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Nov 1981

Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S1-S109

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back to top Session MM. Noise VI and CCEA: Effects of Noise on Marine Wildlife
Invited Papers
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Measurements of man‐made underwater noise off North Slope, Alaska (A)

William C. Cummings, D. Van Holliday, and William T. Ellison

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S82-S83 (1981); (2 pages)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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Recordings of man‐made underwater noise in the Barrow and Prudhoe areas provided acoustic measurements of helicopters, cranes, detonations, power plants, island building, seismic profiling, off‐shore drilling, human movements, unidentified machinery, tugs, and other marine service craft. The recordings, made in winter, spring, and fall, were obtained from under the ice, or from leads, polynyas, or open water at distances from a few meters to about 185 km from the source. Estimated overall source levels varied from 40 to over 200 dB re 1 μPa at 1 m, in the effective bandwidths. Principal acoustic energy occurred in bands falling between 10 Hz and 13 kHz. Among the lowest levels encountered were those from the sounds of oil exploration drilling. The highest were from seismic profiling. Durations of man‐made sounds varied from msec (metallic impulses) to continuous (line spectra from engines). In terms of frequency (Hz), duration, and power, many of the measured man‐made sounds had the potential for masking underwater animal vocalizations or other acoustic signals. Speculations are made on the possibility of inducing avoidance or even deafness. [Work supported by AEWC, NOAA/OCSEAP.]
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Responses of bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) to activities related to offshore oil and gas exploration (A)

Mark A. Fraker

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S83-S83 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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The presence and behavior of bowhead whales near offshore oil and gas exploration activities in the eastern Beaufort Sea were studied during August 1980. Numerous bowheads were within 5 km of an artificial island construction site where a large dredge, a barge camp, and several boats were operating. In a different situation, the physical presence of a 16.1‐m boat had no apparent effect on the behavior of bowheads at a distance of 3.7 km. Subtle changes in behavior were noted when the vessel's engines were idling with propellers disengaged. Bowheads within 1 km of vessels responded by spending briefer periods at the surface, by respiring fewer times per surfacing, and by moving away from the disturbance. Surfacing and breathing patterns returned to normal following the disturbance, while interanimal distances remained greater. Whales 13 km from an underwater seismic exploration operation did not behave differently from animals in the same area on days preceding and following the seismic work. Additional data from 1981 will also be presented. (See a companion paper on underwater noise near the above industry activities by C. R. Greene, Abstract MMI0, this session.) [Work supported by the Bureau Land Management.]
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Noise disturbance and audibility in pinnipeds (A)

Ronald J. Schusterman and Patrick W. Moore

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S83-S83 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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Individual fitness in all species of pinnipeds depends to a great extent on the transmission and reception of acoustical information transmitted in the hydrosphere as well as in the atmosphere. Major features of sound detection, pitch perception, and sound localization are available for one, or at the most, two individuals belonging to two otariid species and to four phocids. The latter hear higher frequencies under water than to otariids, and the opposite is true for airborne sounds. Masked hearing threshold experiments using center frequencies of, 4, 8, 16, and 32 kHz resulted in critical ratios (in dB) for two northern fur seals, in the order of frequencies given above, of 20, 20, 25, and 27 [P. W. Moore and R. J. Schusterman, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 64, 587 (1978)] and for two ringed seals they were, respectively, 30, 32, 34, and 35 [J. M. Terhune and K. Ronald, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 58, 515–516 (1975)]. Field observations suggest that startle or flight reactions to airborne noise habituate at different rates for different species, for different populations and for different groups within a population as a function of age, sex, season, and time of day. Observations of captive northern fur seals suggest that orientation toward airborne sounds may partly be a function of their hearing sensitivity. [Work supported by ONR.]
Contributed Papers
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Attraction of gray whales, Eschrichtius robustus, to underwater outboard engine noise in Laguna San Ignacio, Baja California Sur, Mexico (A)

Marilyn E. Dahlheim, James D. Schempp, Steven L. Swartz, and Mary Lou Jones

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S83-S84 (1981); (2 pages)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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Investigations on gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) in Laguna San Ignacio have previously documented “curious” or “friendly” whale behavior towards vessels. This behavior was encountered during acoustical studies conducted in March 1981 in this lagoon. The initial response appears' triggered by the underwater sound generated from outboard engines. Whales actively seek out the sound source and physically contact slow (2–4 kts) moving small vessels (inflatable Avons, Zodiacs, wooden and aluminum skiffs). Engines kept in idle (running but out of gear) maintained these whales in close proximity for periods up to 3 hours. Some whales terminated this activity when the engine was shut off. These behaviors around vessels were video taped. Sound profiles on engine noise and ambient noise levels were collected and analyzed. This “curious” behavior is prevalent only in areas where whales are repeatedly exposed to small vessel activity. This unique behavior has occurred for the past four years in Laguna San Ignacio, and has only been recently described for Guerrero Negro Lagoon. Instances of similar behavior from other species of cetaceans will be discussed.
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Whale observations and acoustic noise measurements around Kahoolawe Island, Hawaii (A)

