Back to Haldon – Finally!
Dawn in the forest
After a couple of weeks when the dawn has been too wet or windy for recording, I finally made it up to Haldon Forest for the August recording of my year-long project.
Unfortunately the wind was carrying the sound of the A38 main road across the forest to where I was recording, and even after filtering there is still some traffic noise audible. For this reason I've made this month's track a condensed version with only the most interesting bits of action.
After remaining quiet all summer, the Fallow Deer are becoming more vocal as they approach the rutting season. A group of seven deer crossed the road only metres from the car as I was recording, including the first antlered stag I've seen this year.
Also heard in this recording are a couple of summer migrants, now close to the end of their stay but still making their voices heard. First of all a Nightjar, which actually swooped overhead, silhouetted against the dawn sky, before it called. Towards the end of the recording a Chiffchaff also breaks into song.
Partially baffled boundary array
This recording was the first field test of a new type of stereo array for my AT4022 microphones. Drawing on the design of Crown's "SASS" microphones and also the research of several members of the NatureRecordists Yahoo group, this features two angled wooden boundary plates with an acoustic foam baffle between them. My initial feeling is that it significantly improves the width and localisation of the stereo field - comments and opinions are very welcome!
Even when things don't go quite to plan with the recording it's still wonderful to be out in the forest so early in the morning - driving back I caught a glimpse of fog around Exeter, so I made a detour to a point where I could look down onto the city rising out of the morning mist.
Exeter surrounded by fog
Ravens in the Forest
I'm currently working on a project to record dawn at the same location in Haldon Forest every month for a year. This is going to become increasingly challenging as the days shorten and the sunrise moves closer to the time when people start getting up and heading to work in their cars - on the other hand I'll be spared the pain of getting up at 03:30!
It's now late July, and the dawn chorus is virtually non-existent. With breeding over most of the birds are busy feeding on the abundance of insects and seeds around the forest and are quiet except for occasional contact calls. In the distance a Nightjar calls over the scrubland, and then falls silent as the light grows. Tawny Owls and a Kestrel can also be heard, before a group of Ravens arrive in the area. Towards the end of the piece a Great-spotted Woodpecker flies in and begins feeding on a nearby tree.
This is actually a condensed version of an 80-minute recording, with passing cars/aircraft and long periods with little or no activity removed. The Raven segment has been left pretty much intact however, to include the wide variety of different calls the birds produce.
Recorded with 2 x AT4022 omnidirectional microphones in a parallel boundary array, connected to a Tascam HD-P2 recorder. Filtering applied with apQualizr to remove distant traffic noise, and levels boosted by 20dB for easier listening.
Posted from Newton Abbot, England, United Kingdom.
The Somerset Levels
Shapwick Heath (© Li-Li Williams 2010)
These two recordings come from a weekend spent in the Somerset Levels, one of south-west England's richest wildlife habitats. An area of peat moorland less than 5m above sea level, the Levels have endured centuries of agricultural drainage and peat extraction. Several nature reserves have now been established, collectively refereed to as the Avalon Marshes. Consisting of thousands of acres of rough pasture, flooded peat workings and moorland, the marshes are now an important habitat for breeding and wintering birds.
The first track is from Shapwick Heath National Nature Reserve (NNR) and was recorded at 9:30pm. Shapwick Heath and the adjoining Ham Wall NNR support a large population of introduced Marsh Frogs (Rana ridibunda). The origin of these isn't clear, but they seem to have been around for many years. In this recording the microphones are positioned beside a marshy pond, surrounded by trees. A cloud of mosquitoes over the water create a drone loud enough to register on the recording, although you may need to listen through headphones for the full itch-inducing effect. As the Marsh Frogs begin croaking a Tawny Owl hunting over the marshes joins in with an occasional hoot.
The second recording was made at 5:15am the following morning in Ham Wall NNR, from a hide overlooking a flooded peat working. The reason for using the hide will become apparent during the recording when a sudden rain shower passes through - the weather that morning was far from ideal! Again we hear the Marsh Frogs, although as the daylight grows they become much less vocal. A pair of Mute Swan were feeding on submerged plants just in front of the hide - you can hear them calling to each other with quiet grunts, and occasionally blowing bubbles beneath the surface. Also listen out for the cow which is clearly trying to pass itself off as a booming Bittern!
