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Résumé :
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The acoustic environment of animals and humans has never been quiet, encompassing all sounds, from natural to those made by humans. The effect of sound on physiology and development starts before birth, which is why a world that grows increasingly more noisy, with loud outdoor entertainment, construction, and traffic, is a concern. On page 475 of this issue, Meillère et al. (1) report that exposure of birds that are in the egg to moderate levels of noise can lead to developmental problems, amounting to increased mortality and reduced life-time reproductive success. Such noisy conditions at the beginning of acoustic life may affect behavioral and cognitive development in many more species. Physiological stress and auditory masking before birth can have potentially lasting and severe consequences later in life.
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