Traffic Noise Pollution Impairs the Ability of Songbirds to Solve Problems

Humans having a hard time thinking because of traffic noise pollution are not alone in this dilemma. Birds also have their ability to learn and solve problems affected by roadside noise pollution.

According to a study published on February 3 in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, traffic noises could impair the ability of birds to learn. In some cases, it took twice as long for the birds to figure out new skills due to noise pollution.

"While our expectation was that noise would reduce cognitive performance, I was a bit surprised by the extent of the effect we observed," associate professor Christopher Templeton of Pacific University, the study co-author told iNews. "The degree to which simply hearing cars drive by impacted cognitive performance was really striking."

But unfortunately, another study also found that it is not only the birds that are affected by the traffic noise pollution because it compromises the mating ability of some crickets as well.

Impairs the Ability to Think Among Birds

There has been a growing literature of noise pollution adversely affecting non-humans, BBC News reported. In September 2020, a study found that the relative quiet brought by lockdowns have enabled male white-crowned sparrows in San Francisco to sing a higher note which attracts more mates.

Moreover, another study also showed that the noises caused by ships on the sea have made the humpback whales stop singing.

However, Ecowatch reported that the new study about noise pollution affecting the songbirds' ability to learn is the first to describe how noise pollution could reduce cognitive performance in animals.

The researchers had zebra finches do a series of foraging tasks, such as finding food beneath flipping lids that are designed to resemble leaves or figuring out how to access the food inside a cylinder. They did it in two conditions, one without noise and another with recorded traffic sound in the background that resembles roadside noise pollution.

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They found that the birds were much distracted by the background noise which hindered them to complete their tasks. In some cases, it took the birds twice as long to learn a new skill when there is traffic noise in the background.

"For example, learning to remember the location of a hidden food reward took control birds about nine trials, but those exposed to traffic noise took on average 18 trials to learn the same task," Templeton said.

Also, their performance in doing tasks that required them to control impulses, distinguish colors, and learn was impaired. The researchers noted that the only ability that was not impaired was their ability to link colors to food rewards.

Noise Pollution Also Affects Crickets

A separate study, published in Behavioral Ecology, found that traffic noise pollution also affects the mating success of two-spotted crickets.

Male crickets usually rub their wings to create a sound that attracts their mates. The females, in turn, would choose a male based on the quality of their song, Livemint reported that this nature's way of ensuring that only the best genes get passed on to the next generation.

The study showed that traffic noise and white noise lowers the success rate of these crickets from 90% to 70% because it takes females twice as long to mount the males.