It Is Not Just a Matter of Noise: Sciaena umbra Vocalizes More in the Busiest Areas of the Venice Tidal Inlets

Boat noise is known to have a detrimental effect on a vulnerable Mediterranean sciaenid, the brown meagre Sciaena umbra. During summer 2019, two acoustic surveys were conducted at 40 listening points distributed within the inlet areas of Venice (northern Adriatic Sea). Two five-minute recordings were collected per each point during both the boat traffic hours and the peak of the species’ vocal activity with the aims of (1) characterizing the local noise levels and (2) evaluating the fish spatial distribution by means of its sounds. High underwater broadband noise levels were found (sound pressure levels (SPLs)50–20kHz 107–137 dB re 1 μPa). Interestingly, a significantly higher background noise within the species’ hearing sensibility (100–3150 Hz) was highlighted in the afternoon (113 ± 5 dB re 1 μPa) compared to the night (103 ± 7 dB re 1 μPa) recordings due to a high vessel traffic. A cluster analysis based on Sciaena umbra vocalizations separated the listening points in three groups: highly vocal groups experienced higher vessel presence and higher afternoon noise levels compared to the lower ones. Since the species’ sounds are a proxy of spawning events, this suggests that the reproductive activity was placed in the noisier part of the inlets.

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Validation of Surface Current Measurements in the Northern Adriatic Sea from High-Frequency Radars

Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology ◽

10.1175/2009jtecho680.1 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 27 (5) ◽

pp. 908-919 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

Simone Cosoli ◽

Andrea Mazzoldi ◽

Miroslav Gačić

Keyword(s):

High Frequency ◽

Adriatic Sea ◽

Surface Current ◽

Broadband Noise ◽

Radial Velocities ◽

Hf Radar ◽

Doppler Spectrum ◽

Northern Adriatic Sea ◽

Northern Adriatic ◽

Vector Correlation

Abstract The performances of a shore-based high-frequency (HF) radar network deployed along the coast of the Venice lagoon (northern Adriatic Sea) are discussed based on a comparison with a single bottom-mounted ADCP deployed in the shallow-water area offshore of the lagoon for a 40-day period in August–September 2005. The analyses, carried out using currents representative of the first meter for the HF radars and 2.5 m for the ADCP, gave rms differences of radial currents in the range of 8.7–14.7 cm s−1 (correlation 0.37– 0.82) for the ideal pattern and 8.4–20.5 cm s−1 (correlation 0.14–0.84) for the measured pattern. Good correlation was found between surface current vectors and moored data (scalar correlation up to R = 0.83, vector correlation ρ = 0.78, veering angle 6°). Comparison metrics were improved for the low-passed currents. Angular offsets ranged between +6° and +11°. Differences depended primarily on the geophysical variability within the water column. Bearing offsets also contributed because they lead to comparisons with radial velocities at erroneous angular sectors. Radar performances were severely affected by strong northeasterly wind pulses in their early stages. An increased broadband noise, spread over the entire Doppler spectrum across all ranges to the antennas, masked the Bragg peaks and determined the loss in radar coverage, introducing gross underestimations of both radial velocities and total currents.

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Are the 1/3-Octave Band 63- and 125-Hz Noise Levels Predictive of Vessel Activity? The Case in the Cres–Lošinj Archipelago (Northern Adriatic Sea, Croatia)

The Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life II - Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology ◽

10.1007/978-1-4939-2981-8_101 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 821-828

Author(s):

Marta Picciulin ◽

Linda Sebastianutto ◽

Caterina Maria Fortuna ◽

Peter Mackelworth ◽

Draško Holcer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Adriatic Sea ◽

Octave Band ◽

Noise Levels ◽

Northern Adriatic Sea ◽

Northern Adriatic

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The Effect of an Alternative Definition of “Percent Highly Annoyed” on the Exposure–Response Relationship: Comparison of Noise Annoyance Responses Measured by ICBEN 5-Point Verbal and 11-Point Numerical Scales

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18126258 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (12) ◽

pp. 6258

Author(s):

Makoto Morinaga ◽

Thu Lan Nguyen ◽

Shigenori Yokoshima ◽

Koji Shimoyama ◽

Takashi Morihara ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sound Pressure ◽

Response Relationship ◽

Alternative Definition ◽

Exposure Response ◽

Noise Annoyance ◽

Numerical Scale ◽

Verbal Scale ◽

Sound Pressure Levels ◽

Acoustic Surveys ◽

Definition Of

Since the development of the 5-point verbal and 11-point numerical scales for measuring noise annoyance by the ICBEN Team 6, these scales have been widely used in socio-acoustic surveys worldwide, and annoyance responses have been easily compared internationally. However, both the top two categories of the 5–point verbal scale and the top three ones of the 11-point numerical scale are correspond to high annoyance, so it is difficult to precisely compare annoyance responses. Therefore, we calculated differences in day–evening–night-weighted sound pressure levels (Lden) by comparing values corresponding to 10% highly annoyed (HA) on Lden_%HA curves obtained from measurements in 40 datasets regarding surveys conducted in Japan and Vietnam. The results showed that the Lden value corresponding to 10% HA using the 5-point verbal scale was approximately 5 dB lower than that of the 11-point numerical scale. Thus, some correction is required to compare annoyance responses measured by the 5-point verbal and the 11-point numerical scales. The results of this study were also compared with those of a survey in Switzerland.

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