Beautiful Nature Sounds Energize the Mind, Body, and Soul
Dancing Elephants Press weekly prompt 26 of 52 — Sounds of Nature
Dear Reader,
Do you enjoy listening to the sounds of nature? Birds singing, frogs jumping, the sound of the wind soughing through the trees? The babble of the brook as it winds its way from here to there. The rushing of the water as it cascades down the mountain stream. The waves lapping on the shore as they come and go? It can be very relaxing and comfortable to take it all in.
This article was inspired by a writing prompt presented by Dr. Preeti Singh of Dancing Elephants Press. You can view that prompt by going to https://readmedium.com/the-sounds-of-nature-are-like-music-with-joy-aee61a2b21b9
She has the knack for challenging the writer to come up with something unique and yet something enjoyable to read. I am happy to present my article and hope that you will enjoy reading it and enjoy nature just that much more by having done so.
Introduction
Researchers realized some time ago that there are benefits to being in nature. For example, living around trees can help you live longer. Walking in the woods is good for your mood. Being near water can have positive effects on your well-being. There are also health benefits that can be brought by natural sounds.
Birds Make Me Smile
Most people that do bird watching identify different types of birds with the sounds they hear the birds make. It seems that hearing birds rustling in the bushes or trees and singing their sweet songs is central to experiencing nature. My wife and I have many bushes and trees in our yard because we love to listen to them sing and watch them fly.
Unbelievable Bird-Watching Benefits
Some of the benefits of listening to the birds that have been reported include reduced pain, lowered stress, improved mood, and better cognitive function. Sites with the most natural sounds and the lowest human-originated noise from roads and air traffic can be found in Hawaii and Alaska.
We have been fortunate to have lived in both locations for several years. We were in Hawaii for 4 years and Alaska for 7 years. We lived in a crowded area in Hawaii but took trips to the other Hawaiian Islands and enjoyed the peaceful natural settings there. In Alaska, we lived in a more remote area, and we were able to listen to the birds and animals from our home.
What Has Water and Birds Got to Do With It?
Not all natural sounds provide equal benefits. For people who live or visit the sounds of water, the impact is that their emotions are improved, their health is better, and the sounds of the birds ease stress and annoyance.
It is assumed that the sound of water may be linked to the critical role it plays in survival. Hearing more than a single type of birds singing increases the benefits. How the Sounds of Nature Affect Your Well-Being (treehugger.com) Article written by Mary Jo Dilonardo, March 26, 2021
While connecting with nature (one of my favorite things to do) offers many health benefits just listening to the sounds can also provide those benefits. There is something magical about listening to nature.
Personal Experience
My family and I were fortunate years ago to visit Bad Medicine Lake in northern Minnesota. We rented a cabin, and the owners of the cabin told us that motorized watercraft were not allowed.
That meant the area was very quiet. When the sun began to go down in the evening the loons came out of the tall grasses where they were nested and began their longing cry. There is nothing in nature that I have experienced that affected me in such a peaceful way as hearing the loons.
My life has been one where I moved many times. As a child, my family lived in Ohio, Colorado, Virginia, and Minnesota. We got out into nature at every opportunity.
I joined the military at the age of 18 and spent 29 years on active duty with the Air Force. My wife and our family and I had many assignments where we were able to get outside and enjoy nature. We lived in Guam, North Dakota (twice), Hawaii, Alaska, Portugal, and Florida. Each of these locations had its natural environment. When I am outside in the elements, I enjoy them all.
Favorite Nature Environment
I love the mountains and always enjoy the clean crisp air that is found there. I also love to listen to the creeks and rivers rolling along the mountainside. It is difficult to hear anything more than the creek or river when it is busy.
The sound of the water is very restful for me. Hiking along and stopping to sit on a huge boulder and watch the water run is one of the best places I have been.
I also enjoy the pristine lakes that can be found in the mountains and fishing for rainbow trout. I did this as a child and enjoyed it very much. Wildlife is abundant in most of the locations that I have lived in or visited.
It is always a thrill for me to see and listen to the birds and their song (too many to include them all in an article but woodpeckers, hawks, eagles, and songbirds such as blue birds and finches are some of my favorites.
I also love to see and listen to squirrels, bighorn sheep, beavers, moose, marmots, rabbits, black bears, seals, walruses, sea otters, bison, elk, caribou, mountain goats, Dall sheep, whales, dolphin, porcupine, axis and mule deer, and any other animal except snakes.
One of my favorite locations is the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. The beauty of the scenery and the sound of the wildlife is captivating. I love to listen to and view mountain sheep and goats climbing their way to the top of a tall mountain. Those animals are amazing in their ability to climb and stand in areas where humans dare not go because of the extreme drop-off distances.
I love to see wildlife as they enjoy their natural habitats. Something about seeing them doing what they do sets me free. I have enjoyed them in Minnesota, Alaska, Colorado, Virginia, Ohio, and Florida.
One of the things I enjoyed doing both as a child and as an adult was and still is traveling in the mountains and hiking the established trails. As a child, our family (my dad, brother, sisters (2), and I) went hiking to the top of a mountain in Colorado. Since we had never hiked up a mountain before we were all excited about the adventure and we loved taking the trip.
Beyond Being in The Natural Environment
If you are like me and love listening to the sounds of nature, the internet is replete with places online where you can do that. This is helpful if you are so busy that getting away is not possible. I was fortunate to find some of the websites and channels and wanted to share them with you. Those sites are as follows:
Discovery Park Center for Global Soundscape — mission is to support discovery, learning, and engagement that leads to the preservation of Earth’s natural acoustic heritage.
Record the Earth — researchers involved in soundscape ecology. 6K recordings.
Nature Sound Map — an interactive way of experiencing the natural sounds of the planet.
Fragments of Extinction — exploring the world’s oldest rainforests. The site provides three-dimensional sound portraits to study, understand, experience, and conserve them.
Canada’s national parks — The government of Canada website provides information on parks, nature, and science.
There are also many nature recordings offered for sale on the internet and they include ocean waves, calming rain, calming songbirds, and wilderness stream.
YouTube has relaxing nature sounds recorded and they are often free. One that I listened to while writing this article was found at (45) 8 Hours Relaxing Nature Sounds — River Noise and Birdsong — YouTube. These recordings can be nature sounds such as birds, rain, water, ocean sounds, and forest nature sounds.
I was even able to find one site that had 35 nature YouTube channels for nature lovers and naturalists at YouTube. Another site that I find very relaxing is (45) Relaxing Nature Sounds for Study, Yoga, and Meditation — HD 1080p 8-Hour Video! — YouTube. This site is of water rolling into the shore of an island.
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I would like to give a big shout-out to Lisa Precious for writing the article “The Beauty of Nature’s Symphony: The Joyful Sound of Birds, Rivers, and Forests. This article had me listening to the birds, looking at the Dolomites, and enjoying a mountain bike ride and stream. Exceptional words will bless any reader that loves nature.
I would like to give a big shout-out to Christopher Grant for writing the poem “If Only I Could”. His keen insight is evident throughout the piece. He is a skilled writer of poetry. I have read several of his pieces and enjoy them very much. I am not one who reads poetry but I do enjoy his writing.