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The sounds of the night are the most magical, mysterious sounds in nature’s collection. The night singers are invisible, secretive and ephemeral.They evaporate as we approach and are at once soothing and scintillating.
To hear a short sample of each track, click on the track title (These samples have been compressed to save download time, so they are not as high-quality as the CD) The collection is from four locations:
Peck’s Lake (20:05), in Central Arizona, dominated by the Great Horned Owl and Wodehouse’s Toad;
Mittry Lake (4:58), near Yuma, Arizona, starring the Bullfrog;
Monteverde (3:54), in the cloud forests of mountainous central Costa Rica, which features the Mottled Owl;
Puerto Viejo de Talamanca (2:04), in southeastern Costa Rica, with its Common Paraque and Smoky Jungle Frogs.
El Gavilan, Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui (8:03), in north central Costa Rica, featuring Tink Frogs and the rain filtering down through the canopy above - very soothing!
On August 12th, 2000 one of nature’s most impressive and awe-inspiring events took place near the small town of Clarkdale, in central Arizona In this one 25-minute event, enough power was unleashed to supply all of the electrical energy needs of the town for a month! During the short monsoon storm more than 100 bolts of lightning raced
from cloud to cloud and from the clouds to the ground, and more than a half-million gallons of water fell on the parched earth. The rain helped mark the end of a draught that had lasted more than 6 months. Recorded on one continuous track, this CD chronicles the storm from beginning to end, as it passed over one point that afternoon.
If you love thunderstorms this is a CD you need. There is no music on this CD, just the sound of nature’s fury and sustenance, all wrapped up in one! To hear a short sample, click here.
This long-awaited CD contains the pure sounds of Costa Rica's richest ecosystems.
There are 7 tracks totalling more than 30 minutes of vibrant sound!
These recordings were made on several trips to Costa Rica by Doug Von Gausig, of Naturesongs.com. Most were made using Telinga parabolic microphones and Sony Minidisc recorders. Each track includes a background "tapestry" of sound punctuated by typical species in that area. There is no narration, no music - just rich jungle sounds!
This CD traces water's journey from glacial melt high in Colorado's Rocky Mountains to the sea at La Jolla, California. Each track brings you closer to the ocean by way of larger and larger streams and rivers. The sounds of water are both soothing and invigorating, and this CD will be enjoyed as background sound, "white sound" for restless sleepers, even as relief for those who suffer from tinnitus.
There are 5 tracks totalling more than 30 minutes of soothing water sounds!
Kevin Colver is a superlative nature recordist from Utah who has put together a wonderful set of Western bird sound CDs and tapes. There are currently 4 selections, with more on the way. These are a great way to familiarize yourself with the sounds and habits of most of the birds you'll see and hear in the Great American West! The titles available are: "Songbirds of the Rocky Mountain Foothills", with 33 species; "Songbirds of Yosemite and the Sierra Nevadas", with 75 species; "Songbirds of Yellowstone and the High Rockies", with 78 species; and "Songbirds of the Southwest Canyon Country", with 66 species. These are the highest-quality recordings on the market, in my opinion. They'll make an invaluable addition to your library or a great gift for a bird lover!
I use David Ross's 2 wonderful Costa Rican CDs as a great reference to sound in the Neotropics.
Peterson Field Guides' Birding by Ear series are a great place for a novice "ear birder" to start! These guides are available on CD and cassette tape. The authors explain the basics of bird siounds and progress through mnemonic devices we can all use to remember the sounds we hear, and then on to specific birds' calls and songs. They are certainly not all-inclusive of the birds in any one area, instead they concentrate on common birds you will most likely hear. The techniques and pointers you'll learn will stand you in good stead as you learn more and more about how to listen to who's out there!
Birding By Ear, Western Edition
Birding By Ear, Eastern/Central Edition
More Birding by Ear, Eastern/Central
These are are my favorite and most-used ID guides for these difficult families:
A Photographic Guide to North American Raptors
New World Blackbirds : The Icterids
And this is my favorite bird field guide ever! It features excellent illustrations, and incredibly detailed natural histories, voice decriptions and range data.
If you really want to learn about bird communication and all of it's intimate, scientific details, this is the book for you. Published in 1995, it's the most up-to-date treatice on the subject available. A "must have" for anyone who is serious about bird communication.
Bill Burt's Shadowbirds: A Quest for Rails is a wonderfully passionate look through this famous nature photographer's eyes at his search for some of the earth's ultimate "stealth birds" - the Rails. His admiration and respect for these birds is infective and poetic. If you love a good detective story, if you love birds, and if you love poetry, you'll love Shadowbirds!
Bernie Kraus is one of the best nature recordists in the world today. He shares some of his favorite techniques in his new book "Wild Soundscapes". This is a must for people interested in getting the best possible recordings of our natural world.
To order any of these titles, just click on the name or the picture and you will be taken directly to Amazon.com's page on that title. Naturesongs will receive a portion of the sales price if you buy from this link. Use the Amazon.com search tool below to find any title on their web site and order. (We will still get a referral fee).