Soundscape Ecology: The Science of Sound in the Landscape

TLDR

Soundscape ecology parallels landscape ecology and should be regarded as a branch of this developing field. The article proposes a unifying theory of soundscape ecology, outlines a research agenda covering measurement, dynamics, covariate linkages, human impacts, and advocates protecting soundscapes as nature’s auditory link. The authors develop a conceptual framework based on biophony, geophony, and anthrophony, present case studies, and detail methods for measuring and analyzing soundscape dynamics.

Abstract

This article presents a unifying theory of soundscape ecology, which brings the idea of the soundscape—the collection of sounds that emanate from landscapes—into a research and application focus. Our conceptual framework of soundscape ecology is based on the causes and consequences of biological (biophony), geophysical (geophony), and human-produced (anthrophony) sounds. We argue that soundscape ecology shares many parallels with landscape ecology, and it should therefore be considered a branch of this maturing field. We propose a research agenda for soundscape ecology that includes six areas: (1) measurement and analytical challenges, (2) spatial-temporal dynamics, (3) soundscape linkage to environmental covariates, (4) human impacts on the soundscape, (5) soundscape impacts on humans, and (6) soundscape impacts on ecosystems. We present case studies that illustrate different approaches to understanding soundscape dynamics. Because soundscapes are our auditory link to nature, we also argue for their protection, using the knowledge of how sounds are produced by the environment and humans.