Full moon over Drum Ddu. 2020-04-26 @ 0550
Normally, at this time of year I would be out exploring new areas in search of dawn choruses and quiet soundscapes. However, the current restrictions on travel have limited me to locations much closer to home. So, each Sunday, I have been taking an early-morning walk up onto the common near to where I live. With much reduced noise pollution from both aircraft & road traffic, a window of opportunity has opened up. Although I planned to record Skylarks at first light, I've been fortunate to discover a Snipe, drumming over its nesting territory amidst the reeds in a damp hollow on the hill.
Common Snipe perform an aerial display, spreading their tail feathers to make a drumming or buzzing sound as they swoop low to the ground. The sound which they make isn't particularly loud, and on this recording the contrast with the song of the Skylarks gives an idea of how quiet it actually is. This display takes place for only a brief period, just at the twilight moment when it's still too dark (for us humans) to see them, and coincides roughly with the first Skylark song. Luckily, there aren't too many sheep on the common this early in the season, and they generally don't start to bleat until a little later! I have still had to edit out a few sheep closeby, and the roar of one or two vehicles on the main road, but otherwise, on this perfectly calm morning, this is about as quiet as it gets around here.
The recording opens with a solitary Snipe swooping over its territory, and the sound of distant Skylarks. On playback, they should be just audible, as much closer Skylarks strike up their song about 20 seconds later. The Snipe continues drumming for the whole length of the recording, and at 24'40 you can hear its "chuck chuck chuck" call, too. Also heard, over the background rush of the River Wye in the valley below, are a cockerel far away (3'55...), and I think that's a Curlew's rippling call at 13'44 . There's also the unmistakable sound of a distant Cuckoo (or two), the hoots of a Tawny Owl, and a mystery brief swooping call which sounds a bit like a Lapwing at 14'46 & 14'54. But I really don't know...
On a technical note, the Snipe's drumming is at around 35dB SPL, and to make this more easily audible without cranking your volume level, I've boosted this by 12dB from my usual recording level. The first Skylark song comes in at around 50dB, with some slightly closer and louder later. So this is a very quiet recording by any account!
Recorded: 2020-04-26 @ 0430
Download full length recording:
27min, 57MB, .ogg format)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.