Call of the Wild: Soundscapes

Soundscapes of Summer

This is for all the nature-loving, outdoor camping, backyard exploring, curiosity-driven, children of summer. 

The art of listening to the sounds of nature can soothe the soul, but identifying those sounds can put to rest the fears of those who are frightened by what may be lurking in the shadows.   Amphibians and Reptiles of North Caroline website, herpsofnc.org,  is a colorful and user-friendly website that can help the novice as well as the intermediate nature lover conquer their fear of the wild and appreciate the sights and sounds of their natural environment.

The young and young at heart will find it easy to navigate the simple and prominent page headings.   The layout of the homepage is unencumbered by graphics, chart, forms, and small writing.  The automatic slideshow that begins once you land on the page shows a picture of the animal that would best fit into each one of the headings on the page.  this feature will help uncertain nature explorers choose the correct category to begin their search. 

Overall the Amphibians and Reptiles of North Caroline website is very good for general information about reptiles and amphibians.  It contains detailed and informative content on various snakes, frogs, turtles, and alligators that are all native to North Carolina. There are descriptions of each native animal’s diet, habits, and how big it grows. These articles also provide very vivid photographs of each of these animals. 

Herpsofnc.org/ also allows citizens to submit photos of the animal they have taken.  I also find it helpful that in each category of reptiles and amphibians they have grouped them according to physical characteristics. Providing a map of the North Carolina Region where the animal is found is also very helpful.  

Perhaps the most enjoyable feature of the entire site is the sound bites provided in the Native Frogs section.  The audio clip of each frog's vocal sound accompanied by mellow commentary juxtaposed to crisp audio is unbeatable in assisting to recognize various types of frogs throughout North Carolina. 

The embedded sounds in the Frogs and Toads category really create fun summer soundscapes. This is a great website for laypersons who are just getting started on their nature-loving discovery.  The sound byte feature can make camping out more fun as you lay under the stars and listen to identify the sounds of summer.

Even though it is not the same as the  Amphibians and Reptiles of North Caroline website, there is a phone app that can be downloaded from the Google Play store called Frog Find.  Frog Find actually helps you identify frogs and toads in the Western Ghats by appearance, location, and sound right from your phone.  It would be great if an app like this existed for extensive parts of the U.S.  The closest I could find to a "Frog Find" is Frog Calls, which includes common frog types found throughout the U.S.