Listen to nature: explore wildlife sounds of Southern England and Wales
On the map below, the location of each wildlife sound recording is identified by a red map pin. Click on the pin to listen.
Listen to the sound recordings on this page with the Windows Media Player
All recordings copyright © British Library Board. The recordings on this site are for private listening only; copying, broadcasting or reproduction is prohibited.
In addition to the sounds featured in the map, the alphabetical list below contains many more recordings from this region. Click on the name to listen.
| Avocet Recurvirostra avocetta | |
| mobbing gulls, recorded by Richard Ranft, 14 June 1987, Havergate, Suffolk, England. | |
| Badger Meles meles | |
| moving through field, recorded by William Pedley, 19 September 1980, Akeley, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Barn Owl Tyto alba | |
| scream, recorded by Victor Lewis, 2 August 1988, Cardiganshire, Wales. | |
| Bewick's Swan Cygnus columbianus | |
| calls, recorded by Rod Jervis, 1 Janary 1978, Waltham Brooks, Sussex, England. | |
| Black Panther Panthera pardus | |
| growls, recorded by Richard Ranft, 29 September 1986, Banham Zoo, Norfolk, England. | |
| Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros | |
| song, recorded by Julian Burcher, 21 June 1996, Kings Cross, London, England. | |
| Blackbird Turdus merula | |
| afternoon song, recorded by Eric & May Nobles, 9 June 1990, Tamat Valley, Llangynog, Wales. | |
| Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, I June 1988, Northwood Hill RSPB reserve, Kent, England. | |
| Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 30 October 1977, Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Blue Tit Parus caeruleus | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 21 April 1968, Wolverton, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Brent Goose Branta bernicla | |
| calls, recorded by Rod Jervis, 20 Febuary 1981, Chichester Harbour, West Sussex, England. | |
| Bullfinch Pyrrhula pyrrhula | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 10 April 1988, New Forest, Hampshire, England. | |
| Canada Goose Branta canadensis | |
| calls, recorded by Rod Jervis, 17 February 1980, Waltham Brooks, Sussex, England. | |
| Carrion Crow Corvus corone | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 4 April 1976, Cosgrove, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Cetti's Warbler Cettia cetti | |
| song, recorded by Philip Radford, 26 May 2003, Somerset, England. | |
| Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 22 April 1986, Leckhampstead Wood, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs | |
| aberrant song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 10 May 1988, Kensington Gardens, London, England. | |
| Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 5 May 1982, Springhead, Dorset, England. | |
| Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita | |
| song, recorded by Keith F. Betton, 21 May 1977, Bushy Park, Middlesex, England. | |
| Chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 20 may 1978, Cardiganshire, Wales. | |
| Coal Tit Parus ater | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 13 April 1972, Wicken Wood, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto | |
| song and alighting calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 11 May 1972, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Common Buzzard Buteo buteo | |
| calls of alarm at nest, recorded by Rod Jervis, 5 May 1980, Godolphin Woods, Cornwall, England. | |
| Common Frogs Rana temporaria | |
| recorded by Laurence Shove, 12 February 1965, South Brent, Devon, England. | |
| Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 23 March 1970, Cosgrove, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Common Pipistrelle Pipistrellus pipistrellus | |
| sonar calls at 45 kHz (time expanded x 10), recorded by Nancy Vaughan, 9 June 1993, Woodchester, Gloucestershire, England. | |
| Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 8 May 1974, Shropshire, England. | |
| Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 2 June 1988, New Forest, Hampshire, England. | |
| Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago | |
| bleating, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 22 May 1987, New Forest, Hampshire, England. | |
| Common Swift Apus apus | |
| calls in flight, recorded by William Pedley, 18 July 1978, Wolverton, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Common Teal Anas crecca | |
| calls, recorded by Rod Jervis, 20 January 1980, Waltham Brooks, Sussex, England. | |
| Common Toad Bufo bufo | |
| calls, recorded by Eric & May Nobles, 19 March 1989, Llandrindod Wells, Radnor, Wales. | |
| Common Whitethroat Sylvia communis | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 28 May 1961, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Common Whitethroat Sylvia communis | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 5 June 1964, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Coot Fulica atra | |
| calls and splashing, recorded by William Pedley, 11 February 1970, Cosgrove Broads, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra | |
