Sounds Southern

Recorded on May 1, 2026 at Heart Place, this is the sound of a nighttime chorus at Bullfrog Pond under May’s Full Flower Moon, also known as the Frog Moon. Spring Crickets and Southern Wood Crickets form a steady backdrop, joined by the rising waaaa of Fowler’s Toads, the soft tapping of Southern Cricket Frogs, like two small pebbles struck together and the short raspy trill of the Cope's Gray Treefrog.Through the chorus, listeners may catch the faint call of a Chuck-will’s-widow from across the pasture and the nocturnal notes of a Yellow-breasted Chat in the brambles, though both are nearly overtaken by the strength of the amphibian chorus. Sounds Southern Extended listeners will hear over two hours of this layered nighttime rhythm, well suited for deep rest and relaxation.

Recorded on April 20, 2026 at the bluff at the old river town of Belmont where artesian springs flow from the hills and meet up with Little Tallahatchie River bottom, this is the sound of a spring morning at the peak of warbler migration. As fog lifts and air warms, the woods fill with a diversity of birdsong with twenty-nine species heard, including Hooded Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, Red-headed Woodpecker, Tufted Titmouse, Common Yellowthroat, Downy Woodpecker, Summer Tanager, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Prothonotary Warbler, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Carolina Chickadee, Carolina Wren, White-eyed Vireo, Tennessee Warbler, Northern Parula, Swainson’s Warbler, Northern Cardinal, Yellow-throated Warbler, Scarlet Tanager, Indigo Bunting, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Gray Catbird, Wood Thrush, Kentucky Warbler, American Crow, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Acadian Flycatcher, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Louisiana Waterthrush, along with the banjo-string-plucking glunk sound of a Green Frog calling from the sedges at the edge of the seep.

Recorded on April 23, 2026 on the sleeping porch at the dogtrot, this is the sound of night under the Lyrid meteor shower. Crickets and Southern Cricket Frogs provide a steady rhythm, joined by the kowlp-kowlp-kowlp call of a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, a caterwauling chorus from a nearby Barred Owl pair and the rolling call of a Chuck-will’s-widow, returned to Heart Place in the woods at the edge of Kingfisher Pond.Sounds Southern Extended listeners will hear over an hour of the Chuck-will’s-widow’s calls, along with distant coyote barks and howls, the soft rhythmic movement of an opossum brushing through the grasses in search of a nighttime meal and pausing to drink from the wildlife water feature. Other nocturnal calls include the occasional honk of a Canada Goose and the peent call of a Common Nighthawk plus psitherism moving through the oak trees in the pasture. This recording is best heard in a quiet setting.

Recorded on April 20, 2026 at Belmont in the river bottom along the Little Tallahatchie River, this is the sound of dawn chorus at the peak of migration season. The recording opens with the delicate, flute-like song of the Wood Thrush. The Wood Thrush’s call is a distinctive, layered three-part call where individuals can be identified by the repeating order in which they cycle through their middle-phrase variants, the ee-oh-lay. Males learn this phrase from neighboring birds and perform multiple variants, typically 2 to 10 clear, ringing notes. When combined with 1–3 variants of a softer introductory phrase and 6–12 variants of a more complex, higher-pitched final trill, a single bird may produce more than 50 distinct songs.Other voices joining the chorus include: Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Carolina Wren, Northern Cardinal, Louisiana Waterthrush, Hooded Warbler, Eastern Towhee, Northern Parula, White-eyed Vireo, Yellow-throated Vireo, Downy Woodpecker, Acadian Flycatcher, Pine Warbler, American Crow, Brown-headed Cowbird, Red-eyed Vireo, American Redstart and Tufted Titmouse.

Recorded on April 20, 2026 at sunrise along the Little Tallahatchie River, this is the sound of peak spring migration. The morning, covered in fog along the river bottom, builds with Wood Thrush, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Chickadee and Northern Cardinal, joined by Indigo Bunting, Red-eyed Vireo, Canada Goose and Summer Tanager, with light breezes moving through the tops of the trees and the barks of an Eastern Gray Squirrel. A stream of warblers carries the center of the recording, including Black-throated Green Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Pine Warbler and Prothonotary Warbler alongside Northern Parula, American Redstart and Louisiana Waterthrush.Listeners will hear the tree canopy filled with the drumming and calls of Red-headed, Hairy, Downy, Red-bellied and Pileated Woodpeckers, as well as Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Carolina Wren, Brown-headed Cowbird, Blue Jay, White-eyed Vireo, Yellow-throated Vireo, Acadian Flycatcher, American Crow and Red-winged Blackbird, creating a layered morning chorus well suited for meditation or improving one’s mood.

Recorded on April 17, 2026 in the Cold Springs woods, this is the sound of a spring morning full of birdsong. Migrating and resident warblers dominate the scene, with a trio of newly arrived resident Worm-eating Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler and Northern Parula lifting their voices in conversation.The recording opens with low morning cow bellows from a nearby pasture, underscored by crickets and a growing chorus of birds, including Blue-winged Warbler, White-throated Sparrow, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Northern Cardinal, Tufted Titmouse, Pine Warbler, Ovenbird, American Goldfinch, Red-eyed Vireo, American Robin, Gray Catbird, House Finch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Carolina Chickadee, Carolina Wren, Brown-headed Cowbird, Downy Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Prairie Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Chipping Sparrow.

Recorded on April 12, 2026 at Cold Springs, this is the sound of sunrise in the cypress swamp. Newly arrived Prothonotary Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush and Swainson’s Warbler dominate the morning chorus, while Eastern Cricket Frogs call from the understory.Other voices in the chorus include Summer Tanager, Northern Parula, Carolina Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Common Yellowthroat, White-eyed Vireo, Yellow-throated Warbler, Northern Cardinal, Tufted Titmouse, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Red-headed Woodpecker, Mourning Dove, Brown-headed Cowbird, Brown Thrasher, Chimney Swift, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Hooded Warbler, Red-eyed Vireo, Canada Goose and American Crow.

Recorded on April 10, 2026 at Heart Place, this is the sound of a spring night under a third-quarter moon. Listeners will hear the distant howl of a lone coyote alongside the steady chorus of Eastern Cricket Frogs, Southern Cricket Frogs, Fowler’s Toads, Southern Wood Crickets and Southeastern Field Crickets. This green noise is perfect for calming down in times of stress.

Recorded on April 12, 2026 at Clear Springs, this is the sound of the dawn chorus along the Little Tallahatchie River at the swamp's edge. The steady trickle of artesian springs flowing from the hills floods the understory of hazel alder, pawpaw, river cane, brome-like sedge and cinnamon fern, while the Swainson’s Warbler and Louisiana Waterthrush countersing as they establish breeding territories.Other voices in the morning soundscape include the Red-bellied Woodpecker, Carolina Chickadee, Prothonotary Warbler, Northern Parula, Northern Cardinal, Yellow-throated Vireo, Tufted Titmouse, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Common Yellowthroat, Brown-headed Cowbird, Yellow-throated Warbler, Carolina Wren, Hooded Warbler, Red-winged Blackbird, American Goldfinch, Red-eyed Vireo, Scarlet Tanager, Blue-headed Vireo, American Crow, Red-shouldered Hawk, Wild Turkey, Chimney Swift and American Robin, along with the drumming of Pileated and Downy Woodpeckers and tapping call of the Southern Cricket Frog.