Passive acoustic measurements of coral reef “soundscapes” can be an effective way of tracking biological activity and may help assess community-level biotic diversity. While a reef soundscape may vary both temporally and spatially, this variability is often not well understood. To investigate this, we deployed multiple digital acoustic recorders (DMONs) for both short- (24-h) and long-term (4 months) investigations at three patch reefs that varied in coral cover (low, intermediate, and high levels) in the U.S. Virgin Islands National Park (sample rate: 120 kHz). The short-term investigation consisted of four continuously recording instruments spaced at ~20 m intervals. Long-term measures included two recorders per reef on a duty cycle of 2.5 min/2 h. Fish and coral diversity, ambient light intensity, temperature, and salinity were also measured. Results indicate diel patterns in snapping shrimp signals (dominant energy between 2.5 and 20 kHz) with peaks at dusk and dawn. Sound pressure level (SPL) of the snapping shrimp band varied spatially within and among reefs, with higher maximum SPL at reefs with low and intermediate coral cover. However, within-reef SPL variability was lowest at the site with high coral cover. Temporal patterns in snapping shrimp acoustic activity were correlated within and among all three reefs.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
November 2013
Meeting abstract. No PDF available.
November 01 2013
Spatiotemporal variability in coral reef soundscapes in St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands
Maxwell B. Kaplan;
Maxwell B. Kaplan
Biology Dept., Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst., 266 Woods Hole Rd., MS50, Woods Hole, MA 02543, [email protected]
Search for other works by this author on:
T. Aran Mooney;
T. Aran Mooney
Biology Dept., Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst., 266 Woods Hole Rd., MS50, Woods Hole, MA 02543, [email protected]
Search for other works by this author on:
Jim Partan
Jim Partan
Appl. Ocean Phys. and Eng., Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst., Woods Hole, MA
Search for other works by this author on:
J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 134, 4177 (2013)
Citation
Maxwell B. Kaplan, T. Aran Mooney, Jim Partan; Spatiotemporal variability in coral reef soundscapes in St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 1 November 2013; 134 (5_Supplement): 4177. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.4831313
Download citation file:
93
Views
Citing articles via
All we know about anechoic chambers
Michael Vorländer
A survey of sound source localization with deep learning methods
Pierre-Amaury Grumiaux, Srđan Kitić, et al.
Does sound symbolism need sound?: The role of articulatory movement in detecting iconicity between sound and meaning
Mutsumi Imai, Sotaro Kita, et al.
Related Content
Variability in coral reef soundscapes, spatiotemporal differences, biophysical and behavioral drivers, and associations with local biota
J Acoust Soc Am (May 2017)
Quiet oceans: United States Virgin Islands coral reef soundscapes in the age of coronavirus
J Acoust Soc Am (April 2021)
Characterizing soundscapes and larval fish settlement in tropical seagrass and mangrove habitats
J Acoust Soc Am (May 2017)
Natural cues for invertebrate and fish hearing: Particle motion measurements on coral reefs
J Acoust Soc Am (April 2022)
Soundscapes as heard by invertebrates and fishes: Particle motion measurements on coral reefs
J. Acoust. Soc. Am. (July 2022)