Effects of artificial light at night on the foraging behavior of an endangered nocturnal mammal

Shier, Debra M.; Bird, Alicia K.; Wang, Thea B.

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2020.114566

Cited by 28 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 78 publications

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“…Like small rodents, shrews are prey species that continuously face a risk of predation in their natural habitats. Indeed, our current results on shrews match the result of those rodent studies in showing a risk‐minimizing strategy in the presence of strong illumination (Bird et al, 2004; Clarke, 1983; Eilam, 2004; Perea et al, 2011; Shier et al, 2020; Vásquez, 1994; Zhang et al, 2020). The dark area in our experiment was brighter than a full moon night (around 3 lux) and our comparison thus reflects the decisions a shrew might make when confronted with areas of direct versus shaded artificial light, as it can be found in an urban context.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Artificial light affects the foraging behavior in greater white‐toothed shrews (CROCIDURA RUSSULA)

et al. 2022

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One of the major environmental changes in the growing humaninfluenced areas is an increase of artificial light at night (ALAN) (Gaston et al., 2015). This effect is strongly associated with urbanized areas (via direct lighting) such as cities, towns, roads, and other urban infrastructures. ALAN also influences the environment by creating a general sky brightness that can illuminate areas far from urban areas, reaching approximately ¼ of earth's terrestrial area, excluding the Arctic and Antarctic, with an illumination intensity that exceeds a full moon night (Falchi et al., 2016). The resulting light pollution affects animals of a wide range of taxa, by altering different aspects of their ecology, behavior, and physiology

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Artificial light affects the foraging behavior in greater white‐toothed shrews (CROCIDURA RUSSULA)

et al. 2022

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“…An increasing number of studies demonstrate that species alter their behaviour in response to artificial light, such as their foraging [ 12 ], predator avoidance [ 13 ], orientation [ 14 ], and timing of reproductive activities [ 15 ], but whether the responses are adaptive or not is largely unknown. The impact of anthropogenically induced changes to behaviour depends on past conditions and the evolutionary history of the species; species that encounter novel conditions may not have evolved reaction norms for coping with the disturbances and, hence, may express maladaptive responses [ 10 , 11 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reproduction under light pollution: maladaptive response to spatial variation in artificial light in a glow-worm

et al. 2020

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The amount of artificial light at night is growing worldwide, impacting the behaviour of nocturnal organisms. Yet, we know little about the consequences of these behavioural responses for individual fitness and population viability. We investigated if females of the common glow-worm Lampyris noctiluca —which glow in the night to attract males—mitigate negative effects of artificial light on mate attraction by adjusting the timing and location of glowing to spatial variation in light conditions. We found females do not move away from light when exposed to a gradient of artificial light, but delay or even refrain from glowing. Further, we demonstrate that this response is maladaptive, as our field study showed that staying still when exposed to artificial light from a simulated streetlight decreases mate attraction success, while moving only a short distance from the light source can markedly improve mate attraction. These results indicate that glow-worms are unable to respond to spatial variation in artificial light, which may be a factor in their global decline. Consequently, our results support the hypothesis that animals often lack adaptive behavioural responses to anthropogenic environmental changes and underlines the importance of considering behavioural responses when investigating the effects of human activities on wildlife.

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“…Thus, ALAN may create a ‘foraging exclusion zone’ for these animals. Indeed, there exists some experimental evidence in support of this notion [ 43 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Artificial light at night may decrease predation risk for terrestrial insects

Eckhartt

Ruxton

2022

Biol. Lett.

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Artificial light at night (ALAN) is thought to be detrimental for terrestrial insect populations. While there exists evidence for lower abundance under ALAN, underlying mechanisms remain unclear. One mechanism by which ALAN may contribute to insect declines may be through facilitating increased predation. We investigated this by experimentally manipulating insect-substitute abundance under differential levels of light. We used insect-containing birdfeed placed at varying distances from streetlights as a proxy for terrestrial insects, inspecting the rate of predation before and after dusk (when streetlights are, respectively, off and on). We found that there was a significantly greater effect of increasing distance on predation after dusk, suggesting that predation was actually reduced by greater levels of artificial light. This may occur because ALAN also increases the vulnerability of insectivores to their own predators. Implications for foraging behaviour and alternative explanations are discussed.

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Effects of artificial light at night on the foraging behavior of an endangered nocturnal mammal

Cited by 28 publications

References 78 publications

Artificial light affects the foraging behavior in greater white‐toothed shrews (CROCIDURA RUSSULA)

Artificial light affects the foraging behavior in greater white‐toothed shrews (CROCIDURA RUSSULA)

Reproduction under light pollution: maladaptive response to spatial variation in artificial light in a glow-worm

Artificial light at night may decrease predation risk for terrestrial insects

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