Sounds of Summer

Mother Nature has recently released her painful grip on our area.  Heat indices of 110+ are now in the high 70s and low 80s and even cooler at night.  A wall of humidity that took my breath away as soon as I stepped outside has given way to gentle winds. I have found my idea of heaven.   I have started walking again, now that I can make it further down the driveway, beyond the car.

During my walks this week I became acutely aware of the sounds of summer.  Cooped up in the house I could still look outside and see the birds and rabbits and my garden, but the house was closed up and the whirring of the air conditioner muffled every sound.  When I did venture outside I did not take the time to notice the music of Untah’s Farm. Perhaps the creatures I have come to expect were just as worn out as I was. The stillness of the heat did not allow for rustling of leaves.

The first sound I noticed as I set out with the dogs on my evening trek is the crunching of the gravel beneath shoes and paws. It reminds me of the echo in my head as I take the first bites of cereal in the morning, before the cereal gets soft. As my ears tune in, I hear the sniffing of giant canine noses exploring their world. Sniff, sniff, sniff, snort.  I can imagine a sommelier cleansing his pallet; the dogs snorting out all the particles that might interfere with new odors. Next the rustlings of stalks of corn, seven or eight feet tall, like good quality paper being shuffled.

Red Winged Black Bird
Courtesy of the internet

When I get home I sit in the Adirondack chair by my flower garden.  I am barely seated and I am nearly knocked in the head by a pair of hummingbirds vying for the next hollyhock.   I did not think such tiny bird could make such a buzzing.  As my heart and breath slow from my walk, I begin to notice the conversations of the birds. If I listen closely I hear the call and response of the red winged black birds, of which we have many. Black capped chickadees talk without ceasing.  To me, the house wren adds a bit of calm in the aviary party going on in the field and by the pond.

Red Tailed Hawk
Picture courtesy of internet

As the evening progresses and the sun moves further west into the horizon, a red tailed hawk screeches as if to defend his territory or give warning to an approaching predator.  I look around but cannot see him.  I also hear the first lone hoot of a great horned owl.  Tonight he is out of sight but I recall one evening as the sky was a beautiful blend of pinks and oranges, I could hear the owl loud and clear.  I stepped outside and looked at various high perches; the dead tree by the pond, the top of the electric post.  I finally found him- a huge black silhouette against the sky calling out into the night atop the silo.

Bullfrog Picture courtesy of internet

As the prairie begins to settle down, a bullfrog is the wake up call for the pond. The croaking of the bullfrog fills in the low bass tones as the American toad fills the tenor range and Northern Spring Peepers the soprano range.  

As I find my way up to the house I see our resident tree frog crawling out from behind the wisteria that has enclosed our front porch. Last night I saw a tiny tree frog on the window as I closed the front door for the night.  Tonight, a moderate size one sings out good night as I walk past. I think there must be a family among those leaves.   Good night to you too.

Medium sized Tree Frog on my living room window.

All the Wisconsin bird and frog sounds sited in this blog and many, many more can be heard through these websites:

http://www.wisconsinbirdsounds.com/

http://seagrant.wisc.edu/frogs/field_ids.html