| song, recorded by E Allsopp, 15 July 1967, Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire, England. | |
| Dartford Warbler Sylvia undata | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 9 July 1986, Hampton Ridge, New Forest, Hampshire, England. | |
| Dawn chorus | |
| from "Dawn Chorus" CD, recorded by Phil Riddett, 13 June 1998, Burwash Common, East Sussex, England. | |
| Dawn Chorus | |
| recorded by Richard Ranft, 25 May 1998, Ebernoe Common, West Sussex, England. | |
| Dunlin Calidris alpina | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 27 April 1981, Wales. | |
| Dunnock Prunella modularis | |
| calls, recorded by Ron Kettle, Devon, England. | |
| Edible Dormouse Glis glis | |
| recorded by Reg Genever, July 1963, Hazelborough Forest, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Estuary atmos | |
| recorded by Richard Margoschis, 25 September 1991, Burnham Overy, Norfolk, England. | |
| Eurasian Bittern Botaurus stellaris | |
| song, recorded by Laurence Shove, 13 May 1966, Hickling Broad, Norfolk, England. | |
| Eurasian Cuckoo Cuculus canorus | |
| Song and 'gowking' from two males, bubbling calls from distant female, from "British Bird Sounds on CD", recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 22 May 1985, New Forest, Hampshire, England. | |
| Fallow Deer Dama dama | |
| from "Wild Britain" CD. Pig-like grunts at night from rutting Fallow Deer bucks, recorded by Richard Margoschis, 27 October 1975, Cannock Chase, Staffordshire, England. | |
| Fieldfare Turdus pilaris | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 8 December 1974, Leckhampstead Wood, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Firecrest Regulus ignicapillus | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 13 April 1976, Wendover Woods, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Fulmar Fulmarus glacialis | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 28 June 1978, Sheringham, Norfolk, England. | |
| Gannet Morus bassanus | |
| colony, recorded by Laurence Shove, 18 May 1965, Grassholm, Pembrokeshire, Wales. | |
| Garden Warbler Sylvia borin | |
| song, recorded by Rod Jervis, 10 June 1979, Wiggonholt, Sussex, England. | |
| Goldcrest Regulus regulus | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 14 February 1993, Fernhurst, West Sussex, England. | |
| Golden Pheasant Chrysolophus pictus | |
| song, recorded by Ron Kettle, 12 May 1991, How Hill, Norfolk, England. | |
| Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis | |
| song, recorded by Eric & May Nobles, 29 July 1992, Llangynog, Montgomeryshire, Wales. | |
| Great Spotted Woodpecker Picoides major | |
| drumming, recorded by William Pedley, 9 April 1978, Woodchester Park, Gloucestershire, England. | |
| Great Tit Parus major | |
| song, from "Songs of Garden Birds" CD, recorded by William Pedley, 2 March 1974, Leckhampstead Wood, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Great Tit Parus major | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 17 May 1986, Wicken Fen, Cambridgeshire, England. | |
| Great Tit Parus major | |
| mobbing calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 6 June 1965, Gloucestershire, England. | |
| Great Tit Parus major | |
| 'seee' calls, recorded by Richard Ranft, 10 January 1988, Brook Wood near Bromley, Kent, England. | |
| Green Woodpecker Picus viridis | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 1 April 1973, Cosgrove Broads, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Greenfinch Carduelis chloris | |
| calls, recorded by Patrick Sellar, 8 August 1982, Purley, Surrey, England. | |
| Grey Heron Ardea cinerea | |
| calls at nest, recorded by Victor Lewis, 21 April 1974, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Grey Partridge Perdix perdix | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 15 May 1960, Sussex, England. | |
| Grey Squirrel Sciurus carolinensis | |
| recorded by Reg Tassell, October 1971, Devon, England. | |
| Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 3 June 1977, Shropshire, England. | |
| Greylag Goose Anser anser | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 28 March 1982, Newport Pagnell Gravel Pits, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Herring Gull Larus argentatus | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 27 July 1971, Swanage, Dorset, England. | |
| Herring Gull Larus argentatus | |
| sounds of chick in egg before hatching, recorded by Richard Ranft, 21 May 1986, Skokholm Island, Dyfed, Wales. | |
| House Martin Delichon urbica | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 9 June 1973, Cardiganshire, Wales. | |
| House Sparrow Passer domesticus | |
| calls, recorded by Eric & May Nobles, 24 July 1992, Upper Tanat Valley, Montgomeryshire, Wales. | |
| Jackdaw Corvus monedula | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 4 May 1980, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Jay Garrulus glandarius | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 16 October 1977, Woodchester Park, Gloucestershire, England. | |
