A Guide to Night Sounds

Featuring the Voices of 100 Night Active Birds, Frogs, Insects, Mammals and Reptiles

Introduction:

Of all the sounds nature, the magical voices of the night fascinate us beyond compare. Who has not been moved by the distant hoots and screams of owls, the incessant croaks and peeps of frogs, the deafening trills and scrapes of insects, or the sudden snorts, howls, grunts and whines made by mammals and other denizens of the night?

Much of our fascination stems from the fact that night-active animals are difficult to see. We are excited by their incredible voices, but only with difficulty can we identify the sound-makers. When mysterious sounds spring forth unexpectedly from the darkness, our imaginations may run wild, the creature-sounds transforming into ghostly utterances that leave our hearts pounding in fearful anticipation.

With the help of this audio guide, you will learn to recognize and identify an amazing assortment of night sounds. Your appreciation will increase as you become familiar with the night musicians and learn about their lives. As your knowledge expands, your excitement will grow, and your night sound experience will soon become richer than you ever imagined … a walk among friends … beloved birds, frogs, insects and mammals who greet you with familiar voices as you pass near in the dark of the night!

Would you like to learn more? Then please join me on this fantastic journey into the night!

Night scene drawn by Cynthia PageDrawing by Cynthia Page.

How to Use This Guide:

Blah, blah, blah, blah …. basically need to say that there’s a “kid-friendly” narration version presented both as a continuous 90-min listening experience, as well by individual sections. The other mode of exploring to use the nav menu and go through section by section, reading text and listening to individual recordings. Suggest that one go through the numbered sections in sequence, but that it’s always easy to skip around to different sections and then scroll to find the animal you’re most interested in. Or else I will add sub-categories to the nav to allow for opening of pages and automatic scrolling to individual species.

Species Navigation List:

Possibly include here a full species list navigation, each linked to the page with automatic scroll to that particular species. Or else add species to menu itself, to create dropdown submenus for the various species … and have links to to positions on pages.

Coyote Moon

Without warning, a lone coyote gives a long drawn-out howl from the hill above, and then another joins in from a different direction, its higher pitched howls sliding upward in tone. Then the two break into a lively exchange, their excited calls interweaving, overlapping, and echoing through the thick forest. Go Here for the story behind this recording.

Note: This is a 3D binaural recording. Please wear headphones to experience an immersive effect that will effortlessly transport you into wild nature.

Wind, Ravens, Reeds

At first light, I hike into Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park. Gusty wind blows through a dense thicket of stiff reeds, producing a plethora of snaps, crackles and pops. Frolicking ravens croak repeatedly as they fly up and down the Rio Grande River, their calls echoing off the steep cliffs above. Go Here for the story behind this recording.

Note: This is a 3D binaural recording. Please wear headphones to experience an immersive effect that will effortlessly transport you into wild nature.

Turkey Roost

It is early May in Aravaipa Canyon. Well before first light, I quietly place my microphone under a towering cottonwood tree, the nighttime roost of a flock of Wild Turkeys. As dawn unfolds, the turkeys awaken, calling excitedly from the tree limbs. Such a delight … a potpourri of yelps, gobbles, and purts! Go here for the story behind this recording.

Note: This is a 3D binaural recording. Please wear headphones to experience an immersive effect that will effortlessly transport you into wild nature.

Moonrise in Aravaipa Canyon © Lang Elliott

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