I had already said that the summer of 2026 was probably the most difficult summer I have ever had to record birdsong or other wildlife activity. But when I dig into the results of the summer, it seems like I can find some interesting recordings.
Here is one from August 10, where the location of the microphones was not the most suitable for recording any „close-up details“. Mainly because the wind was supposed to change direction by 180° during the night. When this happens, it is likely that I will get a calm for a few minutes, even 1-3 hours. I therefore decided to place the microphones almost on top of a hill to capture the birdlife from all directions, which seemed unusually diverse and loud. At least compared to what I had experienced on my trips around the country earlier in the summer. The wildlife sounded like it was the end of May – June, which was a pleasant surprise.
On the left was a pond, or small lake, Skjaldarvatn, with a rich birdlife of loons and various duck species. On the right side was the sea, with a variety of birds of various species.
What is most surprising is how well it can be heard in various details even though the distance between the microphone and the birds was great. The sound was recorded at 48dB gain and then increased again by 20dB in post-processing, or up to -5dB from „normalised“. The experience at the recording location was almost complete silence. But since a good and sensitive microphone acts like a telescope for a visual experience, the microphone pulls together distant and faint sounds into one pretty clear two-dimensional sound image.
There are actually so many bird species there, that I have to admit that I do not know all the species without making special observations. If anyone thinks they know all the species, it would be appreciated if you could confirm this with the bird names in the comment below. It can be in any language.
Quality open headphones are recommended while listening at low or mid level.
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(mp3 256kbps / 60Mb)
Recorder: Sound devices MixPre6
Mics: Lewitt LCT540s (IRT cross)
Pix: Samsung s26 ultra
Weather: Particularly cloudy, 0-3 m/sec, 7-12°C
Location: 65.048472, -22.789612
HLJÓÐMYND - SOUNDIMAGE 