The Seán Chorus

The Seán Chorus

Hosted by Cork-born ornithologist and wildlife sound recordist Seán Ronayne, The Seán Chorus brings the beauty of the natural world directly to your ears.Following a five-year journey to record all of Ireland's birds, Seán has built an extraordinary archive of over 40,000 recordings. From farting seals to vibrating leafhoppers, and of course plenty of birdsong, if it's natural and makes a sound, Seán has it.Now, with his new podcast, Seán has found the perfect way to bring these sounds to life and tell the personal stories and adventures behind them.A sanctuary of calm from the madness of daily life, the show blends unscripted field audio, studio reflections, and conversations with nature lovers. This show is part of HeadStuff Podcasts, you can support the show, access bonus content, and ad-free listening by signing up to HeadStuff+.

Episodes

Rare Thrills

October 22, 2026 • 60 mins
Seán returns with a late October walkabout at Knockadoon, East Cork, in search of rare autumn migrants. Take an audible adventure through this peninsula and discover why it's a magnet for visiting birds, encounters redshanks, pipits, greenfinches, and fox moth caterpillars along the shore, and shares remarkable news of recording two red-throated pipits a species that turns up in Ireland roughly once every two years, just 12 days a...
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A Moonlit Listen

October 15, 2026 • 46 mins
In this episode, Seán records through the night at Ballynamona Strand in East Cork, capturing golden plover wing beats overhead, a bat buzzing past his microphone, and the underwater sounds of fish and prawns beneath Ballycotton Pier.Interwoven with field recordings of bar-tailed godwits, curlew, oystercatchers, and a lesser yellowlegs, Seán reflects on autumn migration, the devastating decline of curlew in Ireland, the impact of o...
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From the Heart

October 8, 2026 • 52 mins
In this episode, Seán recalls his beginnings and how a Catalan woman walked into a Cork city bar and changed the trajectory of his life forever.Interwoven with more sound recordings, Seán details his move to Catalonia, including encounters with roe deer, flamingos recorded over Barcelona's skyscrapers, screaming neighbours and amateur trumpetersThis is a HeadStuff podcast produced by Hilary Barry and Dan Wilcox. Original artwork is...
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The Sounds of Autumn

October 1, 2026 • 47 mins
This episode is a celebration of autumn bird migration — the great movements of birds that arrive on Irish shores each year from Scandinavia, Siberia, and beyond. With field recordings of yellow-browed warblers, redwings, fieldfares, ring ouzels, and mixed flocks of chaffinches, goldfinches, bramblings, redpolls and siskins visibly migrating over East Cork. Plus the nasal calls of bramblings arriving off the sea in West Co...
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Barefoot in East Cork

September 24, 2026 • 41 mins
Originally recorded Summer 2026 This very special episode is an immersive field audio essay, recorded live in two of Sean's favourite local spots in East Cork — a rewilding quarry he has known since childhood and the Knockadoon peninsula. With on-site recordings of sand martins, stock doves, blackcaps, chiffchaffs and swallows, a remarkable discovery of breeding tufted ducks, the tumbling displays of rock and meadow pip...
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The Sounds of Summer

September 17, 2026 • 44 mins
Originally recorded June 2026 This episode of The Sean Chorus podcast is an immersive celebration of the sounds of the Irish summer, from birdsong and buzzing insects to coastal wildlife. With more recordings from Ireland and beyond, including owls, wrens, golden orioles, guillemots, a minke whale and the rare Roussel’s bush cricket, as well as the often-maligned ragwort and the wildlife it supports. The episode ends...
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A Tribute to Manchán Magan

September 10, 2026 • 51 mins
This episode of The Sean Chorus podcast is Sean Ronayne's personal tribute to his friend and mentor Manchán Magan, the acclaimed Irish author and broadcaster who died last October at age 55. Sean traveled to the Hill of Uisneach, the ancient mythological "navel of Ireland" - where Manchán's ashes were scattered. He spent a night recording birdsong and folklore-rich wildlife (blackbirds, chaffinches, willow warblers, a skylark, and...
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The Sound of a New Home

September 2, 2026 • 44 mins
This week on The Seán Chorus, Seán Ronayne provides a small update along with more sounds and moments that have made his new home feel familiar.From the call of the curlew echoing through the balcony door, to capturing the hum of bees and grasshoppers in a wildflower meadow, Seán reflects on more memories and his connection to the natural world. Explore the return of Mediterranean gulls to Cork Harbour, and even a mystery sound cha...
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An Introduction: Becoming "Nature Boy"

August 27, 2026 • 40 mins
Welcome to the very first episode of The Seán Chorus! This week, our host Seán Ronayne introduces himself and shares the deeply personal journey that shaped his life and career. From childhood memories and surviving a life threatening illness to collecting over 30,000 nature recordings, Seán reflects on his lifelong bond with the natural world. The episode is packed with wild soundscapes and stories, including the mistle thrush...
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The Seán Chorus is Coming Soon!

August 20, 2026 • 1 min
Episode one of The Seán Chorus is out Thursday the 27th of August! Hosted by Cork-born ornithologist and wildlife sound recordist Seán Ronayne, The Seán Chorus brings the beauty of the natural world directly to your ears. Following a five-year journey to record all of Ireland's birds, Seán has built an extraordinary archive of over 40,000 recordings. From farting seals to vibrating leafhoppers, and of course plenty of birdsong, ...
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played

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