Human noise is disrupting wildlife in Antarctica

Tiny motors and humming generators may seem harmless against Antarctica’s sweeping silence, yet new evidence shows that the noise is reaching some of the continent’s most fragile refuges.

Recordings reveal that a single power unit over a mile away can pierce the natural hush of Ardley Island, an Antarctic sanctuary for seabirds and seals. This discovery raises fears that steady human noise is already stressing its wildlife.

Listening to noise in Antarctica

An international team of researchers from the University of the Republic of Uruguay (Udelar) and Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) embarked on two summer field campaigns in 2022 and 2023 that measured the acoustic footprint of an energy generator stationed on the busy Fildes Peninsula.

One recorder sat 900 feet (300 meters) from the machine; another perched on Ardley Island itself, inside Antarctic Specially Protected Area 150.

Hour-by-hour samples proved the generator’s low-frequency thrum was “clearly perceptible” inside the reserve, even when gusty winds muffled other distant sounds.

Noise from human activities

Noise from human activities can affect animals’ communication and social interaction, which is highly dependent on acoustic signals.

In penguin rookeries and seal haul-outs, calls carry instructions about mating, feeding, and danger. When a mechanical drone overlaps those pitches, parents may miss a chick’s plea, or a nervous adult may abandon a nest too often.

“Animals typically respond to noise exposure by altering their usual behavior, including changes in the type and frequency of vocalization and efficiency in foraging and responding to predators,” said co-author Martín Rocamora, a scientist at UPF. “They may also develop hearing loss or increased levels of the stress hormone.”

Field stations around Fildes use countless engines – generators, trucks, boats, aircraft – to keep science and logistics running.

Until now, most studies of Antarctic noise focused on ships disturbing whales at sea. Terrestrial soundscapes, however, have gained little scrutiny, even though colonies of gentoo, chinstrap, and Adélie penguins depend on predictable auditory cues during the frantic austral summer breeding window.

Noise stresses birds in Antarctica

Each recorder captured five-minute clips every hour, day and night. Spectral analysis identified the generator by its distinctive low-frequency fingerprints and helped rule out other sources such as helicopters or quads. Researchers then compared these signals with wind readings.

They found that strong onshore gusts could dampen the noise, but calmer periods let it travel unbroken across sea ice and snow. Over time, the machine’s pulse became a near-constant layer beneath waves, katabatic winds, and bird chatter.

Although Ardley Island teems with several nemoral species, the study zeroed in on seabirds. The island supports roughly five percent of all chinstrap penguins in the South Shetlands and large numbers of southern giant petrels. Both species rely on short, discrete calls.

A background hum may not drown them outright, yet the overlap forces individuals to call louder or more often, draining energy and exposing nests to predators and cold.

Stress today, population shifts tomorrow?

The work stops short of documenting direct behavioral changes, but the authors argue that sustained exposure is a credible threat.

Chronic noise can mask alarm calls, hamper chick-feeding coordination, and raise baseline stress. Over successive seasons, such subtle costs may tip breeding success below replacement levels.

The scientists stress that further monitoring should link sound levels to on-site observations of bird and seal activity. Because the generator sits in one of Antarctica’s busiest research corridors, its acoustic reach likely mirrors dozens of similar installations across the continent.

Wind as a possible ally

Wind shear above the ocean’s surface occasionally deflects the drone away from Ardley’s nesting crags. This natural buffer hints at practical mitigation: situating future generators behind ridges or erecting small acoustic baffles could slash sounds without hindering operations. Even switching to newer, quieter models would help.

The researchers emphasize the urgent need to raise awareness about how noise pollution affects Antarctic ecosystems and to incorporate measures addressing this issue into the management plans of Antarctic Specially Protected Areas (ASPAs).

Current guidelines for protected areas emphasize limits on foot traffic, fuel spills, and invasive species, yet mention little about decibel thresholds.

Adding continuous acoustic monitoring to routine environmental checks could flag hotspots early and guide equipment placement before wildlife pays the price.

Reducing unnecessary noise in Antarctica

Antarctica will never be utterly silent – storms, ice quakes, and natural colonies produce their own orchestrated roar. But unnecessary human noises are avoidable.

Installing mufflers, clustering machinery farther from breeding sites, and timing heavy-lift flights outside peak nesting hours all lie within reach of today’s logistics teams.

Each adjustment would preserve the continent’s rare acoustic commons and shield animals whose entire life cycles pivot on being heard.

Until comprehensive studies link generator drone to chick survival, researchers plan to expand their sensor network across other South Shetland islands.

The early evidence, though, is unambiguous: even in Earth’s last great wilderness, a single engine can speak louder than an entire penguin colony. Protecting the Antarctic soundscape may prove as crucial as guarding its ice and krill.

The study is published in the journal Ecological Informatics.

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