We live in a world brimming with sonic diversity, but these riches are being eroded by human activities, warns David George Haskell
In habitats such as dense rainforests or turbid oceans, sound is the only way for most animals to communicate even over short distances. This communication – mating songs, cooperative signals about food, cries that indicate social status and alarm calls – allows complex animal life to thrive.
In noisy or silenced ecosystems, the viability of species and communities is threatened. Sound connects animals to their mates, offspring and compatriots, and so noise can degrade the social and ecological networks of vocal species. Sound and its diminishment also matter for practical reasons. As sound travels through dense vegetation or murky water, it gives us information about unseen or hard-to-measure trends in biodiversity. Land managers use the diversity of sounds in rainforests to. It would take decades to catch and identify every species, yet sound recordings capture some of the essence of biodiversity within hours.
Humans are also affected by environmental noise, with complaints about noise pollution dating to the very first cities, recorded on clay tablets from Babylonia. This noise is no mere inconvenience: its stresses create physiological burdens that sicken and kill. The European Environment Agency estimates that environmental noise in EuropeSound gives us a tool to directly measure the environment.
What can be done to address these problems? Perhaps amid the scientific studies of trends in sonic loss, activism to advocate for justice and policy-making to reduce noise pollution and habitat destruction, we might also find space to listen. Just as we go out with friends to hear a concert, might we do the same for the birds in a city park? In this simple act, we might find inspiration – and a direct connection to our more-than-human neighbours.
France Dernières Nouvelles, France Actualités
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