Songscapes

A continuous soundscape of morning field recordings from the Vinemount Meadows Nature Sanctuary in Vinemount, Ontario, Canada on April 7, 2019. Mildly edited to remove louder anthrogenic sounds.

You will continually hear: Song Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, and American Robin

Also present from time to time: Mallard (or American Black Duck) , Canada Goose, Ring-billed Gull, Herring Gull, White-throated Sparrow, European Sta...

A duet of Great Horned Owls in courtship. One continuous recording of a single interaction between a likely mated pair. Note that as it begins the second owl is quite far away and quiet, and as the interaction progresses, the second owl gets much closer. By the end they are "singing" together.

Taken from field recordings of the Short Hills Nature Sanctuary in Pelham, Ontario, Canada on March 1, 2019 at dusk. This is a con...

Throughout the winter, we have recorded many Eastern Coyotes, also known as the "song dogs". This is a collection of coyote choruses in multiple locations near Hamilton, Ontario throughout the winter of 2019.

Audio editing: Rob Porter

Audio sourced from the Hamilton Bioacoustics Research Project of the Hamilton Naturalists' Club.

Original raw recordings are available under Creative Commons license at archive.org.

For more info...

The Red-eyed Vireo is known for its repetitive song, which can sound like a loop of questions and answers. They sing throughout the summer in forests across Eastern North America, even in the hot afternoons. You may also hear a warbler or two as well...

Recorded on July 19, 2018 at Otter Lake, on the Saugeen (Bruce) Peninsula, Ontario, Canada.

Audio editing: Rob Porter

Audio sourced from the Hamilton Bioacoustics Research Pr...

Birds can be most abundant along "edge" habitats--between one discrete habitat and another. Here you will hear a mix of urban birds--Northern Cardinal, Blue Jay, Mourning Dove--along with the boreal species Yellow-rumped Warbler and a lakeside Song Sparrow. This soundscape was recorded close to a small road that divides ancient cedar forest from lake in a cottage setting.

Recorded at Isthmus Bay, Georgian Bay, Ontario, Cana...

This urban recording begins at dawn with the wind-down of the outlandish nocturnal mating calls ("peents") and display of the American Woodcock. Next comes the Song Sparrow and Northern Cardinal as the light grows. Finally, the Field Sparrows and Eastern Towhee begin their songs. Of the songbirds of the Hamilton area, these represent a mix of early migrants and year-round resident species.

This soundscape was edited from re...

A short recording that includes the song of the Eastern Whip-poor-will. This species is now only heard and seen in the Hamilton area during migration, as the local breeding populations have all collapsed. To hear one sing, you need to be up at night or at dawn during the brief migration window as they are a nocturnal bird.

This song was a pleasant surprise discovery in our recordings. This recording begins at 5:41 a.m., Apr...

In 2019, the Hamilton Naturalists' Club acquired a new property in the Upper Hayesland Swamp, known now as the Hayesland Swamp Nature Sanctuary. It is a flooded forest in the spring, providing habitat to many wetland wildlife species.

This soundscape opens with harsh song of the wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus), and as the morning progresses the soft and airy songs of the Winter Wren and Brown Creeper are heard. A lone Woo...

The Northern Waterthrush arrives late April in the Hamilton area, preferring swampy forested habitat. Its song is described as a loud and ringing warble, that accelerates into a jumble of quick notes. For the trained ear, it is similar to the related Yellow Warbler.

This soundscape is derived from recordings made in the morning of April 25, 2019 at Hayesland Swamp Nature Sanctuary, Flamborough, Ontario.

You will hear: Americ...

The Winter Wren can have one of the most lengthy continuous songs of all of Ontario's breeding birds, and is amongst one of the loudest in spite of its tiny size.

This soundscape was recorded at Petrel Point Nature Preserve in Red Bay, Ontario in July of 2018.

Heard in this recording: Winter Wren, Great-crested Flycatcher, Black-throated Green Warbler, American Redstart, Black-capped Chickadee, Northern Cardinal, White-bre...

Together the Blue-winged Warbler and Golden-winged Warbler form a species complex that isn't fully understood. Each species can breed with the other, and produce offspring hybrids that themselves can produce further offspring, leading to all kinds of variations in plumage. This unfortunately has lead to a competition that the Blue-winged Warbler is winning: it is "breeding out" the Golden-winged Warbler throughout much of ...

Together the Blue-winged Warbler and Golden-winged Warbler form a species complex that isn't fully understood. Each species can breed with the other, and produce offspring hybrids that themselves can produce further offspring, leading to all kinds of variations in plumage. This unfortunately has lead to a competition that the Blue-winged Warbler is winning: it is "breeding out" the Golden-winged Warbler throughout much of ...

The American Redstart is an abundant and friendly warbler that can be found in deciduous forests and forest edges. It has a fairly simple and short warble, with a fairly wide range of variability in the song. In this soundscape, they are singing nearly constantly.

This soundscape was recorded at MacGregor Point Provincial Park along the Old Shore Road Trail on May 19, 2019 using an iPhone with an Edutige EIM-001 omnidirect...

At 5:13 a.m. on May 31 of this year, a male Gray Catbird perched right in front of our field recorder and gave us a nine-minute "interview". The very next morning at nearly the exact same time, he give us another six minutes.

Gray Catbirds are mimics -- males sing to impress potential mates with their diverse repertoire. Studies have found that catbirds with the highest number of different songs and calls are preferred for...

The song of the White-throated Sparrow, known by the mnemonic "Oh Sweet Canada, Canada, Canada!", is considered to be one of the most musically pleasing songs... when there is just one bird singing.

What happens when several White-throated Sparrows sing together in dawn chorus? The effect is likely to be described differently by each listener. For many it might be described as a soundscape of eerie other-worldly birds. To t...

The Eastern Meadowlark is typically found at agricultural sites throughout southern Ontario, but can sometimes be found at large open parkland in urban areas.

In this soundscape you'll hear both the song and "rattle" call of the Eastern Meadowlark. In the background you'll hear various species such as Red-winged Blackbird, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Cedar Waxwing, Common Grackle, Northern Flicker, Chipping Sparrow, Ame...

Known for the distinctive "puh-wee" call, the Eastern Wood-Pewee is a very common breeding bird in forests throughout eastern North America.

They are also very persistent, seeming to sing constantly throughout the day and sometimes continuing long after sunset until it's truly dark out.

This soundscape features a nearby flowing creek within a ravine of a small patch of old growth forest. It captures a more lively early morni...

The Yellow-throated Vireo shares much in common with it's red-eyed cousins. Their song is only different in its harsh intonation, making it sound like a "sore-throated" rendition of the Red-eyed Vireo song. Found in wet forest habitats, it sometimes overlaps with Red-eyed Vireos, making them difficult to separate to the untrained ear.

This soundscape features two different Yellow-throated Vireos, both on breeding territory ...

The Green Frog is a fairly common amphibian found in eastern North America in shallow, permanent water features. It's well known for its "gunk, gunk!" call.

In this soundscape you'll hear it along with many other wetland and forest edge singers: Swamp Sparrow, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Yellowthroat, Warbling Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo, Chipping Sparrow, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, and more.

Recorded on July 1, 2019 at Britton Tr...