Notes and noises in nature: not a swan song?

Hans Slabbekoorn examines animal acoustic communication, from birdsong to low-frequency whale calls. Songs and other signals support courtship and conflict, while the acoustic properties of habitats shape their evolution. Expanding human noise in terrestrial and aquatic environments is changing the conditions under which these signals function. The lecture considers this acoustic environmental change and the attention needed to preserve animal communication, alongside implications for human physical and mental health.