Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-wzw2p Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-08T08:49:44.668Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Theoretical approach to estimating the induction of hearing impairment in bottlenose dolphins by radiated leisure boat noise

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 August 2011

Jonathan A. David
Jonathan A. David*
Affiliation:
School of Biology, University of St Andrews, Scottish Oceans Institute, St Andrews, Fife, UK
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: J.A. David, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, Scottish Oceans Institute, St Andrews, Fife, UK email: jad1@st-andrews.ac.uk
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Coastal waters are being subjected to underwater noise generated by increasing numbers of leisure and tour boats. Such noise has the potential to impair the hearing of neighbouring bottlenose dolphins, particularly as the noise from several distributed boats could summate at the point of reception. This potential has been assessed by comparing small boat noise, recorded over a range of 8–532 m, with noise that is known to induce hearing impairment in the form of a temporary threshold shift (TTS) or permanent threshold shift (PTS). Extrapolation of broadband boat noise levels yielded a minimum source sound pressure level of 156 dB re 1μPa at 1 m. An equal-energy model for TTS-onset predicted that boat noise could induce a TTS after 1 hour's exposure at 1.3 m and after 8 hours' exposure at 2.3 m. These distances increased with additional adjacent boats. Leisure boats are unlikely to induce a PTS, even at close range.

Keywords

hearingthreshold shiftboatdolphin noisetemporary threshold shift (TTS)permanent threshold shift (PTS)
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 92 , Issue 8: Marine Mammals , December 2012 , pp. 1887 - 1892
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

