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1. Re: lack of insect singing in upper midwest of US (corrected)

Subject: 1. Re: lack of insect singing in upper midwest of US (corrected)
From: "Bernie Krause" bigchirp1
Date: Sat Jul 26, 2014 3:56 am ((PDT))
I=92m not terribly sure, either, Rob. When comparing data, though, I began =
recording with Sennheiser MKH30/40 MS combos in 1987, when I got the first =
beta DAT recorders from Sony to try. I was very careful to calibrate the in=
puts to known standards and put a tone on the front of each take to insure =
(as best I could) the integrity of the examples so that subsequent recordin=
g protocols could be matched. When I returned to sites to see if there had =
been any changes, I was also very careful to set up in the same places as I=
 have in some over the course of 20+ years. That way, at least, the illusio=
n is somewhat consistent and a few inferences can be drawn if not sustained=
 as being pretty good comparisons. We=92ll see how that thesis holds up to =
future investigation.

Bernie


On Jul 25, 2014, at 11:56 PM, Rob Danielson  [naturerecordists]=
 <> wrote:

> Klas and Bernie-
>
> The old timers are comparing childhood to present day recordings. I know =
that is true for me too but I can't hear and know it. Recording changes one=
's abilities-- it never occurred to me listen over time and for what I can'=
t hear. Rob
>
> On Jul 21, 2014, at 1:44 PM, Bernie Krause  [natur=
erecordists] wrote:
>
>> Aside from the loss of entire terrestrial and marine soundscapes and the=
 changes that have occurred by shifting climate =96 i. e. the N. American a=
ppearance of spring 2 - 3 weeks earlier than the early 90s =96 which affect=
s density and diversity of wildlife across its entire spectrum of organisms=
 on land; and warming waters with its acidification, pollution (noise & che=
mical runoff) and salinity problems in the oceans of the world, especially =
over the past 25 years, nearly everything is changing.
>>
>>
>> Well over 50% of my archive =96 where I began capturing whole soundscape=
s since 1968 =96 comes from habitats so seriously compromised that they are=
 now either pretty much biophonically silent or have changed their texture(=
s) so radically that their signature is no longer recognizable. Because of =
the California drought, the worst in over 400 years, we only heard two or t=
hree Pacific tree frogs from December through February this past winter=85t=
ypically the most abundant frog-voice time of the year. Dusk evening chorus=
es of crickets and other insects had begun in late May, fully 3 months befo=
re their usual onset in late August.
>>
>> In 1981, when I did an early F-1 digital spring recording at the foot of=
 the Tetons in Wyoming, the dawn chorus combo consisted of warbling vireo, =
yellow warbler white-crowned sparrow, Wilson's warbler, house wren, dusky f=
lycatcher. In 2009, when I returned to the same spot at the same time of ye=
ar, the grouping consisted of hermit thrush, Swainson=92s thrush, cowbird, =
grosbeak, yellow-rumped warbler, dark-eyed junco, chipping sparrow, white-c=
rowned sparrow and there was far less density. Locals told us stories that =
the natural soundscapes were now unrecognizable from the time of their resp=
ective childhoods in the late 50s early 60s.
>>
>> Bernie Krause
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Jul 21, 2014, at 6:43 PM, Klas Strandberg  [naturer=
ecordists] <> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Whatever, Rob, I think your question is about the most important kind o=
f question that we can ask for now.
>>>
>>> Here at Telinga, I have recorded "soundscapes" since 1995. The number o=
f birds around have lowered to about a third over the last ten years. All I=
 need to do is count what is on my recordings. Some losses (doves, woodpeck=
ers, starlings) can be explained by looking at the number of hollow trees t=
hat are gone with the forest companies and changing agricultural methods (o=
rtolan bunting) - other looses have no explanation that I can understand. =

