Natural sounds include animal sounds, from the chirruping of crickets to the vocalisations of mammals. They also include the sounds of other natural phenomena, such as water sounds; for example, the sound of rain falling on the ground or on water, the sound of a waterfall, a rushing river, waves lapping or rolling gravel on a shoreline; and wind sounds, such as the murmur of wind rustling the leaves in trees, the howling during a gale and the roar of a whirlwind. Water and wind sounds are often heard in combination in nature. Other natural non-human sounds are thunder, the crack of large pieces of ice shearing from a glacier or iceberg, and the crackle of a forest fire. Such sounds may have contributed to the development of prehistoric music

Prehistoric music

Prehistoric music is a term in the history of music for all music produced in preliterate cultures , beginning somewhere in very late geological history...

, and have important cultural references nowadays.

Warning sounds

These are sounds made by animals to warn others, of their species, of impending danger. Similar "warning" sounds are made by those of any unique species when a predator is approaching that species' territory, warning others to seek safety.

Territory sounds

These are sounds, calls, or audible signals made by any one species to its own or any other species, establishing boundaries so like or unlike species will not transgress those boundaries.

Male baboons make sounds heard for miles by other baboons, communicating to those other male baboons, the territory

Territory (animal)

In ethology the term territory refers to any sociographical area that an animal of a particular species consistently defends against conspecifics...

 of that male baboon

Baboon

Baboons are African and Arabian Old World monkeys belonging to the genus Papio, part of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. There are five species, which are some of the largest non-hominoid members of the primate order; only the mandrill and the drill are larger...

. The strength, volume, and timbre

Timbre

In music, timbre is the quality of a musical note or sound or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production, such as voices and musical instruments, such as string instruments, wind instruments, and percussion instruments. The physical characteristics of sound that determine the...

, inherent in that "call", determine whether or not rival males attempt to invade that male baboon's territory.

They do this to make them sound impressive and then to attract the female to them.

Courtship and/or mate attracting sounds

These are sounds made by the male baboon to attract females to his territory for courtship and mating. Again, the strength, quality, and timbre of those sounds, often determine the ability of that species to attract females for reproduction. These mating calls, often low and guttural, are the main criteria, used by the female baboon to determine which male she mates with.

Cultural references

The imitation of natural sounds in various cultures is a diverse phenomenon. and can fill in various functions. In several instances, it is related to the belief system, for example, imitation of natural sounds can be linked to various shamanistic beliefs or practice (e.g. yoik

Yoik

A joik, , luohti, vuolle, leu'dd, or juoiggus is a traditional Sami form of song.Originally, joik referred to only one of several Sami singing styles, but in English the word is often used to refer to all types of traditional Sami singing...

s of the Sami

Sami people

The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...

, some other shamanic songs and rituals, overtone singing

Overtone singing

Overtone singing, also known as overtone chanting, or harmonic singing, is a type of singing in which the singer manipulates the resonances created as air travels from the lungs, past the vocal folds, and out the lips to produce a melody.The partials of a sound wave made by the human voice can be...

 of some cultures). It may serve also such practical goals as luring game in the hunt; or entertainment (katajjaqs of Inuit

Inuit

The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...

).

See also

• Animal communication
  Animal communication
  Animal communication is any behavior on the part of one animal that has an effect on the current or future behaviour of another animal. The study of animal communication, is sometimes called Zoosemiotics has played an important part in the...
  
  
• Animal language
  Animal language
  Animal language is the modeling of human language in non human animal systems. While the term is widely used, researchers agree that animal languages are not as complex or expressive as human language....
  
  
• Bioacoustics
  Bioacoustics
  Bioacoustics is a cross-disciplinary science that combines biology and acoustics. Usually it refers to the investigation of sound production, dispersion through elastic media, and reception in animals, including humans. This involves neurophysiological and anatomical basis of sound production and...
  
  
• Bird song
  Bird song
  Bird vocalization includes both bird calls and bird songs. In non-technical use, bird songs are the bird sounds that are melodious to the human ear. In ornithology and birding, songs are distinguished by function from calls.-Definition:The distinction between songs and calls is based upon...
  
  
• Soundscape
  Soundscape
  A soundscape is a sound or combination of sounds that forms or arises from an immersive environment. The study of soundscape is the subject of acoustic ecology...
  
  
• Whale song
  Whale song
  Whale sounds are the sounds made by whales and which are used for different kinds of communication.The word "song" is used to describe the pattern of regular and predictable sounds made by some species of whales, notably the Humpback Whale...
  
  

External links

• The British Library Sound Archive has 150,000 recordings of over 10,000 species.
• International Bioacoustics Council links to many bioacoustics resources.
• Listen to Nature 400 examples of animal songs and calls
• Wildlife Sound Recording Society