Birds exposed to the persistent
noise of natural gas compressors show symptoms remarkably similar to those in
humans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, new research shows.
In a study published this week in
the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers found
that adults and nestlings of three species showed multiple signs of chronic stress caused
by noise pollution,
including skewed stress hormone levels,
possibly due to increased anxiety, distraction and hypervigilance.
The study is the first to test
the relationships between noise, stress hormones and fitness in animals that
breed in natural areas with unrelenting, human-made noise.
Constant noise could be acting as
an "acoustic blanket," muffling the audio cues birds rely on to
detect predators, competitors and their own species, said study co-author Rob
Guralnick, associate curator of biodiversity informatics at the Florida Museum
of Natural History. Unable to discern whether their environment is safe, mother
birds must choose between staying on guard at the nest and finding food for
their young.
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