| Kestrel Falco tinnunculus | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 29 June 1981, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 26 July 1974, Lowestoft, Suffolk, England. | |
| Lady Amherst's Pheasant Chrysolophus amherstiae | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 3 May 1992, Charle Wood, Bedfordshire, England. | |
| Lapwing Vanellus vanellus | |
| display song and wingbeats of two males, recorded by Victor Lewis, 27 March 1974, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Picoides minor | |
| drumming, recorded by William Pedley, 8 May 1983, Wicken Fen, Cambridgeshire, England. | |
| Lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca | |
| alarm calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 25 June 1961, Somerset, England. | |
| Linnet Acanthis cannabina | |
| flight calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 25 May 1965, Berkshire, England. | |
| Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 2 June 1967, Surrey, England. | |
| Little Owl Athene noctua | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 20 January 1970, Surrey, England. | |
| Mallard Anas platyrhynchos | |
| male calls, recorded by William Pedley, 1976, Cosgrove, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Mallard Anas platyrhynchos | |
| female calls, recorded by Richard Ranft, 11 October 1992, near Fernhurst, West Sussex, England. | |
| Manx Shearwater Puffinus puffinus | |
| calls, recorded by Richard Ranft, May 1986, Skokholm Island, Dyfed, Wales. | |
| Marsh Warbler Acrocephalus palustris | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 29 June 1975, Worcestershire, England. | |
| Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis | |
| flight calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 22 April 1962, Hampshire, England. | |
| Mistle Thrush Turdus viscivorus | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 14 February 1993, Lynchmere, West Sussex, England. | |
| Moorhen Gallinula chloropus | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 11 April 1971, Cosgrove, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Mute Swan Cygnus olor | |
| wings, recorded by Reg Tassell, 11 May 1978, Staverton Bridge, Devon, England. | |
| Nightingale Erithacus megarhynchos | |
| calls, recorded by Philip Radford, 11 June 1970, near Wickwar, Gloucestershire, England. | |
| Nightingale Erithacus megarhynchos | |
| from "British Bird Sounds on CD". Song, recorded by Douglas Bower, June 1973, Hampshire, England. | |
| Nightingale Erithacus megarhynchos | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 27 May 1988, Northwood Hill RSPB reserve, Kent, England. | |
| Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 10 June 1984, near Fordingbridge, Hampshire, England. | |
| Noctule bat Nyctalus noctula | |
| sonar calls heard through a heterodyne detector, recorded by Richard Ranft, 3 June 1986, Brook Wood, Kent, England. | |
| Noctule bat Nyctalus noctula | |
| sonar calls heard at one quarter frequency, recorded by Richard Ranft, 3 June 1986, Brook Wood, Kent, England. | |
| Nuthatch Sitta europaea | |
| calls, recorded by Rod Jervis, 4 April 1982, Bignor Park, Sussex, England. | |
| Pheasant Phasianus colchicus | |
| crowing, recorded by Victor Lewis, 21 April 1974, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Pheasant Phasianus colchicus | |
| roosting calls and whirring wings, recorded by William Pedley, 11 May 1973, Wicken Wood, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Pheasant Phasianus colchicus | |
| roosting calls and whirring wings, recorded by Rod Jervis, 8 December 1979, South Stoke, Sussex, England. | |
| Pied Wagtail Motacilla cinerea | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 4 April 1974, near Newton Blossomville, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Quail Coturnix coturnix | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 3 June 1962, Hertfordshire, England. | |
| Raven Corvus corax | |
| calls, recorded by Reg Tassell, 24 October 1971, Totnes, Dartington, Devon, England. | |
| Red Fox Vulpes vulpes | |
| Barking in distance, recorded by William Pedley, 26 December 1983, Leckhampstead, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Red Fox Vulpes vulpes | |
| calls at night, recorded by Richard Margoschis, 16 January 1972, Woodchester Park, Gloucestershire, England. | |
| Redpoll Acanthis flammea | |
| song during display flight, recorded by William Pedley, 11 July 1975, Salthouse Heath, Norfolk, England. | |
| Redshank Tringa totanus | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 12 June 1971, Stony Stratford, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Redwing Turdus iliacus | |
| calls, recorded by Patrick Sellar, 11 January 1985, Purley, Surrey, England. | |
| Reed Bunting Emberzia schoeniclus | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 10 July 1973, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus | |
| song, recorded by Michael Strand, 7 May 1995, Frensham Little Pond, Surrey, England. | |
| Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 25 June 1973, Cley Marshes, Norfolk, England. | |
| Robin Erithacus rubecula | |
