The Wild Sounds of Sussex:

For me, spring is as much about sound as about sun, warmth, flowers and new born lambs. Even before the birds start arriving from Africa, the resident blackbirds, robins and song thrushes are in full song.

Spring has been a little late this year, although actually I’m not sure that’s true. A proper winter has meant that spring has arrived at the right time just like it did in the olden days. Still, whatever time it arrives it is always very welcome.

For me, spring is as much about sound as about sun, warmth, flowers and new born lambs. Even before the birds start arriving from Africa, the resident blackbirds, robins and song thrushes are in full song. The clocks going forward at the end of March act as a real trigger, particularly for the blackbirds, and the lengthening evenings are so much enhanced by their wonderful mellifluous song.

It’s not just the birds that provide the soundtrack for spring. Frogs and toads add their rather un-musical voices at the beginning and when the air stats to warm up you get the lovely soft droning sounds of bumblebees and the urgent buzzing of hoverflies.  Even the carp in the lake at Woods Mill get in on the act with their pre-breeding, rather unsavoury, slurping noises!

By mid-April the avian chorus is starting to get into full swing and here at Woods Mill the air is filled with song of new arrivals from Africa, that despite journeys of 3,000 mile plus, are frantic to establish a territory and find a mate. Scratchy whitethroats, monotonous chiffchaffs, babbling blackcaps and cascading willow warblers accompany a walk around the reserve and to complete the choir – the song of the nightingale.

All these sounds add a new dimension to any visit to the countryside. I think it’s impossible not to be uplifted by a skylark pouring out its song high above the Downs on a warm May morning. Artists, poets, writers, musicians have all been inspired by the sounds of the landscape around them and the fact that ‘The Lark Ascending’ by Vaughan Williams is one of the most popular pieces of music by a British composer, is testament to the fact that that inspiration flows down to the general public. Our long tradition of folk music too relates to the landscape, how it shaped the rural lives and how sound was an integral part of that life. The South Downs in particular has been a source of countless traditional songs that have been kept alive through the centuries, none more so than Sussex’s very own The Copper Family from Rottingdean who have been ensuring the survival of these tunes for over 200 years.

To celebrate the wonder of natural sound in the local landscapes the Trust is running some events in June and July, two of which are tied in with the Adur Arts Festival. At Woods Mill we are running four ‘Evenings with Nightingales’ to celebrate their beautiful song – details at the end of this article.

As I write the skies are eerily quiet, as the Icelandic volcano has grounded aircraft across Europe. While not minimising the distress this is causing stranded passengers and to the economy, many people not directly affected by the ash, particularly those that live under a flight path near airports, have had a whole new world of natural sounds opened up to them; they can actually hear the blackbirds, robins and thrushes in their gardens and the joy it brings them is palpable.

So, in this increasingly noisy world, the next time you are out, just take a little time out just to stop and listen to the wild sounds around you -  you will be surprised at what you can hear.
by Mike Russell

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