We never did hear a Bittern that day, but we certainly saw one - what both Lil and myself had taken to be a large tuft of grass about 10m in front of us on a grassy track suddenly spread its wings and flew away across the marshes. Shows just how good their camouflage is!
Posted from Bridgwater, England, United Kingdom.
Haldon Forest Sunrise
A late June sunrise amongst the confer plantations in Haldon Forest, Devon. The energetic dawn chorus of April and May is now more relaxed, and the main singers in this recording are Blackcap and Siskin. There are also a number of deer calls throughout the recording - if anyone can ID these I'd be grateful. The forest has a large population of melanistic Fallow Deer, as well as Roe Deer. The recording was begun around 05:08 and originally ran for 35 minutes, however in this version several sections with passing vehicle noise have been removed. Recorded with 2 x AT4022 omnidirectional microphones in a parallel boundary array, connected to a Tascam HD-P2 recorder. Filtering applied with apQualizr to remove distant traffic noise, and levels boosted by 15dB for easier listening.
New toys
A recent UK price drop meant I've finally been able to get my hands on a pair of Audio-Technica AT4022s - the successor to the AT3032 which has proved very popular amongst wildlife recordists for its low self-noise and affordable price.
The AT4022 is an omnidirectional microphone, meaning it is equally sensitive to sound from all directions.1 Because of this, an ORTF set-up like I was using with the RØDE NT1As would deliver very little in the way of stereo. Instead I've mounted the microphones in a parallel boundary array, based on the work of Curt Olson and other contributors to the Naturerecordists Yahoo group (photos below).
These recordings are from a morning spent testing the new rig on the sand dunes at Dawlish Warren NNR. The microphones are connected to a Tascam HD-P2 recorder, and the only post-processing is a gain boost of around 20dB to save you turning up your speakers!
Whitethroat (Sylvia communis)
Skylark (Alauda arvensis)
Initial thoughts - the self-noise of the microphone is definitely more noticeable that that of the NT1As2 but the recordings have a far more natural feel. With the NT1As I always "knew" I was listening to a recording, whereas with a good set of headphones it's possible to completely lose yourself in the AT4022 recordings and feel like you're back in the field listening to the birds. My guess is this is partly down to the more even frequency response of the new microphones, along with the better stereo field created by the parallel boundary array.
The recordings were made on a fairly breezy morning, and the only protection on the microphones was the simple foam cover provided in the box. Aside from a few particularly strong gusts I had no trouble with wind noise while recording - another advantage of omnidirectional microphones which are typically much less sensitive to wind than cardioids.
Posted from Exmouth, England, United Kingdom.
- Theoretically anyway. In practice the response pattern becomes a little uneven at higher frequencies - see this diagram: http://eu.audio-technica.com/en/resources/e873eb8efe56cafc_at4022_polar.jpg [↩]
- The AT4022 is rated at 13dB(A) self-noise as opposed to the 5dB(A) of the NT1A, one of the quietest consumer microphones available [↩]
Dusk at Dawlish Warren
This recording was made at dusk, on the edge of the Bight, a shallow area of tidal water on the inland side of Dawlish Warren NNR. The 23-minute long clip covers a period from just after sunset until twilight - the original was several minutes longer, however I have removed sections where railway/aircraft/road noise became a distraction.
As the recording begins, the sun has just dropped below the horizon, and a Blackbird is still singing in the scrubby bushes on top of the sand dunes. Although the air is perfectly still, recent bad weather has left the sea quite rough, and the pounding of the waves on the far side of the dunes forms a constant bass rumble. As Herring Gulls stream overhead on their way out to sea, small groups of Curlew and Redshank begin to drop into a roosting site about 100m away along the water's edge. Just after the 7 minute mark, one of the Brent Goose flocks that winter on the Exe Estuary flies in and lands in the distance.
As the birds continue to arrive, and the rising tide shrinks the roosting space available, occasional scuffles break out. Eventually, at 12m 39s, something causes most of the roosting birds to take to the air and circle before settling again. Peace returns until 17m 40s, when a Blackbird begins to give an alarm call, almost certainly in response to an approaching hawk. The hawk (from its size probably a Sparrowhawk, although Peregrine seems more likely in that habitat) actually flies past the microphones at 18m 21s, the rush of its wings just audible above the surf. I was sitting on a driftwood log just behind the microphones, and the bird passed by at eye level about 2m away, just a grey ghost in the twilight. Although the birds don't take flight again the presence of the hawk seems to unnerve them, and both the Redshank and Curlew are very vocal for the last few minutes of the recording.
