May 2018
Have you heard the Sound of Nature?
Dear <<Name>>
May ushers in a wealth of natural wonders - see our monthly Nature Now diary - in particular the rich melody of the dawn chorus as our local birdlife reaches its peak of activity.
Listening or even hearing nature is perhaps a waning experience for many of us, as natural sounds become drowned out in our busy urban lives by louder sources such as earphones and traffic noise. This weekend of 5-6th May welcomes the annual International Dawn Chorus Day, with many local events happening to help us to re-connect to this natural spectacle. Be prepared to rouse yourself early to catch it though!
Check the 'WoW' section (below left) on the 'Sounds of Spring' for an idea of what wildlife you may hear now in The Living Coast.
Our Bio Blog this month (excerpt below right), by research partners at the University of Sussex Drs. Mika Peck and Alice Eldridge, showcases a network of audio events that you can listen in to. It reveals their innovative research using 'soundscapes' to assess the richness of wildlife here and abroad - do have a read!
A different approach to natural sound meanwhile is being pioneered through the concept of 'sound foraging' by local initiative 'Unite the Beat' - bringing people together outdoors to explore their auditory sense and create new sounds from nature. Why not take a look at our 'Spotlight' article to hear more about it?
May is also of course the peak season for local culture, with the Brighton Festival & Fringe taking place this month. Its also however the time when outdoor eco-events really get going - see our online Calendar for inspiration (selected summary list, left).
Lastly you will no doubt be aware that new data protection rules take effect from 25th May. We are writing a new privacy policy (to be included on our website) and wish to assure you that we treat your personal data with respect, and will never share it with third parties. Please note that we use Mailchimp as our marketing automation platform for our e-news data processing, whose privacy policy is here. We will always ensure that we have your 'explicit consent' to receive our communications, by keeping a record of when and how you signed up with us as a 'Friend of The Living Coast' (formerly 'Biosphere'). You may of course unsubscribe any time you choose, by clicking the web link at the bottom of any e-news edition.
Thank you for your continued support as a valued Friend of TLC,
Rich Howorth
Brighton & Lewes Downs Biosphere Partnership
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Window On
Our World
Sounds of Spring
Spring sees the return of nature's chorus in The Living Coast (see interactive map), with the dawn chorus of bird song and more:
~ Blackbird - beautiful mellow tuneful notes
~ Song Thrush (see pic) - repeated sets of phrases
~ Starling - a master mimic of chatter & calls
~ House Sparrow - constant chirps in towns
~ Skylark - persistent songster over the Downs
~ Hedgehogs - noisy sounds of mating in May!
~ Bats - ultrasound is inaudible to most people!
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Bio Blog
Listening to the Wild
The weekend of 5-6th May heralds the International Dawn Chorus Day – a worldwide celebration of the dawn chorus that reminds us of the close connection of people and nature.
A radio transmitter on the cliff tops of Newhaven will be linking The Living Coast to a network of open microphones around the world which you can listen in to online.
This local ‘Soundcamp’ is organised by the Experimental Music Technologies (Emute) lab at the University of Sussex, who have been pioneering research on ‘Soundscape Ecology’.
Their aim is to use sound to measure wildlife diversity, by carrying out acoustic surveys from temperate areas in The Living Coast (mostly of bird song) to tropical Ecuador, where frogs and insects make a lot of noise!
The research results have been really promising, offering a potential new tool for conservationists to assess biodiversity across large remote wild areas and over longer periods of time than is possible from field surveys…read full blog
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