Category: the birdsongification

A tiny robin’s song in the dawn chorus approaches frequencies at the limits of human hearing.

There’s much more to a chiffchaff than meets the ear.

A dawn chorus contains so much joyful chaos: that’s what makes it a chorus. For pure density of sound, most green spaces at dawn in springtime could give Piccadilly Circus a run for its money.

What makes new recordings worthwhile is that they can tell us about our environment by showing how birds interact with it. With that in mind, today’s birdsongification features the humble robin.

A London Plane tree stands outside the Home Office building on Marsham Street during protests against the government’s new asylum policy.

Highbury Fields was bought for a public park in 1885 while various speculators developed the surrounding area into housing. Most of the park’s avenues are lined with London Plane trees.

Planes are actually quite easy to grow from seed if you’re so inclined, and resists pests and diseases much better than sycamores.

Birches probably appeared amongst the first trees in the UK after the last ice age: they spread quickly and grow well in a wide range of soils, including heathland and moorland. They improve biodiversity when mixed into conifer plantations, which now contribute most new woodland planting in the UK. Birch is particularly common in Scotland,… Continue reading Birch, Clissold Park

Warmer spring temperatures are shifting blossoms several weeks earlier than they used to be, so they’re already out during late spring frosts and sustain severe damage. Clissold Park’s blossoms were out nearly a month early this year. Losing blossoms to the late spring frost devastates fruit yields, like apricots and cherries, and the pollinating insects… Continue reading Cherry blossom, Islington