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Experimental inquiry-oriented science labs can be designed to have students regulate their own learning and decide when they leave class or to have the teacher regulate student learning and determine when they leave class. In this study, grades were examined relative to student exit times in a student-regulated class design. Preliminary interviews revealed four motivation strategies likely to differentially influence exit times and grades: proficiency, grade-target-A, grade-target-C, and time-limited. Students were categorized into the four groups of motivation strategies with a survey. Twenty teaching assistants teaching three lab sections each taught the stand-alone lab class. Students recorded the time they left class each week. Grades were determined as the overall percentage of points a student received in class. Results of the survey showed that the four motivation strategies were well represented in the student population, and two additional strategies were also frequently seen: a hybrid-1 between proficiency and grade-target-A, and a hybrid-2 between time-limited and grade-target-C. Grades were significantly higher for grade-target-A and hybrid-1 students, followed by time-limited, proficiency, grade-target-C, and hybrid 2. Time spent in class was not significantly different among categories. Students who chose to stay in class longer had significantly higher grades. If a grade is the goal, these results support the idea of a teacherc-ontrolled exit time for the students in these inquiry-oriented labs. Implications are discussed.

We examined the effects of documenting observations with digital imaging versus hand drawing in inquiry-based college biodiversity labs. Plant biodiversity labs were divided into two treatments, digital imaging (N = 221) and hand drawing (N = 238). Graduate-student teaching assistants (N = 24) taught one class in each treatment. Assessments revealed that imaging relative to drawing had a significant negative effect on the lower order content students included in their lab reports, student perceptions of the lab overall, the time efficiency of their learning experience and perceived excitement. Documentation style had no significant influence on lower-order or higher-order learning or attitudes towards biology as a discipline. Contrary to overall trends, observations indicated that a proportion of students were excited and motivated by digital imaging. A mixed model of allowing students the choice of documenting observations with digital imaging or drawing may be the best model.

We examined how different styles of written feedback by graduate-student teaching assistants (GTAs) in college intro biology lab (USA) influenced student achievement and related the different styles to time efficiency. We quantified GTA feedback on formative lab reports and student achievement on two different types of assessments, a quiz in 2010 and a summative lab report in 2011. We evaluated the extent to which three categories of written feedback impacted student achievement (grade discrepancy between actual and ideal, short direct comments, and in-depth explanatory comments). Student achievement was best explained by both grade discrepancy and short direct comments in 2010 and grade discrepancy only in 2011. In-depth explanations were not part of the best-fit models in either year. Results also indicated that GTAs provided little encouraging feedback, most feedback was targeted and asked students to expand on explanations. Results are discussed in relation to relative time efficiency and GTA training.

Expansion of anthropogenic noise and night lighting across our planet.sup.1,2 is of increasing conservation concern.sup.3-6. Despite growing knowledge of physiological and behavioural responses to these stimuli from single-species and local-scale studies, whether these pollutants affect fitness is less clear, as is how and why species vary in their sensitivity to these anthropic stressors. Here we leverage a large citizen science dataset paired with high-resolution noise and light data from across the contiguous United States to assess how these stimuli affect reproductive success in 142 bird species. We find responses to both sensory pollutants linked to the functional traits and habitat affiliations of species. For example, overall nest success was negatively correlated with noise among birds in closed environments. Species-specific changes in reproductive timing and hatching success in response to noise exposure were explained by vocalization frequency, nesting location and diet. Additionally, increased light-gathering ability of species' eyes was associated with stronger advancements in reproductive timing in response to light exposure, potentially creating phenological mismatches.sup.7. Unexpectedly, better light-gathering ability was linked to reduced clutch failure and increased overall nest success in response to light exposure, raising important questions about how responses to sensory pollutants counteract or exacerbate responses to other aspects of global change, such as climate warming. These findings demonstrate that anthropogenic noise and light can substantially affect breeding bird phenology and fitness, and underscore the need to consider sensory pollutants alongside traditional dimensions of the environment that typically inform biodiversity conservation. Human-generated noise and night lighting affect breeding habits and fitness in birds, implying that sensory pollutants must be considered alongside other environmental factors in assessing biodiversity conservation., Author(s): Masayuki Senzaki [sup.1] [sup.2] , Jesse R. Barber [sup.3] , Jennifer N. Phillips [sup.1] [sup.4] , Neil H. Carter [sup.5] , Caren B. Cooper [sup.6] [sup.7] , Mark A. [...]

