Rerouting of a major shipping lane through important harbour porpoise habitat caused no detectable change in annual occurrence or foraging patterns
Owen, K., Carlström, J., Eriksson, P., Andersson, M., Nordström, R., Lalander, E., Sveegaard, S., Kyhn, L.A., Griffiths, E.T., Cosentino, M., Tougaard, J.
Study looks at planned re-routing of major shipping lane in Baltic sea. to investigate the impact on the presence and foraging behaviour of a marine species known to be sensitive to underwater noise, the harbour porpoise. PAM data collected from 15 stations assessed. Against predictions, no clear change occurred in monthly presence or foraging behaviour of the porpoises, despite the observed changes in noise and vessel traffic. However, long-term heightened noise levels may still impact communication, echolocation, or stress levels of individuals, and needs further investigation.
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