>>>
>>> Klas.
>>>
>>> At 23:18 2014-07-19, you wrote:
>>>> Hi--
>>>>
>>>> Thanks everyone.
>>>>
>>>> Not likely to be sprays at this location. I agree with Vicky that ever=
y year has its own personality. Its a very lush summer so far; rain has bee=
n good. A few years ago early and extended warmth led to several additional=
 generations of hatches during the summer.
>>>>
>>>> No large grasshoppers here like Curt describes. Mosquitos below averag=
e (considering our rain), gnats above average, fireflies average.  Frogs ar=
e no longer calling-- not even greens and gray tree frogs. No Katydids, no =
cicadas-- just marginal field crickets and some moths. My sister drove up f=
rom Arkansas (from the south) last week; her car had lots of insects on the=
 grille.
>>>>
>>>> I ran through my log mentions over the last few years. Cicadas usually=
 start singing by now with field crickets established and katydids coming o=
n. I'm at a warmer latitude than Curt-- about the same as Greg,
>>>>
>>>> It does have a creepy "silent spring" impact to hear utter silence at =
night in July.  My guess is some local uniqueness from the effects of the c=
older nights.
>>>>
>>>> Rob
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Jul 19, 2014, at 10:49 AM, Curt Olson  [natur=
erecordists] wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> We just got back from a couple days in St. Louis County, MN, north of=
 Duluth. We heard some those grasshoppers that make a loud crackling sound =
when they fly (sorry folks, I don't know their name). Plenty of fireflies..=
. and biting flies... and mosquitoes, of course! It all seemed pretty norma=
l for mid-July in northern MN. I expect the racket should be increasing a l=
ot over the next couple weeks.
>>>>>
>>>>> Curt Olson
>>>>> MinnesotaSoundscapes.com
>>>>>
>>>>> Rob D. wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Have others in the upper midwest US noticed almost no insect singing=
 this summer?
>>>>>> We had a very cold winter, a very slow fade-in spring and as yet no =
stretches of really warm days/nights.
>>>>>> Could populations just be really low? I've seen only a few small cri=
ckets and small grasshoppers.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Its very eerie to have the windows open at night in mid July and hea=
r nothing except a single cricket chirp for 2-4 seconds and maybe again in =
15 minutes,..
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Thanks
>>>>>> Rob D.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ------------------------------------
>>>>
>>>> ------------------------------------
>>>>
>>>> "While a picture is worth a thousand words, a
>>>> sound is worth a thousand pictures." R. Murray Schafer via Bernie Krau=
se.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ------------------------------------
>>>>
>>>> Yahoo Groups Links
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>> S-748 96 Tobo, Sweden.
>>> Phone & fax int + 295 310 01
>>> email: 
>>> website: www.telinga.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>> Wild Sanctuary
>> POB 536
>> Glen Ellen, CA 95442
>> 707-996-6677
>> http://www.wildsanctuary.com
>> 
>> SKYPE: biophony
>> FaceBook:
>> http://www.facebook.com/TheGreatAnimalOrchestra
>> http://www.facebook.com/BernieKrauseAuthor
>> Twitter:
>> http://www.twitter.com/berniekrause
>> TED Global talk (12Jun13):http://www.ted.com/talks/bernie_krause_the_voi=
ce_of_the_natural_world.html
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> "While a picture is worth a thousand words, a
> sound is worth a thousand pictures." R. Murray Schafer via Bernie Krause.
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> Yahoo Groups Links
>
>
>
Wild Sanctuary
POB 536
Glen Ellen, CA 95442
707-996-6677
http://www.wildsanctuary.com

SKYPE: biophony
FaceBook:
http://www.facebook.com/TheGreatAnimalOrchestra
http://www.facebook.com/BernieKrauseAuthor
Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/berniekrause
TED Global talk (12Jun13): http://www.ted.com/talks/bernie_krause_the_voice=
_of_the_natural_world.html
















"While a picture is worth a thousand words, a
sound is worth a thousand pictures." R. Murray Schafer via Bernie Krause.



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