Environmental noise knows no boundaries, affecting even protected areas. Noise pollution, originating from both external and internal sources, imposes costs on these areas. It is associated with adverse health effects, while natural sounds contribute to cognitive and emotional improvements as ecosystem services. When it comes to parks, individual visitors hold unique perceptions of soundscapes, which can be shaped by various factors such as their motivations for visiting, personal norms, attitudes towards specific sounds, and expectations. In this study, we utilized linear models and geospatial data to evaluate how visitors' personal norms and attitudes, the park's acoustic environment, visitor counts, and the acoustic environment of visitors' neighborhoods influenced their perception of soundscapes at Muir Woods National Monument. Our findings indicate that visitors' subjective experiences had a greater impact on their perception of the park's soundscape compared to purely acoustic factors like sound level of the park itself. Specifically, we found that motivations to hear natural sounds, interference caused by noise, sensitivity to noise, and the sound levels of visitors' home neighborhoods influenced visitors' perception of the park's soundscape. Understanding how personal factors shape visitors' soundscape perception can assist urban and non-urban park planners in effectively managing visitor experiences and expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The way in which terrestrial organisms use the acoustic realm is fundamentally important and shapes behavior, populations, and communities, but how background acoustics, or noise, influence the patterns and processes in ecology is still relatively understudied. In this review, we summarize how background acoustics have traditionally been studied from the signaling perspective, discuss what is known from a receiver's perspective, and explore what is known about population- and community-level responses to noise. We suggest that there are major gaps linking animal physiology and behavior in noise to fitness; that there is a limited understanding of variation in hearing within and across species, especially in the context of real-world acoustic conditions; and that many puzzling responses to noise could be clarified with a community-level lens that considers indirect effects. Failing to consider variation in acoustic conditions, and the many ways organisms use and interact via this environmental dimension, risks a limited understanding of natural systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We compared learning cycle and expository formats for teaching about plant biodiversity in an inquiry-oriented university biology lab class (n = 465). Both formats had preparatory lab activities, a hands-on lab, and a postlab with reflection and argumentation. Learning was assessed with a lab report, a practical quiz in lab, and a multiple-choice exam in the concurrent lecture. Attitudes toward biology and treatments were also assessed. We used linear mixed-effect models to determine impacts of lab style on lower-order cognition (LO) and higher-order cognition (HO) based on Bloom's taxonomy. Relative to the expository treatment, the learning cycle treatment had a positive effect on HO and a negative effect on LO included in lab reports; a positive effect on transfer of LO from the lab report to the quiz; negative impacts on LO quiz performance and on attitudes toward the lab; and a higher degree of perceived difficulty. The learning cycle treatment had no influence on transfer of HO from lab report to quiz or exam; quiz performance on HO questions; exam performance on LO and HO questions; and attitudes toward biology as a science. The importance of LO as a foundation for HO relative to these lab styles is addressed.

