Wind Is the Original Radio

Zarnesti has given me what are undoubtedly my fondest memories of our trip to Romania. It was such a beautiful place – so quiet, so verdant and just a wonderful place to be. We travelled there with nowhere to stay and we picked a house up in the hills at random and it just happened to belong to a truly amazing retired older couple. They made us feel like we were visiting family and they had us sit down with them in their warm and hearty living room for a chat and some delicious homemade traditional food.

That evening myself and Alba wandered back down the hill to lower ground where we found ourselves in a National Park, surrounded by lush forest with abundant sources of running water. This was important as I always love to combine dawn choruses with gentle streams – for me this is a dreamy combination and always lulls me to sleep when I am having trouble nodding off.

I checked the weather forecast and saw that there were some rain showers to come so I set about finding a spot where I could leave my drop-rig (Zoom F6 + stereo set of Clippy EM272s) out safely. There were some hiking trails which were quite popular with tourists and locals, so, after walking far enough away from the little dirt road and car park, I again took another smaller track off the main trail. There I found a little valley with a gentle stream. I followed this stream about 50 metres uphill where I was stopped in my tracks by my first ever Salamander! It was so strikingly black and yellow and it was a dream come true for me – I had always wanted to see one. I was starstruck!

Along this stream there was a fallen tree trunk which traversed its entirety and leaned up into the hillside. Walking a few metres up the hill so that the stream did not overwhelm the track, I set my mics just an inch or two inside a rotten crevice of the fallen tree. I knew they would be safe from the rain and would result in a natural sound when rain did fall. I hooked my drop rig up to a power-bank, hid the recorder in a drybag, covered by some leaf litter, and left it to do its job.

That night I was awoken by the rain and was so nervous thinking about my expensive equipment out there unsupervised. It was the first time I had left it out like that, knowing heavy rain was on the horizon. The following morning I went straight down to the valley and collected my equipment – it was bone dry AND I saw another Salamander! It was bigger than the last one and hung around for a closer look.

Before breakfast I uploaded my sounds and was totally blown away. Zero road noise, only a handful of planes, a mesmerising deluge of rain, a stunning dawn chorus amidst a subtle trickling stream, and, best of all, a mystery shape on the sonogram at the end of the track which turned out to be none other than a pair of fighting Brown Bears. I couldn’t have asked for more.

Recorded by Seán Ronayne in Zarnesti, Romania

Unprecedented and chaotically distributed rainfall in the monsoon of 2023 led to devastating floods in the Himalayan regions, including the Kangra Valley, and adjoining plains of Punjab. River Beas, in and around the town of Mandi, was one of the worst affected due to these floods. The overflowing water from the Himalayan Ranges caused flooding in the other adjoining states of North India as well. Apart from Geological features, Forest patches, and Riverbeds, human-made structures like irrigation canals were also affected due to the sudden, and unregulated surge in the flow of water coming downstream from Himachal Pradesh.

A major cause of the flooding like this, happening year by year, is now being linked to the changes in the Settlement Geography of the inner Himalayas, where the water wreaking havoc in these floods, just exists as Rivulets. As peacefully flowing Khadds. Like the Awa Khadd, you are listening to.

Awa Khadd Rises from the Dhauladhar Ranges in Kangra Valley, and flows downstream to join river Beas, which ultimately drains into River Satluj in the state of Punjab. The Perennial nature of Awa, and similar Himalayan Khadds due to dual sources of water (both monsoon rains and glacier discharge) and an often violent flow due to the topographical contours, makes them suitable for the development of Hydropower projects. The Upper Awa Hydropower project is located on the Awa Khadd. This recording of Awa was done near a village called Kulani, close to the Kulani Hydropower Plant.

Khadd is the local name for a Rivulet in the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh in India. These Khadds, rising from various Mountain Ranges, flow as streams of varying magnitudes, contributing to the larger River Ecosystems in the region. They provide drinking water, as well as water for irrigation purposes to the rural and semi-urban settlements on their way to the cities, where the role is further amplified. More importantly, this complex network of Rivulets regulates the natural flow of water in the mountainous terrain of the Himalayas and maintains the ecological balance for the wider Flora and Fauna; an aspect of Himalayan River Ecosystems being urgently looked into, as the Eco-sensitive region has rapidly started facing adverse effects of Climate Change in the recent past.

Recording by

Mustard Lake in Himachal Pradesh, India

The upland rainforests of far-north Queensland are home to many species found nowhere else. This recording features the sounds of birds and insects along with a gentle breeze at dusk in this unique habitat. In the latter part of the recording, darkness falls and the sounds of crickets intensify. The wild crowings of Orange-footed Scrubfowl can be heard in the distance.

Recording by Marc Anderson in the Girringun National Park, Australia

A nocturnal recording that  gives you a “look” into the secret life of Wolves in nature.

The carcass is mostly eaten. What remains is the bones and some soft tissue. You can hear how the bones/spine are cracking in the Wolf’s jaws. Other than that, the Wolves are pretty much silent. There is no howling or other loud sounds because this spot is close to the shepherd dogs (cattle) down in the valley at approx. 1 km of air distance and those dogs are agitated from time to time during the night probably when winds change and start to blow towards them. The north wind (dark Bora) is blowing.

Recorded by Ivo Vicic in Mrzli Dol, Croatia

I travelled to Tarangire National Park in Northern Tanzania just at the end of the dry season and beginning of the rainy season in November. Covering an area of 2,600 square kilometres, Tarangire is popularly known as the land of giants; and from our arrival, you could tell why. The Park is strewn with giant baobab trees that were starting to flower. Not far into the park we encountered another giant’s presence, the African elephant. Apart from these two iconic species and other animals, the park’s birdlife is amazing, with over 500 species of birds that have been recorded here.

It rained heavily a day before we arrived, which brought out nature’s own sound concert. All the wildlife seemed to be celebrating the arrival of the rains. There were nature sounds everywhere! The birds started singing at 2am in the morning and continued throughout the day. Amidst the bird song, there were also crickets, large beetles, bats, frogs, hyenas, zebras and occasional lion roar from a distant, allowing us to sleep and reawaken our senses, be present and reconnect to the natural sounds of Tarangire plains.

Recorded by Martha Mutiso in Tanzania

A vivid dawn chorus from the steamy forests of lowland West Papua. While the rainforest is still dark, Hooded Butcherbirds sing melodic fluty phrases to welcome the new day. The calls of nocturnal frogs and insects gradually fade as other diurnal species become active.

Recording by Marc Anderson in Birds Head Peninsula, West Papua, Indonesia

In a remote mountain valley, around 1250m above sea level, the surrounding mountains create a nice natural echo felt through the songs of the dawn chorus in the late spring.

Recording in Jelenje, Croatia by Ivo Vicic

Early fall. Yellow leaves fall from the aspen trees. Quiet between gusts, cool wind blowing from the north. A change of season is in the air. Warm days, cool nights. The vastness of the land is something from classic American western stories. Near the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, the Eastern Rocky Mountains of Montana reach into the clouds. The first dusting of snow coating the peaks. Recorded over night with a wide stereo bar and two MKH8020’s this quiet land is full of beauty and wonder.

Recording by Nick McMahan

Enjoy this soothing calm calling of birds in the Ankasa rainforest with calm water rushing in the background. The thick canopy of the trees shielded me from the hot sunshine in the tropical rainforest as I recorded these sounds.

Recording by Isaac Amoasi Arkoh