Widespread reductions in both avian abundance 22 and species richness 23, alongside increased biotic homogenisation 24, are therefore likely to be impacting the acoustic properties of natural soundscapes and potentially reducing the quality of nature contact experiences 25. Birds are a major contributor to natural soundscapes 18 and bird song, and song diversity in particular, plays an important role in defining the quality of nature experiences 15, 19, 20, 21. Indeed, since Rachel Carson’s (1962) classic book “ Silent Spring”, nature’s sounds have been inextricably linked to perceptions of environmental quality 16, and the maintenance of natural soundscape integrity is increasingly being incorporated into conservation policy and action 17. Sound confers a sense of place and is a key pathway for engaging with, and benefitting from, nature 15. Global biodiversity loss 13 is also likely to be driving a dilution of experience, whereby the quality of those interactions with nature which do still occur is also being reduced 14 but we do not yet know the extent of such changes. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted this issue, both in terms of the detrimental impacts on mental health due to local and national lockdowns imposed by governments and the widespread recognition of the benefits of engaging with nature during this period 11, 12. This so-called extinction of experience 5 is driving a growing human-nature disconnect, with negative impacts on physical health, cognitive ability and psychological well-being 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Rapid urbanisation, along with increasingly sedentary lifestyles associated with a rise in electronic media, changing social norms, and shifting perceptions around outside play 2, 3, 4, are reducing people’s opportunities for direct contact with the natural environment. Over half the world’s population now live in cities 1. Nature Communications volume 12, Article number: 6217 ( 2021) Bird population declines and species turnover are changing the acoustic properties of spring soundscapes

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