Anthropogenic noise and its effects on acoustic communication have received considerable attention in recent decades. Yet, the natural acoustic environment's influence on communication and its role in shaping acoustic signals remains unclear. We used large-scale playbacks of ocean surf in coastal areas and whitewater river noise in riparian areas to investigate how natural sounds influences song structure in six songbird species. We recorded individuals defending territories in a variety of acoustic conditions across 19 study sites in California and 18 sites in Idaho. Acoustic characteristics across the sites included naturally quiet 'control' sites, 'positive control' sites that were adjacent to the ocean or a whitewater river and thus were naturally noisy, 'phantom' playback sites that were exposed to continuous broadcast of low-frequency ocean surf or whitewater noise, and 'shifted' playback sites with continuous broadcast of ocean surf or whitewater noise shifted up in frequency. We predicted that spectral and temporal song structure would generally correlate with background sound amplitude and that signal features would differ across site types based on the spectral profile of the acoustic environment. We found that the ways in which song structure varied with background acoustics were quite variable from species to species. For instance, in Idaho both the frequency bandwidth and duration of lazuli bunting (Passerina amoena) and song sparrow (Melospiza melodia) songs decreased with elevated background noise, but these song features were unrelated to background noise in the warbling vireo (Vireo gilvus), which tended to increase both the minimum and maximum frequency of songs with background noise amplitude. In California, the bandwidth of the trill of white-crowned sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) song decreased with background noise amplitude, matching results of previous studies involving both natural and anthropogenic noise. In contrast, wrentit (Chamaea fasciata) song bandwidth was positively related to the amplitude of background noise. Although responses were quite heterogeneous, song features of all six species varied with amplitude and/or frequency of background noise. Collectively, these results provide strong evidence that natural soundscapes have long influenced vocal behavior. More broadly, the evolved behavioral responses to the long-standing challenges presented by natural sources of noise likely explain the many responses observed for species communicating in difficult signal conditions presented by human-made noise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The broken-wing display is a well-known and conspicuous deceptive signal used to protect birds' broods against diurnal terrestrial predators. Although commonly associated with shorebirds, it remains unknown how common the behaviour is across birds and what forces are associated with the evolution of the display. Here, we use the broken-wing display as a paradigmatic example to study the evolution of a behaviour across Aves. We show that the display is widespread: it has been described in 52 families spread throughout the phylogeny, suggesting that it independently evolved multiple times. Further, we evaluated the association with 16 ecological and life-history variables hypothesized to be related to the evolution of the broken-wing display. Eight variables were associated with the display. We found that species breeding farther from the equator, in more dense environments, with shorter incubation periods, and relatively little nest cover were more likely to perform the display, as were those in which only one parent incubates eggs, species that mob nest predators and species that are altricial or multi-brooded. Collectively, our comprehensive approach identified forces associated with the repeated evolution of this conspicuous display, thereby providing new insights into how deceptive behaviours evolve in the context of predator–prey interactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic noise has received considerable recent attention, but we know little about the role that sources of natural noise have on wildlife abundance and distributions. Rivers and streams represent an ancient source of natural noise that is widespread and covers much of Earth. We sought to understand the role that whitewater river noise plays on arthropod abundance in riparian habitats across a desert landscape. For two summers, we continuously broadcasted whitewater river noise and spectrally‐altered river noise (shifted upwards in frequency, but maintaining the same temporal profile) to experimentally tease apart the effects of two characteristics of noise – sound levels and background spectral frequency – on arthropod abundances. We used five types of trapping methods, placed across 20 sites within the Pioneer Mountains of Idaho, USA, to collect and identify 151 992 specimens to the order level. We built Bayesian generalized linear mixed‐effects models with noise characteristics and other habitat variables such as riparian vegetation, elevation, temperature, and moonlight. Of the 42 models we built (one for each order‐trap type combination), 26 (62%) indicated a substantial response to at least one noise variable – sound pressure level, background spectral frequency, or an interaction between the two. Fourteen of 17 (82%) arthropod orders responded to noise in some capacity: Araneae, Coleoptera, Collembola, Dermaptera, Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Neuroptera, Opiliones, Orthoptera, Plecoptera, Raphidioptera, Thysanoptera and Trichoptera. Only three groups appeared to be unaffected, Acari, Archaeognatha and Diptera. Results from this study suggest that the natural acoustic environment can shape arthropod abundances both directly and indirectly (via predator–prey relationships). Future work should further examine the role that the indirect effects of noise play in food webs. Natural noise should be considered an important ecological niche axis, especially as we continue to alter natural acoustic environments and replace them with anthropogenic ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global expansion of lighting and noise pollution alters how animals receive and interpret environmental cues. However, we lack a cross-taxon understanding of how animal traits influence species vulnerability to this growing phenomenon. This knowledge is needed to improve the design and implementation of policies that mitigate or reduce sensory pollutants. We present results from an expert knowledge survey that quantified the relative influence of 21 ecological, anatomical, and physiological traits on the vulnerability of terrestrial vertebrates to elevated levels of anthropogenic lighting and noise. We aimed not only to quantify the importance of threats and the relative influence of traits as viewed by sensory and wildlife experts, but to examine knowledge gaps based on the variation in responses. Identifying traits that had less consensus can guide future research for strengthening ecologists' and conservation biologists' understanding of sensory abilities. Our findings, based on 280 responses of expert opinion, highlight the increasing recognition among experts that sensory pollutants are important to consider in management and conservation decisions. Participant responses show mounting threats to species with narrow niches; especially habitat specialists, nocturnal species, and those with the greatest ability to differentiate environmental visual and auditory cues. Our results call attention to the threat specialist species face and provide a generalizable understanding of which species require additional considerations when developing conservation policies and mitigation strategies in a world altered by expanding sensory pollutant footprints. We provide a step-by-step example for translating these results to on-the-ground conservation planning using two species as case studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A major challenge for studies assessing drivers of phenotypic divergence is the statistical comparison of taxa with unique, often unknown, evolutionary histories, and for which there are no clear expected trait values. Because many traits are fundamentally constrained by energy availability, we suggest that trait values predicted by scaling theories such as the metabolic theory of ecology (MTE) can provide baseline expectations. Here, we introduce a metabolic scaling‐based approach to test theory involving the direction and magnitude of ecological and sexual selection, using vocal frequency as an example target of selection. First, we demonstrate that MTE predicts the relationship between the natural log of body size and natural log of vocal frequency across 795 bird species, controlling for phylogeny. Family‐wide deviations in slope and intercepts from MTE estimates reveal taxa with potentially important differences in physiology or natural history. Further, species‐level frequency deviations from MTE expectations are predicted by factors related to ecological and sexual selection and, in some cases, provide evidence that differs from current understanding of the direction of selection and identity of ecological selective agents. For example, our approach lends additional support to the findings from many cross‐habitat studies that suggest that dense vegetation selects for lower frequency signals. However, our analysis also suggests that birds in non‐forested environments vocalize at frequencies higher than expected based on MTE, prompting intriguing questions about the selective forces in non‐forest environments that may act on vocal frequency. Additionally, vocal frequency deviates more strongly from MTE expectations among species with smaller repertoires and those with low levels of sexual dichromatism, complicating the use of these common sexual selection surrogates. Broad application of our metabolic scaling approach might provide an important complementary approach to understanding how selection shapes phenotypic evolution by offering a common baseline across studies and taxa and providing the basis to explore evolutionary trade‐offs within and among multicomponent and multimodal traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extent of artificial night light and anthropogenic noise (i.e., "light" and "noise") impacts is global and has the capacity to threaten species across diverse ecosystems. Existing research involving impacts of light or noise has primarily focused on noise or light alone and single species; however, these stimuli often co‐occur and little is known about how co‐exposure influences wildlife and if and why species may vary in their responses. Here, we had three aims: (1) to investigate species‐specific responses to light, noise, and the interaction between the two using a spatially explicit approach to model changes in abundance of 140 prevalent bird species across North America, (2) to investigate responses to the interaction between light exposure and night length, and (3) to identify functional traits and habitat affiliations that explain variation in species‐specific responses to these sensory stimuli with phylogenetically informed models. We found species that responded to noise exposure generally decreased in abundance, and the additional presence of light interacted synergistically with noise to exacerbate its negative effects. Moreover, the interaction revealed negative emergent responses for several species that only reacted when light and noise co‐occurred. Additionally, an interaction between light and night length revealed 47 species