William A. Friedl and Paul O. Thompson

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S84-S84 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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Seven SSQ‐57A sonobuoys were monitored for seven hours from a P‐3 aircraft during a surface gunfire operation north of Kahoolawe Island, Hawaii, in February 1980. Whale location and activity were also monitored from the aircraft and from Maul Island during the exercise. Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) phonations dominated the ambient noise field during the exercise. The phonations' fundamental component was near 500 Hz. The gunfire source level was approximately 10 dB below the whales' phonation level; the gunshots' peak energy was near 70 Hz. We saw whales swimming, lying still, diving, surfacing and, in two isolated instances, breeching and lob‐tailing. No standards exist to evaluate the effects of the noise on marine mammals. We cannot relate the movements and activities of whales observed during the exercise to any obvious airborne, surface, or subsurface causes. [Work supported by the Naval Surface Weapons Center.]
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Underwater explosion damage risk criteria for fish, birds, and mammals (A)

John T. Yelverton and Donald R. Richmond

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S84-S84 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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In 1969 an underwater test facility was constructed specifically to study the biological effects produced by underwater blast. Investigations were conducted to determine the ranges from explosive charges, up to 3.6 kg, that were safe, damaging, or lethal to selected species of fish, birds, and mammals. It was established that the impulse (integral pdt) in the underwater blast wave was the parameter that governed biological damage and not peak pressure or energy. There was good correlation between the impulse and body weight in fish that ranged from 12 pKa⋅ms for 0.02‐g guppy fry to 341 kPa⋅ms for 744‐g carp. The blast response of fish with ducted swim bladders was the same as fish having nonducted swim bladders. Mallard ducks were selected as a model to represent birds on and beneath the water surface. Impulse levels that were safe, injurious, or lethal to birds were determined and presented as a function of range and charge weight. The tolerance of six mammalian species, that ranged in body weight from 0.2–45 kg, was investigated. A tentative interspecies extrapolation, relating impulse to body weight, was illustrated as a method that may be pursued to predict the response of large marine mammals to underwater blast. A safe‐impulse criterion of 14 pKa⋅ms for personnel was evaluated by an unprotected swimmer in a variety of charge‐depth configurations. [Work supported by Defense Nuclear Agency.]
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Behavioral response of northern elephant seals and California sea lions on San Nicolas Island, California, to loud impulse noise (A)

Brent S. Stewart

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S84-S84 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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Breeding northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) and California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) on San Nicolas Island, California, were exposed to loud impulse noise created by a carbide pest control cannon. Distance of seals from the sound source varied from 5–50 m. Sound pressure levels varied from 145.5 dB(A) re 20 μPa and 146.9 dB(flat) re 20 μPa 5 m from the cannon to 115.6 dB(A) and 125.7 dB(flat) 50 m from the cannon. The intensity and duration of behavioral responses of each species to sonic stimuli varied by sex, age, and season. Responses to visual stimuli (humans) also varied seasonally and differed from responses to sonic stimuli. Habitat use, population growth, and pup survival of both species appeared unaffected by periodic exposure to carbide cannon impulse noise during the 1981 breeding seasons.
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Possible effects of offshore drilling noise on marine mammals (A)

Charles W. Turl

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S84-S84 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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This paper will present noise data for offshore drilling activities, identify species of marine mammals found in existing or proposed offshore lease areas, summarize the underwater hearing of selected species of marine mammals and differentiate between potential short‐term and long‐term effects of underwater noise on marine mammal populations.
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Underwater noise from oil industry activities in the Beaufort Sea (A)

Charles R. Greene

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S84-S84 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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Noises from dredges building artificial islands, a drillship, tugs, supply vessels, helicopters, and airplanes operating in the Canadian Beaufort Sea were recorded during the summers of 1980 and 1981. Numerous bowhead whales were observed and their behavior studied in the general vicinity of these noises. The signatures of both the industrial and whale noises have been analyzed and will be presented. (See a companion paper on whale behavior in the presence of industrial noises by M. Fraker, Abstract MM2, this session.) [Work supported by Bureau of Land Management.]
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Near shore ambient noise off the North Slope of Alaska (A)

