Deer browsing alters sound propagation in temperate deciduous forests

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 14; no. 2; p. e0211569
• Main Authors: Boycott, Timothy J., Gao, Jingyi, Gall, Megan D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 13.02.2019; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Acoustic noise; Acoustic propagation; Acoustics; Adaptation; Amplitudes; Animal Communication; Animals; Biological evolution; Biology; Biology and Life Sciences; Birds; Breeding; Browsing; Computer and Information Sciences; Deciduous forests; Deer; Deer - physiology; Ecology and Environmental Sciences; Ecosystem; Engineering and Technology; Environmental aspects; Evolution; Fidelity; Foraging habitats; Forests; Habitats; Herbivory; Hypotheses; Land degradation; Mate selection; New York; Noise; Odocoileus virginianus; Offspring; Physical Sciences; Playback; Protection and preservation; Social evolution; Social Sciences; Sound; Sound propagation; Temperate forests; Vegetation; Vegetation effects; Vocalization behavior; Wave propagation; White noise; White-tailed deer; New York; United States; United States > US
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0211569

The efficacy of animal signals is strongly influenced by the structure of the habitat in which they are propagating. In recent years, the habitat structure of temperate forests has been increasingly subject to modifications from foraging by white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Increasing deer numbers and the accompanying browsing have been shown to alter vegetation structure and thus the foraging, roosting, and breeding habitats of many species. However, despite a large body of literature on the effects of vegetation structure on sound propagation, we do not yet know what impact deer browsing may have on acoustic communication. Here we used playback experiments to determine whether sound fidelity and amplitude of white noise, pure tones, and trills differed between deer-browsed and deer-excluded plots. We found that sound fidelity, but not amplitude, differed between habitats, with deer-browsed habitats having greater sound fidelity than deer-excluded habitats. Difference in sound propagation characteristics between the two habitats could alter the efficacy of acoustic communication through plasticity, cultural evolution or local adaptation, in turn influencing vocally-mediated behaviors (e.g. agonistic, parent-offspring, mate selection). Reduced signal degradation suggests vocalizations may retain more information, improving the transfer of information to both intended and unintended receivers. Overall, our results suggest that deer browsing impacts sound propagation in temperate deciduous forest, although much work remains to be done on the potential impacts on communication.