increased in abundance with light exposure during longer nights. In addition to modifying behavior with optimal temperature and potential foraging opportunities, birds might be attracted to light, yet suffer inadvertent physiological consequences. The trait that most strongly related to avian response to light and noise was habitat affiliation. Specifically, species that occupy closed habitat were less tolerant of both sensory stressors compared to those that occupy open habitat. Further quantifying the contexts and intrinsic traits that explain how species respond to noise and light will be fundamental to understanding the ecological consequences of a world that is ever louder and brighter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research suggests that anthropogenic noise can substantially alter animal behavior. Although there are many sources of natural background noise, the relative influence of these sounds on behavior has received much less attention. Using landscape-scale playbacks of rushing rivers and crashing ocean surf, we investigated how habitat appropriate natural noise alters territorial defense behaviors in lazuli buntings (Passerina amoena) occupying riparian areas and spotted towhees (Pipilo maculatus) in riparian and coastal areas when exposed to simulated intruder song. We also incorporated naturally occurring cicada noise as an acoustic source influencing lazuli bunting behavior. Both songbird species possess songs that share substantial spectral overlap with low-frequency, water-generated noise, and lazuli bunting song shares an additional high-frequency overlap with cicada calls. Thus, there is potential for background acoustic conditions to mask conspecific signals. We found that detection and discrimination of conspecific playback occurred more slowly for both species as background sound levels increased. Lazuli buntings also exhibited complex flight behavior in noise, suggesting they respond differently depending on the amplitude and type of background noise (with versus without cicada calls). Our results suggest natural noise can impair territorial defense behaviors in songbirds, highlighting natural soundscapes as an under-appreciated axis of the environment. Human-generated noise affects animal behavior in numerous ways, yet how natural noise influences behavior remains largely unknown. We found that increases in natural noise conditions (i.e., experimental ocean surf or river noise, and/or free-living cicada chorus noise) alter signal detection and songbird defensive behaviors in response to simulated intruder song, similar to the effects of human-generated noise. Our results suggest that interference from natural background noise could be a prevailing evolutionary driver in animal communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Light pollution, or the presence of artificial light at night (ALAN), is among the fastest growing but least understood anthropogenic stressor on the planet. While historically light pollution has not received attention comparable to climate change or chemical pollution, research over the past several decades has revealed the plethora of negative effects on humans, animals, and supporting ecosystems. As light pollution continues to grow in spatial, spectral, and temporal extent, we recognize the urgent need to understand how this affects circadian physiology, organismal fitness, life history traits and tradeoffs, population trends, and community interactions. Here, we aim to highlight background and foundational evidence of the effects of light pollution to present context and the basis for early light pollution studies. Next, we touch on several understudied topics where research is underway to fill gaps in our knowledge and provide the basis for future research. Last, we focus on questions that are vital to understanding the effects of ALAN on diverse natural systems and discuss the barriers we face conducting research on light pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial light at night (ALAN) functions as a novel environmental stimulus that has the potential to disrupt interactions among species. Despite recent efforts to explain nocturnal pollinators' responses to this stimulus, the likelihood and associated mechanisms of attraction toward artificial light and potential consequences on fitness for diurnal pollinators are still largely unclear. Here, we took advantage of the obligate mutualism between yucca moths (Tegeticula maculata maculata) and yucca plants (Hesperoyucca whipplei) to understand how direct light exposure and skyglow can influence a pairwise plant–pollinator interaction. To surmise whether adult moths exhibit positive phototaxis, we deployed a set of field-placed light towers during the peak of yucca flowering and compared the number of moths caught in traps between dark-controlled and light-treated trials. Adult moth abundance was much higher when light was present, which suggests that ALAN may alter this diurnal moth's activity patterns to expand their temporal niche into the night. To evaluate ALAN effects on yucca fruit set and moth larva recruitment, we measured skyglow exposure above yucca plants and direct light intensity from a second set of light towers. Both larva and fruit recruitment increased with skyglow, and fruit set also increased with direct lighting, but the relationship was weaker. Contrarily, larva recruitment did not change when exposed to a gradient of direct light, which may instead reflect effects of ALAN on moth physiology, such as disrupted female oviposition, or misdirecting behaviors essential to oviposition activity. Our results suggest that ALAN can positively influence the fitness of both plants and moths in this tightly co-evolved mutualism, but the benefits to each species may depend on whether night lighting is