William C. Cummings, William T. Ellison, and D. V. Holliday

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S84-S84 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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Shallow water (1.5‐ to 55‐m depth) ambient noise measurements (10 Hz to 10 kHz) were made at a number of locations off the North Slope of Alaska including four sites off Barrow in May/June 1980, two sites off the McClure Islands in June 1980, and 24 sites within a 100‐km radius of Prudhoe Bay in September/October 1980. Measurements were made to establish baseline ambient noise levels in areas typical of the spring habitats of the bearded and ringed seals as well as the spring and fall migration paths of the bowhead and beluga whales. Data were taken under a variety of sea ice conditions ranging from heavily pressure‐ridged first year (1 to 2 m thick) shorefast spring ice through ice free to fall freezeup and full ice cover conditions. The fall data includes measurements made under transitional “grease” and “pancake” ice conditions. The maximum wind speed under which data were taken was 8.2 m/s. Average spectrum levels varied from 50 to 90 dB re 1 μPa/Hz1/2 in the 10‐ to 1000‐Hz band, and from 30 to 70 dB in the 1‐ to 10‐kHz band. [Work supported by Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission.]
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The acoustic environment of humpback whales in Glacier Bay and Fredrick Sound, Alaska (A)

Charles I. Malme, Paul R. Miles, and Paul T. McElroy

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S85-S85 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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The number of humpback whales frequenting Glacier Bay has been decreasing in recent years while the number of whales in the Fredrick Sound and Stevens Passage area has been increasing. A study was made to determine the acoustic characteristics of both areas and measure the influence of man‐made noise sources on ambient levels. ‘Transmission loss (TL) in selected regions of both areas was measured and ambient noise spectra obtained. The TL characteristics for a shallow source and receiver were observed to have a 20 log (range) dependence below 1 kHz in both areas. In Glacier Bay a shallow surface duct was observed which changed the TL to approximately 10 log (range) dependence above 1 kHz. Low ambient noise levels were observed in the absence of boat and ship traffic. Thus the sound from louder vessels dominated the ambient out to a range of up to six miles in some measurements. A significant low‐frequency noise contribution, believed to be due to glacier motion, was observed at some locations in Glacier Bay. [Work supported by NOAA, NMFS and National Park Service.]
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The acoustic behavior of dolphins echolocating in the presence of white noise (A)

Whitlow W. L. Au, Ralph H. Penner, and James Kadane

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S85-S85 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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An acoustic click detector was used in conjunction with a microprocessor to monitor two dolphins performing a target detection task in the presence of white noise. The psychophysical experiment involved the detection of a 7.62‐cm sphere located at a range of 16.5 m from the animals. From the acoustic data, the number of clicks, the click interval and its distribution, the response latency and the total latency as a function of the masking noise level were determined. The average number of clicks emitted per trial increased as the masking noise level increased to 77 dB re 1 μPa/Hz after which the number of clicks decreased with further increases in the noise level. Dolphin E also did not emit any detectable clicks during 10% of the trials at 82 dB and 41% at 87 dB, while dolphin H did not emit any detectable clicks in 14% of the trials at the 87‐dB noise level. The response latencies for correct rejections were always greater than for correction detections at all noise levels for both dolphins. The click interval results indicated that the animals seem to have good control of the click intervals used in a click train, and may preprogram a desired click interval even before starting on an echolocation search, based on prior knowledge of the target range.
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Directional hearing sensitivity of the bottlenosed dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) in the vertical plane (A)

Patrick W. B. Moore and Whitlow L. Au

J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Volume 70, Issue S1, pp. S85-S85 (1981); (1 page)

Online Publication Date: 12 Aug 2005

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The ability of the dolphin to detect pure tone signals presented from directly ahead, with noise presented from various vertical angles was determined behaviorally for pure tone frequencies of 30, 60, and 120 kHz. The animal's position at the centerpoint era 3.5‐cm arc was fixed by requiring firm contact on a biteplate. Using a yes‐no response procedure, vertical directional sensitivity was examined by varying the noise levels and determining masked thresholds via a tracking method of stimulus presentation. Polar plots of the threshold points for the three frequencies generally showed a narrowing of receiving beam patterns with increased frequency. Maximum sensitivity occurred between five and ten degrees above the midline of the mouth. Sensitivity dropped more sharply with increasing angle above the midline rather than below, as might be expected with an animal that hears via the lower jaw. These receiving beam patterns show close agreement with the echolocation pulse transmitting beam patterns reported by Au, Floyd, and Haun [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 64, 411–422 (1978)]
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