Comparing the Underwater Soundscapes of Four U.S. National Parks and Marine Sanctuaries

Abstract

Passive acoustic sensors provide a cost-effective tool for monitoring marine environments. Documenting acoustic conditions among habitats can provide insights into temporal changes in ecosystem composition and anthropogenic impacts. Agencies tasked with safeguarding marine protected areas, such as the U.S. National Park Service and U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, are increasingly interested in using long-term monitoring of underwater sounds as a means of tracking species diversity and ecosystem health. In this study, low-frequency passive acoustic recordings were collected fall 2014 -spring 2018, using standardized instrumentation, from four marine protected areas across geographically disparate regions of the U.S. Economic Exclusive Zone: Northwest Atlantic, Northeast Pacific, South Pacific, and Caribbean. Recordings were analyzed for differences in seasonal conditions and to identify acoustic metrics useful for resource assessment across all sites. In addition to comparing ambient sound levels, a species common to all four sites, the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), was used to compare biological sound detection. Ambient sound levels varied across the sites and were driven by differences in animal vocalization rates, anthropogenic activity, and weather. The highest sound levels [dB RMS(50 Hz−1.5 kHz) re 1 µPa] were recorded in the Northwest Atlantic in Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (Stellwagen) during the boreal winter-spring resulting from bioacoustic activity, vessel traffic, and high wind speeds. The lowest sound levels [dB RMS(50 Hz−1.5 kHz) re 1 µPa] were recorded in the Northeast Pacific adjacent to a vessel-restricted area of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (Glacier Bay) during the boreal summer. Humpback whales were detected seasonally in the southern latitude sites, and throughout the deployment periods in the northern latitude sites. Temporal trends in band and spectrum sound levels in Glacier Bay and the National Park of American Samoa were primarily driven by

A multidisciplinary approach to identify priority areas for the monitoring of a vulnerable family of fishes in Spanish Marine National Parks

“… The management of vessel transits to protect sensible areas against habitat loss (marine flora communities) and to mitigate anthropogenic sound is necessary [ 55 ]. Long-term soundscape monitoring and more restricted vessel anchorage conditions for resource management [ 40 ] are recommended in Rodas Bay (TR10 in PNIA), which supports a high density of vessel traffic during the touristic seasons. Seagrass meadows appear as essential communities to maintain syngnathid populations in PNAC as all fishes were captured there.…”

Measuring Sound at a Cold-Water Coral Reef to Assess the Impact of COVID-19 on Noise Pollution

“…The reduction of 1.9 ± 0.11 (MAD) dB in the noise levels during the night after border closure were driven by a seasonal change coupled with a reduction of both the wind speed and sea level height (Figure 4 and Table 5). A decrease in wind speed is typically found in temporal regions when transitioning from winter to spring (Wenz, 1962;Haver et al, 2019). Changes in sea level height can be attributed to short-term variations in waves and tides or flood events associated with winter snow melts or severe storms.…”

A multidisciplinary approach to identify priority areas for the conservation of a vulnerable family of fishes in Spanish Marine National Parks

“…-The management of vessel transits to protect sensible areas against habitat loss (marine ora communities) and to mitigate anthropogenic sound is necessary (McKenna et al 2017). Long-term soundscape monitoring and more restricted vessel anchorage conditions for resource management (Haver et al 2019) is especially essential in Rodas Bay (TR10 in PNIA), which supports a high density of vessel tra c during the touristic seasons. Seagrass meadows appear as essential communities to maintain syngnathid populations in PNAC as all shes were captured there.…”