direct or indirect. Whether such effects and mechanisms could relate to susceptibility to the presence of ALAN on this or other plant–pollinator relationships will remain an important focus of future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise pollution can affect species' behaviours and distributions and may hold significant consequences for natural communities. While several studies have researched short-term effects of noise, no long-term research has examined whether observed patterns persist or if community recovery can occur. We used a long-term study system in New Mexico to examine the effects of continuous natural gas well noise exposure on seedling recruitment of foundational tree species (Pinus edulis, Juniperus osteosperma) and vegetation diversity. First, we examined seedling recruitment and vegetation diversity at plots where current noise levels have persisted for greater than 15 years. We then examined recruitment and diversity on plots where noise sources were recently removed or added. We found support for long-term negative effects of noise on tree seedling recruitment, evenness of woody plants and increasingly dissimilar vegetation communities with differences in noise levels. Furthermore, seedling recruitment and plant community composition did not recover following noise removal, possibly due in part to a lag in recovery among animals that disperse and pollinate plants. Our results add to the limited evidence that noise has cascading ecological effects. Moreover, these effects may be long lasting and noise removal may not lead to immediate recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) present global health threats, and their emergences are often linked to anthropogenic change. Artificial light at night (ALAN) is one form of anthropogenic change that spans beyond urban boundaries and may be relevant to EIDs through its influence on the behaviour and physiology of hosts and/or vectors. Although West Nile virus (WNV) emergence has been described as peri-urban, we hypothesized that exposure risk could also be influenced by ALAN in particular, which is testable by comparing the effects of ALAN on prevalence while controlling for other aspects of urbanization. By modelling WNV exposure among sentinel chickens in Florida, we found strong support for a nonlinear relationship between ALAN and WNV exposure risk in chickens with peak WNV risk occurring at low ALAN levels. Although our goal was not to discern how ALAN affected WNV relative to other factors, effects of ALAN on WNV exposure were stronger than other known drivers of risk (i.e. impervious surface, human population density). Ambient temperature in the month prior to sampling, but no other considered variables, strongly influenced WNV risk. These results indicate that ALAN may contribute to spatio-temporal changes in WNV risk, justifying future investigations of ALAN on other vector-borne parasites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic noise has received significant attention in recent years, and researchers have highlighted the ways in which animals might deal with these noise sources. However, much of our understanding of animal responses to this novel source of background acoustics lacks an evolutionary perspective. Natural sources of noise predate the origin of hearing organs in animals. Therefore, it is unlikely that animals have only recently evolved strategies to cope with anthropogenic noise de novo but, rather, already have preexisting coping mechanisms, because of countless generations of evolution within a naturally noisy world, on which contemporary selection is now likely acting. We review strategies to cope with natural sources of noise and suggest a more quantitative and mechanistic understanding of how particular characteristics of noise have shaped animal populations and communities in the past, enabling us to predict the effects that novel sources of noise will have on the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic noise and artificial night lighting have been shown to have substantial effects on animal behavior, physiology, and species interactions. Despite the large body of previous work, very few studies have studied the combined effects of light and noise pollution, especially experimentally in the field. Rodents are a highly diverse group that are predominantly nocturnal and occupy a wide range of habitats worldwide, frequently in close association with human development, placing them at a heightened risk from sensory disturbances. To test the singular and combined effects of various levels of anthropogenic light and noise exposure on pinyon mouse (Peromyscus truei) activity and body condition, we used standard trapping methods across a gradient of light and noise and the two combined and accounted for variation of moonlight, vegetation structure, and weather. We hypothesized that increased levels of artificial light would decrease trap success and lead to lower body condition due to an increase in perceived predation risk and that increased noise levels would increase trap success and body condition due to a reduction in predation risk and/or release from competition. Pinyon mouse trap success declined as light intensity increased, and the effect was comparable to that of moonlight, which is well known to influence rodent activity and perception of predation risk. Although noise pollution did not alter trap success of pinyon mice, individuals captured in noisier areas at the beginning of the season had lower body condition than those from quieter areas. Body condition was uninfluenced by noise and light later in the season. We also found no evidence of any additive or synergistic effects of the two stimuli. Our results provide evidence that alterations to the sensory environment from anthropogenic activity can