial resolution sensor systems spanning a 50-km stretch of coastline out to 20 km offshore over a 2-month time period are presented. These data allow the spatial dependence and long-term temporal variability of the chorus to be examined at high spatial resolution. Refinements to a numerical model that predicts this chorusing behavior are required to account for some aspects of these new observations. [Work supported by the Office of Naval Research, Code 322-MMB.]

Acoustic characterisation of bycatch mitigation pingers on shark control nets in Queensland, Australia

The Queensland Shark Control Program (QSCP) uses pingers to prevent marine mammal entanglement in shark control nets along public beaches, in Queensland, Australia. Acoustic emissions of Fumunda F3 (designed for humpback whales) and F10 pingers (designed for dolphins) were measured and characterised. The acoustic signals consisted of tones (3 and 10 kHz, respectively) and harmonic overtones emitted for about 400 ms every 5 to 6 s. Directivity was more pronounced for the overtones. Broadband source levels were up to 135 dB re 1 µPa at 1 m for all pingers at all angles. Ambient noise was recorded in the vicinity of shark nets for 3 wk each quar- ter of 1 yr. Fish choruses, migrating humpback whales, dolphins, snapping shrimp, boats, sand- pumps, wind and wave noise were identified. Beyond 1.5 km, pingers no longer contributed sig- nificantly to the ambient noise budget. Sound propagation was modelled to relate received pinger tones to measured ambient levels and to estimate the potential detection of pingers by local mar- ine mammals (humpback whales, dugongs, dolphins). Mean transmitted levels were predicted to be audible over up to a few 100 m in range (depending on species). With currently 3 to 4 pingers per shark net of 200 m length, existing pinger type and arrangement were modelled to be ade- quate, even for marine mammals swimming straight at a net at top speed. Additional behavioural studies or long-term monitoring are needed to determine pinger efficacy.