Shh!

Maanav Varma

Humans are LOUD. We make a lot of noise. Social events like concerts, transportation methods like airplanes, and daily household items like vacuum cleaners all contribute to noise. When people regularly expose themselves to loud sounds, they are susceptible to health problems like elevated heart rates. This is defined as noise pollution. However, noise pollution does not just cause problems for humans. It also causes issues for other organisms. For this reason, we need to be more careful about the loud sounds we make because it not only affects ourselves but it also affects the environment around us.

Animals are having to change their behavior patterns to adapt to noise made by humans. Several species of birds are changing their flight patterns and mating techniques because of excessive human noise levels. Great Tits, or Parus Major, have to change their mating calls to be heard over human ruckus. Male Great Tits have to call at higher frequencies because they cannot be heard at lower frequencies. However, Female Great Tits find higher frequency calls unattractive, which then leads to less mating. Scrub Jays, birds found in Western United States, are also seeking quieter areas to avoid human-made noise and human contact. Scrub Jays are an important aspect of the Pinyon Pine Ecosystem. However, because of logging and industrial activity, the Jays are leaving the ecosystem, and the ecosystem is beginning to deteriorate.



Terrestrial animals are not the only ones being affected by noise caused by humans. Marine life is being disrupted as well. Dolphins use echolocation to know their surroundings. They do this by making high-frequency clicks, which then bounces off of their surroundings and lets the dolphins hear. With more and more oil drilling, ship traffic, and other industrial noises, dolphins are having a hard time using echolocation. The human activity is messing up the dolphins' ability to hear. Whales are also affected by human-made noise. Loud sonar blasts used by the Navy causes whales to get stranded on beaches. They then "bleed around the ears, brain and other tissues."



It's pretty sad in my opinion how our carelessness affects other organisms. Some ways we can reduce noise pollution is by turning off household items such as the TV, or by lowering the volume of music on our headphones. We can also plant trees. Trees naturally absorb noise. In fact, they reduce noise by up to 10 decibels. What are your thoughts on human carelessness towards the natural environment around us? Are there any other ways we can reduce noise intensity so that it does not affect the environment tremendously? How can we be more sensitive to the environment around us?

https://www.environmentalpollutioncenters.org/noise-pollution/
https://www.science.org.au/curious/earth-environment/noise-pollution-and-environment
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/noise-pollution/
https://eschooltoday.com/pollution/noise-pollution/sources-of-noise-pollution.html
https://www.ppsthane.com/blog/how-to-reduce-noise-pollution