If you're wondering what the quiet sizzling and popping noises are right through the clip, it's not the microphones acting up in the cold, damp air (the aluminium tripod was running with condensation when I finished recording) but the tide creeping in across the mud. By the time I packed up and left the water was only a few inches from the feet of the tripod!
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Long-winged Coneheads
Long-winged Conehead
(Conocephalus discolor)
I've been hearing these crickets calling since August, but it was only the other day that I managed to get a look at one and actually identify the species.
I can hear the call very clearly, even over background noise like traffic, but all the people I've pointed it out to have had to listen for several minutes before they "tune in" to the sound. I'd be interested to hear how easily people can pick it out when they listen to the recording...
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Recorded at Dawlish Warren NNR with an Olympus LS-10, using the built-in microphones with Rycote Mini Windjammers.
Great Green Bush-crickets
These Great Green Bush-crickets (Tettigonia viridissima) were calling in bramble scrub at Dawlish Warren NNR just after sunset on a warm August evening.
They're very hard to track down as there are so many singing at once that it's almost impossible to zero in on one individual. When you do get up close to one the volume of the call is incredible.
Recorded with the built-in microphones on an Olympus LS-10. No post-processing needed, the crickets were loud enough to down out almost all the background noise!
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Tornado
Not the weather event, but the first main-line steam locomotive built in Britain for 48 years!
For more information on this incredible project, have a look at the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust's website.
In this recording, No. 60163 Tornado bursts out of Kennaway Tunnel onto the sea wall at Dawlish, whistling to the spectators who have gathered to watch it pass by. The sound of the engine fades into the distance, but the whistle can be heard across the water until the train rounds the curve at Langstone Rock and heads inland up the River Exe.
The recording was made from a breakwater which juts out into the bay about 100 yards from the sea wall, using an Audio-Technica AT825 stereo microphone (in a Rycote windshield - the wind is always blowing out there!) and a Tascam HD-P2 recorder.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Dawlish Warren Pond
This was recorded at around 06:45 this morning, after a failed attempt at dawn chorus recording. Possibly the fact that it was the coldest night for several weeks had put the birds off, as there was virtually no song in the woodland surrounding this small pond at Dawlish Warren NNR. At least the waterfowl did their best to make up for it...
Species include: Little Grebe, Mallard, Canada Goose, Herring Gull, Woodpigeon, Blackbird, Chiffchaff, Greenfinch, Magpie and Carrion Crow.
Recorded with a Tascam HD-P2 recorder and two RØDE NT1-A microphones in a custom-built ORTF array with a central barrier. Filtered to remove vehicle noise and boosted by 6dB in post-processing.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
Flickr
What I'm Doing...
- New disks in and Windows 7 finally up and running. I wasn't expecting floppy disks to feature anywhere in the process, but I was wrong... 2010-08-03
- Windows 7 Ultimate has arrived... just waiting for the hard disks now. 2010-08-03
- Hard drive died. Finally time to say adiós to Win XP after 8 years and take the plunge with Windows 7 - going to take some getting used to! 2010-08-02
- Great weekend in Somerset Levels - Hobby, Marsh Harrier, Brown Hare, close encounter with a Bittern! Thanks @nodster for birthday tweet :-) 2010-07-11
- More updates...
Recent Comments
- Paul: I could easily have believed the mute swan grunting to be human dissatisfaction with the rain
Glad my friends know a lot more about nature than I do 
on The Somerset Levels - Ben Vallack: Excellent recording!
on Nightjar - Terence: Hello Tom, I very much enjoyed listening to your recordings. Since you got the new AT4022s, are these now your primary nature recording microphones and have the NT1As been delegated to the bottom shelf? Also, will you post a picture...
on New toys - Paul: Reckon you can send faxes with tweeting like that!
on New toys - Paul: hadn’t seen sound cloud player before, very nice!
on Morning at Dawlish Warren
Categories
Tags
Gear Links
Sound Recording Links
- BBC – Save Our Sounds
- Curt Olsen's SoundBlog
- Lab Blog
- Naturerecording (Yahoo Group)
- Naturerecordists (Yahoo Group)
- Naturesound.org
- Noise Jockey
- Rock Scallop
- We Are Nature Recordists
- Western Soundscape Archive
- Wild Earth Voices