Featured in National Wildlife: How Noise Pollution Is Muting Marine Life
Human noise is getting louder everywhere—even underwater—and it’s making life tough for animals that rely on sound to communicate, hunt, and reproduce.
In a recent piece for National Wildlife Magazine ("Noise Pollution Is Disrupting Wildlife," by Katarina Zimmer), researchers look at how anthropogenic noise impacts everything from songbirds and bats to coral reefs and marine mammals.
The story spotlights work from our lab, highlighting our research on Lusitanian toadfish (Halobatrachus didactylus) in the Tagus Estuary.
When male toadfish try to attract mates, they produce a low-frequency call called a "boatwhistle." But, boat noise throws a wrench in that process:
Fewer calls: Males call less frequently when boats are passing nearby.
Lower mating success: Males attract fewer females and end up with empty nests more often.
Added stress: Chronic noise stress might also make it harder for males to properly guard and tend to the eggs they do manage to get.
As Manuel Vieira put it in the article, "There are clear effects on the individuals and on their ability to reproduce."
Work like this shows why tracking underwater soundscapes matters—if we don't account for acoustic disturbance, we're missing a major piece of the conservation puzzle.
Check out the full article over at National Wildlife Magazine.
Zimmer, K. (2026, September 23). Noise pollution is disrupting wildlife. National Wildlife. https://www.nwf.org/Home/Magazines/National-Wildlife/2026/Fall/Conservation/Noise-Pollution-Wildlife