| 'tic' call, recorded by William Pedley, 14 October 1973, Woodchester Park, Gloucestershire, England. | |
| Robin Erithacus rubecula | |
| 'seee' call, recorded by Philip Rudkin, 25 May 1980, Shortwood, Oundle, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Robin Erithacus rubecula | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 14 February 1993, Fernhurst, West Sussex, England. | |
| Rook Corvus frugilegus | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 4 April 1978, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri | |
| calls, recorded by Richard Ranft, 17 January 1988, Bromley, Kent, England. | |
| Rough sea with heavy surf on large sandy beach after storm | |
| recorded by Paul Duck, 28 February 1996, Whitesand Bay, Cornwall, England. | |
| Rough sea, waves rushing through a narrow gully | |
| recorded by Paul Duck, 1 March 1996, Kynance Cove, Cornwall, England. | |
| Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 25 April 1981, Wicken Fen, Cambridgeshire, England. | |
| Shelduck Tadorna tadorna | |
| calls, recorded by Richard Ranft, 14 June 1987, Havergate, Suffolk, England. | |
| Siskin Carduelis spinus | |
| song, recorded by John B. Fisher, 3 April 1973, Frensham Common, Surrey, England. | |
| Skylark Alauda arvensis | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 13 June 1982, Hampshire, England. | |
| Song Thrush Turdus philomelos | |
| song, recorded by Rod Jervis, 15 May 1979, St Hilary, Cornwall, England. | |
| Song Thrush Turdus philomelos | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 9 July 1979, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Soprano Pipistrelle Pipistrellus pygmaeus | |
| sonar calls at 55kHz (time-expanded recording x10 ), recorded by Nancy Vaughan, 24 May 1993, Bristol, England. | |
| Spanish Chiffchaff Phylloscopus ibericus | |
| song, recorded by Dave Willis, 1 May 1999, Portland, Dorset, England. | |
| Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus | |
| calls, recorded by Victor Lewis, 28 June 1967, Chobham, Surrey, England. | |
| Starling Sturnus vulgaris | |
| song with mimicry, recorded by Victor Lewis, 23 May 1968, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Stock Dove Columba oenas | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 6 March 1977, Clifton Spinney, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Stonechat Saxicola torquata | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 15 June 1984, New Forest, Hampshire, England. | |
| Storm Petrel Hydrobates pelagicus | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 25 May 1986, Skokholm Island, Dyfed, Wales. | |
| Tawny Owl Strix aluco | |
| recorded by Ron Kettle, 18 June 1988, Cannon Hill Common, London, England. | |
| The Water Singer Micronecta scholtzi | |
| An aquatic bug stridulating underwater, recorded by Richard Ranft, August 1984, Wimbledon Park, London, England. | |
| Thunderstorm | |
| recorded by Eric & May Nobles, 6 July 1989, Tanat Valley, Montgomeryshire, Wales. | |
| Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 19 April 1992, Rendlesham, Suffolk, England. | |
| Treecreeper Certhia familiaris | |
| calls, recorded by Michael Strand, 8 May 1994, South England, England. | |
| Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula | |
| calls, recorded by William Pedley, 4 July 1982, Willen Lake, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 13 June 1987, New Forest, Hampshire, England. | |
| Water Rail Rallus aquaticus | |
| sharming calls, recorded by Laurence Shove, 30 October 1966, Brownsea Island, Dorset, England. | |
| Wigeon Anas penelope | |
| calls, recorded by Rod Jervis, 21 January 1979, Waltham Brooks, Sussex, England. | |
| Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus | |
| song, recorded by Michael Strand, 3 May 1995, Old Winchester Hill, Hampshire, England. | |
| Wind | |
| recorded by Eric & May Nobles, 1 May 1989, Aberdaron, Braich-y-Pwll, Lleyn, Wales. | |
| Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix | |
| song, recorded by Victor Lewis, 13 May 1981, Herefordshire, England. | |
| Woodcock Scolopax rusticola | |
| roding song, recorded by William Pedley, 31 May 1972, Whittlebury, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Woodland dawn chorus | |
| Wren, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Carrion Crow in chorus at 0535 hours, recorded by William Pedley, 17 June 1973, Wicken Wood, Northamptonshire, England. | |
| Woodlark Lullula arborea | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, 11 June 1994, Frensham, Surrey, England. | |
| Woodpigeon Columba palumbus | |
| song, recorded by William Pedley, 1977, Leckhampstead Wood, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Woodpigeon Columba palumbus | |
| wingbeats, recorded by William Pedley, 26 October 1975, Clifton Spinney, Buckinghamshire, England. | |
| Wren Troglodytes troglodytes | |
| song, recorded by Richard Ranft, Pinner, Middlesex, England. | |
| Yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella | |
| song, recorded by A. Rex Ashby, 6 July 1985, Fordingbridge, Hampshire, England. | |
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