A possible effect of electromagnetic radiation from mobile phone base stations on the number of breeding house sparrows (Passer domesticus)
Authors not listed · 2007
Fewer house sparrow males were observed at locations with higher electric field strength from GSM base stations.
Plain English Summary
Researchers studied the effect of long-term exposure to low-intensity electromagnetic radiation from GSM base stations on house sparrows during breeding season in six Belgian residential districts. They sampled 150 point locations across the six areas to examine variation in male house sparrow numbers and electromagnetic radiation strength. The number of male house sparrows was negatively and highly significantly related to electric field strength from 900 and 1800 MHz downlink bands. This negative relationship was consistent across all six study areas despite differences in bird numbers and radiation levels.
Why This Matters
The researchers concluded that their data support the notion that long-term exposure to higher radiation levels negatively affects house sparrow abundance or behavior in the wild. They found fewer male house sparrows at locations with relatively high electric field strength from GSM base stations.
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Show BibTeX
@article{a_possible_effect_of_electromagnetic_radiation_from_mobile_phone_base_stations_on_the_number_of_breeding_house_sparrows_passer_domesticus_ce1198,
author = {Unknown},
title = {A possible effect of electromagnetic radiation from mobile phone base stations on the number of breeding house sparrows (Passer domesticus)},
year = {2007},
doi = {10.1080/15368370701205693},
}