ANSI (1994) Acoustical terminology. New York: American National Standards Institute, 52 pp.Google Scholar
Blackwell, S.B. and Greene, C.R. Jr (2003) Acoustic measurements in Cook Inlet, Alaska, during August 2001. Greeneridge Sciences Inc., 1120 Tamarack Drive, Aptos, CA 95003 and 4512 Via Huerto, Santa Barbara, CA 93110, 44 pp.Google Scholar
Bowles, A., Gentry, R., Ellison, W., Finneran, J., Greene, C., Kastak, D., Ketten, D., Miller, J., Nachtigall, P., Richardson, W.J., Southall, B., Thomas, J. and Tyack, P. (2005) Strategies for weighting exposure in the development of acoustic criteria for marine mammals. In 150th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, 17–21 October 2005, Minneapolis, MN, 8 pp.Google Scholar
Breese, M., Mooney, T.A., Nachtigall, P.E., Au, W.W.L. and Vlachos, S. (2007) Temporary threshold shift in the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus): the effects of varying noise duration and intensity. In Proceedings of the 21st Conference of the European Cetacean Society, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain, 1 p.Google Scholar
Erbe, C. (2002) Underwater noise of whale-watching boats and potential effects on killer whales (Orcinus orca), based on an acoustic impact model. Marine Mammal Science 18, 394–418.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Evans, P.G.H. (1992) Status review of cetaceans in British and Irish waters. Report to UK Department of Environment/Sea Watch Foundation, Oxford, 98 pp.Google Scholar
Finneran, J.F. (2008) Auditory weighting functions and frequency-dependent effects of sound in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Report on Award Number N0001408WX20321. Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific, San Diego, CA 92152. http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA505152&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf:(accessed 10 June 2011), 9 pp.Google Scholar
Finneran, J.J., Carder, D.A., Schlundt, C.E. and Ridgway, S.H. (2005) Temporary threshold shift in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) exposed to mid-frequency tones. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 118, 2696–2705.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Finneran, J.J., Schlundt, C.E., Branstetter, B. and Dear, R.L. (2007) Assessing temporary threshold shift in a bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) using multiple simultaneous auditory evoked potentials. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 122, 1249–1264.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Finneran, J.J., Schlundt, C.E., Carder, D.A., Clark, J.A., Young, J.A., Gaspin, J.B. and Ridgway, S.H. (2000) Auditory and behavioral responses of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and a beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas) to impulsive sounds resembling distant signatures of underwater explosions. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 108, 417–431.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Finneran, J.J., Schlundt, C.E., Dear, R., Carder, D.A. and Ridgway, S.H. (2002) Temporary shift in masked hearing thresholds in odontocetes after exposure to single underwater impulses from a seismic watergun. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 111, 2929–2940.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Galli, L., Hurlbutt, B., Jewett, W., Morton, W., Schuster, S. and Van Hilsen, Z. (2001) Boat source-level noise in Haro Strait: relevance to orca whales. In Proceedings of the Biology of Marine Mammals biennial conference, Vancouver, Canada, 22 pp.Google Scholar
Johnson, C.S. (1967) Sound detection thresholds in marine mammals. In Tavolga, W.N. (ed.) Marine bio-acoustics, Volume 2. Oxford: Pergamon Press, pp. 247–260.Google Scholar
Johnson, M. and Tyack, P.L. (2003) A digital acoustic recording tag for measuring the response of wild marine mammals to sound. IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering 28, 3–12.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Karnauhov, A.A., Kruglov, M.V. and Rutenko, A.N. (2005) Acoustic studies on the North East Sakhalin shelf, volume 2: analysis, conclusions and recommendations. Sakhalin, Russian Federation: Exxon Neftegas Limited & Sakhalin Energy Investment Company, 106 pp.Google Scholar
Kastak, D., Southall, B.L., Schusterman, R.J. and Kastak, C.R. (2005) Underwater temporary threshold shift in pinnipeds: effects of noise level and duration. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 118, 3154–3163.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kipple, B. and Gabriele, C. (2004) Glacier bay watercraft noise—noise characterization for tour, charter, private, and government vessels. Technical Report NSWCCD-71-TR-2004/545. Bremerton, US: Naval Surface Warfare Center, 55 pp.Google Scholar
Kryter, K.D. (1985) The effects of noise on man. Orlando, FL: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Kryter, K.D. (1994) The handbook of hearing and the effects of noise. London: Academic Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lesage, V., Cyrille, B., Kingsley, C.S. and Sjare, B. (1999) The effect of vessel noise on the vocal activity of belugas in the St. Lawrence estuary, Canada. Marine Mammal Science 1, 65–84.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Malme, C.I., Miles, P.R., Miller, G.W., Richardson, W.J., Roseneau, D.G., Thompson, D.H. and Greene, J.C.R. (1989) Analysis and ranking of the acoustic disturbance potential of petroleum industry activities and other sources of noise in the environment of marine mammals in Alaska. BBN Systems & Technol. Corp., Cambridge, MA, 308 pp.Google Scholar
Marsh, H.W. and Schulkin, M. (1962) Shallow-water transmission. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 34, 863–864.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miles, P.R., Malme, C.I. and Richardson, W.J. (1987) Prediction of drilling site-specific interaction of industrial acoustic stimuli and endangered whales in the Alaskan Beaufort Sea. BBN rep. 6509., 312 pp.Google Scholar
Mooney, T.A., Nachtigall, P.E., Au, W.W.L., Breese, M. and Vlachos, S. (2005) Bottlenose dolphins: effects of noise duration, intensity, and frequency. In Proceedings of the 16th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals, San Diego, 2 pp.Google Scholar
Mooney, T., Nachtigall, P.E., Au, W.W., Breese, M. and Vlachos, S. (2006) The effects of noise intensity and exposure duration and potential protective mechanisms in the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). In Ocean Sciences Meeting. Abstract OS53G-05, Honolulu, Hawaii: American Geophysical Union, p. 1Google Scholar
Nachtigall, P.E., Pawloski, J.L. and Au, W.W. (2003) Temporary threshold shifts and recovery following noise exposure in the Atlantic bottlenosed dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 113, 3425–3429.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nachtigall, P.E., Supin, A.Y., Pawloski, J. and Au, W.W.L. (2004) Temporary threshold shifts after noise exposure in the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) measured using evoked auditory potentials. Marine Mammal Science 20, 673–687.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Richardson, W.J. and Malme, C.I. (1995) Zones of noise influence. In Richardson, W.J., Greene, C.R. Jr, Malme, C.I. and Thompson, D.H. (eds) Marine mammals and noise. San Diego, CA: Academic Press, pp. 325–386.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schlundt, C.E., Finneran, J.J., Carder, D.A. and Ridgway, S.H. (2000) Temporary shift in masked hearing thresholds (MTTS) of bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, and white whales, Delphinapterus leucas, after exposure to intense tones. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 107, 3496–3508.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Southall, B.L., Bowles, A.E., Ellison, W.T., Finneran, J.J., Gentry, R.L., Greene, C.R. Jr, Kastak, D., Ketten, D.R., Miller, J.H., Nachtigall, P.E., Richardson, W.J., Thomas, J.A. and Tyack, P.L. (2007) Marine mammal noise exposure criteria: initial scientific recommendations. Aquatic Mammals 33, 411–522.Google Scholar
Urick, R.J. (1983) Principles of underwater sound. New York: McGraw-Hill.Google Scholar
Van Parijs, S.M., Clark, C.W., Sousa-Lima, R.S., Parks, S.E., Rankin, S., Risch, D. and Van Opzeeland, I.C. (2009) Management and research applications of real-time and archival passive acoustic sensors over varying temporal and social scales. Marine Ecology Progress Series 395, 21–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Polanen Petel, T.D., Terhune, J.M., Hindell, M.A. and Giese, M.A. (2006) An assessment of the audibility of sound from human transport by breeding Weddell seals (Leptonychotes weddellii). Wildlife Research 33, 275–291.Google Scholar
Ward, W.D. (1997) Effects of high intensity sound. In Crocker, M.J. (ed.) Encyclopaedia of acoustics, Volume III. New York: J. Wiley & Sons Inc., pp. 1497–1507.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wiggins, S.M. and Hildebrand, J.A. (2007) High-frequency Acoustic Recording Package (HARP) for broad-band, long-term marine mammal monitoring. In Underwater Technology (UT), 2011 IEEE Symposium on and 2011 Workshop on Scientific Use of Submarine Cables and Related Technologies (SSC), Tokyo, Japan, pp. 1–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar