Muskrats Nattering
Muskrats whining and squealing. 31 August 2020, around 3am. Teeter Pond, Finger Lakes National Forest near Valois, New York. © Lang Elliott. AI-gen Image
Note: The recording featured above is a "3D binaural soundscape". Please wear headphones for a profound listening experience that will make you think you're actually out there, immersed in the natural world!
In early autumn, I camp along the shore of Teeter Pond in the Finger Lakes National Forest in upstate New York. That night, crickets trill melodiously and katydids rasp their harsh chee-chee from the surrounding forest.
In the wee hours of the morning, I awaken to whimpering notes and squeals, accompanied at times by water splashes. These are the sweet, endearing calls of muskrats, given while swimming slowly along the marshy edge. Listening carefully, I conclude that it’s a pair, sounding off as they swim along the marshy shoreline.
The entire soundscape is pleasing, a soothing mix of insect songs, occasional frog calls, distant cattle mooing and bellowing, and, of course, the uplifting calls of the fun-loving mammals (I could be wrong here, but they sure do sound like they’re having fun).
What could be finer than enjoying the nattering of muskrats as they slowly swim by, finally vanishing into the night? I take a long, deep breath and then gently drift back into sleep.
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Naturally Yours,
Lang
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Fantastic, I completely enjoyed listening to these songs of nature!
Thank you Lang for bringing joy & peaceful entertainment to my evening.
Wow; I feel better and peaceful. Did not know that Muskrats made such sweet, tender sounds, but why not? I pegged the grebe too. Always love the crickets and frogs. Thanks for all the explanation to go along with your incredible works!
I love this, and all of our work. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Never knew that muskrats made so much noise. Very sweet.
I truly enjoy your soundscapes. They are almost always creatures I am familiar with but never paused to listen to long enough to identify the sound source. There is one sound from my youth on the prairies of SW Minnesota that I have not heard in decades: meadowlarks. In the evening there used to be one on nearly every pasture fence post singing away. Do you have such a recording in your archive? Vance
They certainly have a lot to say! What could they be talking about? The bellowing cow in the background is a nice surprise. Shouldn’t he be asleep at 3 a.m.?
The bulls sound off periodically through the night; not sure why.
Wonderful, Lang! Thanks for taking me out to be present, like a tree or a rock, and experience the wild the way we humans rarely get to. It’s what I’ve always, from a young teen (not far from your stomping grounds), aspired to do. All of these sounds are so lovely! Question: Any idea what the weird “outer space” sound was at 6:04?
Good ear! I actually do not know what/who made that distant spacey sound (which actually occurs a couple of times in the recording), but it is similar to the “chatter call” outburst that pied-billed grebes make. However, grebes are not found at Teeter Pond, at least I don’t think.
Checking it against various grebe recordings, I now think it is indeed a Pied-billed Grebe. My only hesitancy is that pied-billeds have a very obvious breeding call given early in the season and I would have heard that during late spring recording sessions. But maybe in 2020 I was somewhere else on a recording expedition at that time. I will check.
sounds great , enjoying it with morning coffee, thanks for sharing
And how are things in Reifdom?
fabbulous Lang, I love the whole soundscape, the background, the wateriness and the rather pathetic (in its original sense) soloists
Mark: I like your use of the word “pathetic”. I didn’t know about pathetic in the “original sense” until I came across a wonderful cricket poem by Emily Dickinson, which made me take a closer look at the word:
Further in summer than the birds
Pathetic from the grass
A minor nation celebrates
Its unobtrusive mass
Oh my … checking up on you I see you just came out with a new book that is right up my alley: The Nature of Seeing. But I don’t see it on Amazon, so I assume it has not yet been published?
I love hearing the sounds of the different mammals. While I know the bird sounds better, I appreciate the other species too and want to know them better as well.
I only listen to your recordings with decent headphones so I can hear all the nuances of the sound scape. Another magical excursion with you Lang; your effort helps me connect with nature in a very profound way. I remember listening for the first time to recordings of nature, it started with Dawn at New Hope, PA.
Good to know you’re using headphones. I imagine that many don’t bother and therefore do not experience the wonderful spatial quality of binaural recordings.To appreciate my recordings fully, one must use headphones.
Hi Lang. Really cool recording, so many layers and elements, with the sounds of water playing a very important role in the soundscape. I know muskrats, but have never heard them like this. Shows you, among a lot of other things, just how active are many other creatures when we great apes are sleeping. Many thanks for posting.
I’ve only recorded their whimpering four times over thirty years of field. So it’s not exactly commonplace to hear them.
I believe the background is Snowy tree crickets and northern true katydid. I love that mix.
Yes … the insects songs are a real plus … one of nature’s finest mixes!
It was unusual and lovely. I had no idea muskrats nattered!
Sorry, meant “nattered” — of course they matter!
This was my morning alarm and what a great way to come into the day-with the soft and plinking sounds of the night creatures. Thanks Lang.
How nice to awaken to the nattering of muskrats!
What a peaceful sound–I have heard this before, but never knew it was muskrats! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for this sweet recording, the various sounds, including the muskrats, gives one a profound sense of peace and well being.
Peace and Well-Being … it most certainly does have that effect, at least over headphones.
Even without headphones, it is a delight to hear the muskrats’ sounds, the insects and the water. I vicariously enjoy your camping trips through your recordings. Thank you, Lang! I must try headphones and see what I’m missing!