Reef soundscape response to a severe convective storm event in the Northern Red Sea
- 1Marine Science Program, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)
- 2Snow Processes Group, WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF
Abstract
A rare, severe convective-storm impacted Shushah Island in the Northern Red Sea on 29 November 2022, producing intense rainfall exceeding 50 mm h−1 and strong winds (> 10 m s⁻1). Here, we characterize the storm event by its underwater acoustic signature and investigate potential changes in biophony caused by its passing. Initial light rain and wind elevated energy in the 2–15 kHz range, while consequent heavy rainfall introduced pronounced low-frequency energy (< 1 kHz). The rapid-onset storm masked biophony for its duration (~ 15 min), especially in the low frequency range. Root-mean-square sound pressure level (SPLrms) were analyzed at two key time intervals, before and after the storm event, for both low frequency (40 Hz–800 Hz) and high frequency (2 kHz–20 kHz) bands, commonly associated with biophony of fish and snapping shrimp respectively. These levels were compared against a baseline, using recordings from the same time interval across the 10-day surrounding window (5 days before and 5 days after). SPLrms during the intervals immediately preceding and following the storm generally occupied the lower range of reference conditions, particularly in the high-frequency band, although responses were variable at the minute scale. Despite these short-term shifts, acoustic levels returned rapidly to baseline conditions, indicating high short-term resilience of the reef acoustic community following this rare extreme weather event.
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BibTeX
@article{havlik2026reef,
title = {{Reef soundscape response to a severe convective storm event in the Northern Red Sea}},
author = {Michelle-Nicole Havlik and Sergi González-Herrero and Carlos Angulo-Preckler and Carlos M. Duarte},
journal = {Discover Oceans},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1007/s44289-026-00185-7},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s44289-026-00185-7},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Reef soundscape response to a severe convective storm event in the Northern Red Sea
AU - Michelle-Nicole Havlik
AU - Sergi González-Herrero
AU - Carlos Angulo-Preckler
AU - Carlos M. Duarte
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/25
JO - Discover Oceans
DO - 10.1007/s44289-026-00185-7
UR - https://doi.org/10.1007/s44289-026-00185-7
AB - A rare, severe convective-storm impacted Shushah Island in the Northern Red Sea on 29 November 2022, producing intense rainfall exceeding 50 mm h−1 and strong winds (> 10 m s⁻1). Here, we characterize the storm event by its underwater acoustic signature and investigate potential changes in biophony caused by its passing. Initial light rain and wind elevated energy in the 2–15 kHz range, while consequent heavy rainfall introduced pronounced low-frequency energy (< 1 kHz). The rapid-onset storm masked biophony for its duration (~ 15 min), especially in the low frequency range. Root-mean-square sound pressure level (SPLrms) were analyzed at two key time intervals, before and after the storm event, for both low frequency (40 Hz–800 Hz) and high frequency (2 kHz–20 kHz) bands, commonly associated with biophony of fish and snapping shrimp respectively. These levels were compared against a baseline, using recordings from the same time interval across the 10-day surrounding window (5 days before and 5 days after). SPLrms during the intervals immediately preceding and following the storm generally occupied the lower range of reference conditions, particularly in the high-frequency band, although responses were variable at the minute scale. Despite these short-term shifts, acoustic levels returned rapidly to baseline conditions, indicating high short-term resilience of the reef acoustic community following this rare extreme weather event.
SN - 2948-1562
ER -