How Does Noise Pollution Affect Marine Organisms

Biologicals are one type of natural noise in the marine environment. Biologicals refer to when marine animals use their underwater acoustics to communicate with each other, explore their surroundings, or to find prey. Dolphins use echolocation, which is a process of sending sound waves, to find prey. A second type of natural noise are underwater earthquakes, avalanches, and volcanoes. Earthquakes can produce sounds when they have high magnitudes. Volcano eruptions have also been heard underwater. Ice break-up and calving is a third type of natural noise in the marine environment. When ice breaks off from glaciers it makes a sound. Shipping, bathymetry, and oil & gas are 3 types of anthropogenic noise. Ships use sonars for trade routes, researchers use sonars to able to map the sea floor, and other ships use sound waves to find oil on the sea floor. 2. (10 points) How does noise pollution impact marine organisms (give 3 examples)?

Lots of background noise causes masking which happens when animals cannot hear important sounds which is difficult for navigation. Without being able to navigate properly animals have the potential to get lost. Sonars can cause hearing loss for marine species which can make them more vulnerable to predators. Sonars can also cause stress levels in marine environment altering their behavior.

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Increases of CO2 weaken the shells of shellfish which make them more vulnerable to dying. Decrease in shellfish population will decrease the population of predators that eat shellfish. Acidic waters will also prevent corals from growing. Corals provide habits for many specifies so without the corals will need to find another habit and they may have to migrate to other locations. Biodiversity will decline. Ocean acidification also make algae more abundant, and algae use up the oxygen in the ocean which will cause oxygen levels to