Date Posted: 08 Mar 2011

Our noisy modern world can have a major effect on wildlife

We humans have the precious gift of freedom of choice - so in this noisy modern world, we can choose to insulate ourselves against the extraneous sounds of man and machine that we’d rather not have to endure. With the skills available to us here at www.insulationinstallerslondon.co.uk, we can effectively insulate homes and offices against excessive noise from the outside world, but out there in the natural world, animals and birds don’t have that kind of choice; just like us, they’re often subjected to extreme levels of noise pollution in their natural habitats, which can have a radical and detrimental effect on their health and habits.

Like humans, animals can suffer extreme stress from noise, which increases their risk of injury or death by altering the finely tuned balance of their lives, whether they’re predators seeking other animals for sustenance - or whether they’re prey animals whose survival depends on avoiding detection by other animals. In fact by interfering with the use of sounds in detection and communication (especially in relation to reproduction and in navigation), noise pollution can cause animals to become very disorientated and distressed.

Excessive noise can reduce areas of usable animal habitat - and noise pollution has caused the death of certain whale types, which beached themselves after being exposed to military sonar sounds. Noise also makes species communicate more loudly - and experiments have shown that whale song length is considerably increased when submarine-detecting devices are being used by naval forces. When one species ‘speaks’ louder in this way, it can lead to other species' voices being drowned out, creating an increase in animal noises across an entitre eco-system. European robins in urban environments often sing at night if there is high noise pollution during the day, whilst zebra finches’ fidelity to their partners decreases when they experience prolonged traffic noise.

So next time you’re exposed to too much noise, be glad that you can take steps to stop it through proper insulation of floors, walls and ceilings - in the natural world, animals don’t have that choice!