affect wild rodents in several ways. As anthropogenic development increases to meet the demands of growing human populations, more ecosystems will be exposed to increased levels of sensory disturbance, making the understanding of how these changes affect wildlife critical to ongoing conservation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial nightlight is increasingly recognized as an important environmental disturbance that influences the habitats and fitness of numerous species. However, its effects on wide‐ranging vertebrates and their interactions remain unclear. Light pollution has the potential to amplify land‐use change, and as such, answering the question of how this sensory stimulant affects behavior and habitat use of species valued for their ecological roles and economic impacts is critical for conservation and land‐use planning. Here, we combined satellite‐derived estimates of light pollution, with GPS‐data from cougars Puma concolor (n = 56), mule deer Odocoileus hemionus (n = 263) and locations of cougar‐killed deer (n = 1562 carcasses), to assess the effects of light exposure on mammal behavior and predator–prey relationships across wildland–urban gradients in the southwestern United States. Our results indicate that deer used the anthropogenic environments to access forage and were more active at night than their wildland conspecifics. Despite higher nightlight levels, cougars killed deer at the wildland–urban interface, but hunted them in the relatively darkest locations. Light had the greatest effect of all covariates on where cougars killed deer at the wildland–urban interface. Both species exhibited functional responses to light pollution at fine scales; individual cougars and deer with less light exposure increasingly avoided illuminated areas when exposed to greater radiance, whereas deer living in the wildland–urban interface selected elevated light levels. We conclude that integrating estimates of light pollution into ecological studies provides crucial insights into how the dynamic human footprint can alter animal behavior and ecosystem function across spatial scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Burgeoning urbanization, development and human activities have led to reduced opportunities for nature experience in quiet acoustic environments. Increasing noise affects both humans and wildlife alike.We experimentally altered human‐caused sound levels in a paired study using informational signs that encouraged quiet behaviours in week‐on, week‐off blocks on the trail system of Muir Woods National Monument, California, USA to test if the soundscape influences both wildlife and human experiences.Using continuous measurements from acoustic recording units (n = 13) spatially distributed within the park, we found signs significantly lowered sound levels by approximately 1.2 decibels (A‐weighted), thereby increasing listening area by 24% and bird availability by approximately 5.8% for every 1 decibel decrease.Visitor‐intercept surveys (n = 537) revealed that our mitigation increased the number of birds perceived by visitors, rankings of soundscape pleasantness, and importantly, preferences for soundscape management.By lowering human‐caused sound levels, we created an acoustic environment equivalent to a ~21% reduction in visitors. The positive feedback cycle we describe may lead to increased conservation support in a time when the extinction of nature experience looms. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rates of human-induced environmental change continue increasing with human population size, potentially altering animal physiology and negatively affecting wildlife. Researchers often use glucocorticoid concentrations (hormones that can be associated with stressors) to gauge the impact of anthropogenic factors (e.g. urbanization, noise and light pollution). Yet, no general relationships between human-induced environmental change and glucocorticoids have emerged. Given the number of recent studies reporting baseline and stress-induced corticosterone (the primary glucocorticoid in birds and reptiles) concentrations worldwide, it is now possible to conduct large-scale comparative analyses to test for general associations between disturbance and baseline and stress-induced corticosterone across species. Additionally, we can control for factors that may influence context, such as life history stage, environmental conditions and urban adaptability of a species. Here, we take a phylogenetically informed approach and use data from HormoneBase to test if baseline and stress-induced corticosterone are valid indicators of exposure to human footprint index, human population density, anthropogenic noise and artificial light at night in birds and reptiles. Our results show a negative relationship between anthropogenic noise and baseline corticosterone for birds characterized as urban avoiders. While our results potentially indicate that urban avoiders are more sensitive to noise than other species, overall our study suggests that the relationship between human-induced environmental change and corticosterone varies across species and contexts; we found no general relationship between human impacts and baseline and stress-induced corticosterone in birds, nor baseline corticosterone in reptiles. Therefore, it should not be assumed that high or low levels of exposure to human-induced environmental change are associated with high or low corticosterone levels, respectively, or that closely related species, or even individuals, will respond similarly. Moving forward, measuring alternative physiological traits alongside reproductive success, health and survival may provide context to better understand the potential negative effects of human-induced environmental change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]