Israeli Research On Desert Rodents Exhibits ‘extreme Harm’ From Mild Air pollution

Artificial light at night causes numerous deaths and impaired reproduction in two species

A new Israeli study revealed the negative health effects of artificial light at night, with desert rodents suffering extensive deaths and impaired reproduction.

The Faculty of Zoology at Tel Aviv University (TAU) focused on two species – the diurnal golden spiny mouse and the nocturnal common spiny mouse. The 96 animals were exposed to low levels of light pollution for an extended period of time. On two occasions, entire colonies died from nocturnal illumination and reproductive rates decreased significantly compared to controls.

“The results clearly show the serious adverse effects of light pollution. This is an important step in understanding the impact of human activities on the environment as a means of promoting science-based decisions and policies,” said the research team.

The study was led by Professor Noga Kronfeld-Schor – senior scientist at the Israel Ministry of Environmental Protection – and Ph.D. Student Hagar Vardi-Naim, both from the Zoological Faculty of the TAU and the Steinhardt Natural History Museum.

Courtesy of Tel Aviv UniversityProfessor Noga Kronfeld-Schor, senior scientist at the Israel Ministry of Environmental Protection

It was published in the peer-reviewed journal Scientific Reports under the title “Fitness consequences of chronic exposure to different wavelengths of light pollution in nocturnal and diurnal rodents”.

The tests also revealed physiological and hormonal changes in the mice, particularly in relation to levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

“Our results show that light pollution, particularly cold white and blue light, increases mortality and disrupts reproduction, and thus can affect the fitness and survival of species in the wild,” said Kronfeld-Schor. “This disruption can have far-reaching consequences with the current prevalence of light pollution.”