Marine Mammal Hearing Group Reference
Return the purpose and limitations of regulatory marine-mammal hearing groups.
Description
Hearing groups organize species with broadly similar hearing sensitivity for frequency weighting and acoustic-exposure assessment.
Hearing groups organize species with broadly similar hearing sensitivity for frequency weighting and acoustic-exposure assessment. This reference explains the selected concept and the evidence needed to interpret it.1, 2
The returned values include Source, Statement, Topic. The How section below explains the calculation, input rules and interpretation.
When to use Marine Mammal Hearing Group Reference
Use Marine Mammal Hearing Group Reference when you need to evaluate the supplied records under the calculation and evidence rules below. A group weighting is not an individual audiogram and does not replace species, context, duration, or exposure-level analysis. This is an introductory excerpt, not the complete standard, a current compliance check or a project-specific calculation.
Choose the measured quantities, units, weighting and measurement basis before entering values. For a reference, select the exact topic. For a catalog lookup, prepare complete source-backed records; for a screen, select an applicable caller limit.
How to use Marine Mammal Hearing Group Reference and understand its results
- Choose the measured quantities, units, weighting and measurement basis before entering values. For a reference, select the exact topic. For a catalog lookup, prepare complete source-backed records; for a screen, select an applicable caller limit.
- Enter topic using the field table and calculation rules, then run the tool.
- Read source, statement, topic. The explanation below defines the units, signs, ordering and any flags or placeholder values.
- If the tool reports an input issue, correct the values and run it again. Apply the stated assumptions when interpreting a successfully returned result.
| Input field | Meaning | Value type; see rules below | Requirement |
|---|---|---|---|
| topic | Reference topic to return. | string; one of "purpose", "groups", "caution" | Required |
Choose one of the exact topic values in the table. The tool indexes a fixed, locally embedded reference entry and returns its source label, statement and unchanged topic. It does not fetch the source or update the wording. Topic meanings and all returned entries are shown below.
| Selection | Returned reference entry |
|---|---|
| purpose | source: NOAA Fisheries technical guidance; statement: Hearing groups organize species with broadly similar hearing sensitivity for frequency weighting and acoustic-exposure assessment.; topic: purpose |
| groups | source: NOAA Fisheries technical guidance; statement: Current guidance distinguishes multiple cetacean and pinniped hearing groups; names and weighting parameters depend on the cited guidance edition.; topic: groups |
| caution | source: NOAA Fisheries technical guidance; statement: A group weighting is not an individual audiogram and does not replace species, context, duration, or exposure-level analysis.; topic: caution |
selected exact topic → embedded source label, explanatory statement and topic Units, indexing, boundary conditions and exceptional cases are defined in the calculation rules above.
| Output field | Meaning | Value type |
|---|---|---|
| source | Source used for the reference statement. | string |
| statement | Narrow reference statement for the selected topic. | string |
| topic | Selected reference topic. | string; one of "purpose", "groups", "caution" |
{
"input": {
"topic": "purpose"
},
"output": {
"source": "NOAA Fisheries technical guidance",
"statement": "Hearing groups organize species with broadly similar hearing sensitivity for frequency weighting and acoustic-exposure assessment.",
"topic": "purpose"
}
}Limitations and assumptions
A group weighting is not an individual audiogram and does not replace species, context, duration, or exposure-level analysis. This is an introductory excerpt, not the complete standard, a current compliance check or a project-specific calculation.
Numeric inputs, where present, must be finite. Follow the calculation-specific rules for overflow, underflow and exceptional cases. Extremely large text inputs are rejected. Missing fields without a declared default, extra fields, wrong value types and violations of the calculation rules are input errors.
Alternative or Complementary methods
Use Airgun Soft-Start Reference: A soft start or ramp-up begins with reduced acoustic output and increases it progressively to provide an opportunity for animals to move away. This reference explains the selected concept and the evidence needed to interpret it. For a complementary task, use Microphone Placement Reference: Microphone height and distance from façades or other reflecting surfaces must follow the stated measurement standard and assessment objective. This reference explains the selected concept and the evidence needed to interpret it.
Further background: Marine mammal acoustic technical guidance.
References
-
Marine Mammal Hearing Group Reference — tool.io
-
Marine mammal acoustic technical guidance — NOAA Fisheries
Similar or alternative tools
- Airgun Soft-Start Reference
A soft start or ramp-up begins with reduced acoustic output and increases it progressively to provide an opportunity for animals to move away. This reference explains the selected concept and the evidence needed to interpret it.
- Microphone Placement Reference
Microphone height and distance from façades or other reflecting surfaces must follow the stated measurement standard and assessment objective. This reference explains the selected concept and the evidence needed to interpret it.