Mario at the window

Now is that time of year when tits start to gather in small feeding flocks with mixed species. In this flock Long-tailed Tits are quite vocal but you can also hear Willow Tit, Crested Tit, Great Tit and Blue Tit. 

Kallsjön, Uppland. August 1, 2025.
Zoom F3 + Clippy EM 272 spread 1 m apart

Late summer tit party!

A kangaroo feeding; Bronzewings softly ooming; a Fantailed Cuckoo beautifully churring; a brief, gentle shower of rain. Early summer dawn in Western River Wilderness Protection Area. (Be forewarned: the raindrops will occasionally fall upon your ears, but fairly gently.)

2024.12.09 Rain and Fan-tailed Cuckoo. Western River. Early Summer.

Two excerpts from a longer dawn recording made in early summer at Cape Kersaint (in Vivonne Bay Conservation Park, Kangaroo Island), isolating and focussing more closely on two passages of dawn song from what is almost certainly a Tawny-crowned Honeyeater. The longer dawn recording (see link below) begins with what may very likely be this same individual Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, commencing its dawn singing extremely tentatively - almost as if it's singing for the first time, or hasn't sung for a very long time! If it is indeed the same bird, then, nearly one hour later, it is far more confidently producing these more complex and original variant melodic-rhythmic phrases.

Many thanks to @mikesim for noticing and inquiring about the first of these two passages in a comment to the longer dawn recording.

Related recording: https://soundcloud.com/hearingbeings/2024-12-01-dawn-at-cape-kersaint

2024.12.01 Tawny-crowned Honeyeater. Two Excerpts. Cape Kersaint. Early Summer.

https://www.binauraldiaries.co.uk/blog/perrygrove-railway-02092023-1321

Nestled in the heart of the Forest of Dean, Perrygrove Railway offers not only a charming narrow-gauge steam railway experience but also an excellent opportunity for field recording enthusiasts. In September 2023, we made a family visit, and having brought along my Sony PCM-M10 recorder I was able to capture the distinctive sounds of a minimum-gauge train approaching and coming to a standstill.

As the train emerged from the woodland track, the rhythmic chuffing of the steam engine was punctuated by the metallic clatter of wheels against rails. There was a tangible sense of movement conveyed through the recording — the crescendo of sound as the train picked up speed, then gradually softened as it slowed towards the platform.

Perrygrove Railway 02/09/2023 13:21

https://www.binauraldiaries.co.uk/blog/willsbridge-mill-bristol-20052018

During a visit to Willsbridge Mill in 2018, I captured two distinct field recordings using my Sony PCM-M10 recorder. The first recording focused on the water flowing through Siston Brook. The sound of the gentle current, combined with the subtle trickle of smaller streams and the occasional splash against stones, created a calming and immersive natural soundscape.

The second recording embraced the general ambience surrounding the mill. Here, birdcalls formed a peaceful backdrop, intermittently punctuated by the casual voices of other visitors passing through, and sounds from the cafe. This blend of natural and human sounds offers a realistic sense of place, reflecting the mill’s role as both a serene environment and a popular local spot.

Image
Rwendland, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Willsbridge Mill - Ambience 20/05/2018 12:26

Jays have a rich repertoire of calls and can mimic other bird species and mammals. But this is the typical call you hear year-round in mixed deciduous-coniferous forests.

Kallön, Uppland. August 1, 2025.
Zoom F3 + Clippy EM 272 spaced 1 m apart

Typical call of Jay

https://www.binauraldiaries.co.uk/blog/morning-birdsong-camping-in-devon-11042025-0600

Recording birdsong at 6am on a woodland campsite in Devon this April was a rewarding experience. The early morning stillness offered an ideal backdrop for capturing the natural soundscape, with the chorus of birds becoming increasingly vibrant as dawn broke over the trees.

Using the Sony PCM-M10's built-in microphones, I was able to achieve clear, immersive recordings despite the limitations of onboard mics in such an environment. The compact design and low noise floor of the PCM-M10 proved advantageous, allowing for unobtrusive placement within the campsite and quick setup.

A highlight of the session was the distinctive tapping and drumming of woodpeckers, which added a dynamic rhythmic element to the recordings. Two recordings were merged to produce the final recording presented here.

Devon Camping Birdsong 11/04/2025 06:00

Field sound recordist and archivist of vanishing sounds in natural Iandscapes. Highly commended in the Sound of the Year Awards 2024 - Best Natural Sound.

Late summer tit party!

Bo Söderström

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