Merrall, E.S. and Evans, K.L. (2020) Anthropogenic noise reduces avian feeding efficiency and increases vigilance along an urban–rural gradient regardless of species’ tolerances to urbanisation. Journal of Avian Biology, 51 (9). e02341. ISSN 0908-8857
Abstract
Anthropogenic noise can adversely impact urban bird populations by interfering with vocal communication. Less research has addressed if anthropogenic noise masks the adventitious sounds that birds use to aid predator detection, which may lead to increased vigilance and reduced feeding efficiency. We test this hypothesis using a controlled playback experiment along an urban–rural gradient in Sheffield (UK). We also test the related predictions that anthropogenic noise has the greatest impacts on vigilance and feeding efficiency in rural populations, and on species that are more sensitive to urbanisation. We focus on six passerines, in order from most to least urbanised (based on how urbanisation influences population densities): blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus, robin Erithacus rubeculla, great tit Parus major, chaffinch Fringilla coelebs, coal tit Periparus ater and nuthatch Sitta europaea. We used play‐back of anthropogenic urban noise and a control treatment at 46 feeding stations located along the urban–rural gradient. We assess impacts on willingness to visit feeders, feeding and vigilance rates. Exposure to anthropogenic noise reduced visit rates to supplementary feeding stations, reduced feeding rates and increased vigilance. Birds at more urban sites exhibit less marked treatment induced reductions in feeding rates, suggesting that urban populations may be partially habituated or adapted to noisy environments. There was no evidence, however, that more urbanised species were less sensitive to the impacts of noise on any response variable. Our results support the adventitious sound masking hypothesis. Urban noise may thus interfere with the ability of birds to detect predators, reducing their willingness to use food rich environments and increase vigilance rates resulting in reduced feeding rates. These adverse impacts may compromise the quality of otherwise suitable foraging habitats in noisy urban areas. They are likely to be widespread as they arise in a range of species including common urban birds.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 The Authors. Journal of Avian Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Nordic Society Oikos. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/) which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | animal communication; antimicrobial capacity; antimicrobial defences; innate humoral immunity; sexual selection in females; Sturnus unicolor |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > School of Biosciences (Sheffield) > Department of Animal and Plant Sciences (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 28 Oct 2020 16:28 |
Last Modified: | 28 Oct 2020 16:28 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1111/jav.02341 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:167312 |