Building and Using the Macaulay Library Collections

Building and Using the Macaulay Library Collections

By Macaulay Library Team 15 May 2017

When you don’t know something, you look it up. Perhaps you Google it, or go directly to Wikipedia. If you’re of a certain age, you used to go to a library and find the row of identical, black and gold books of Encyclopedia Britannica.  You may even ask someone, but you go to a trusted…

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Contributor Profile: Lance Benner

Contributor Profile: Lance Benner

By Macaulay Library Team 1 May 2017

Lance Benner records audio of birds while mountain biking at night. He has regular routes and stops, and catches some recordings opportunistically, like an American dipper singing. Living in the foothills of the San Gabriel mountains, he does most of his birding around his home. But he has also done some extensive traveling. As a Planetary…

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Assembling a Recording System

Assembling a Recording System

By Macaulay Library Team 22 Apr 2017

Putting together all the pieces of an audio recording system can get complicated! This video goes over the key components and walks you through the basics of putting them all together so you will be ready to make recordings in the field. For more information on audio recording equipment, visit our recording equipment pages.

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Spring Recording Contest

Spring Recording Contest

By Macaulay Library Team 19 Apr 2017

This event has ended, but stay tuned for future contests. Congratulations to our winners for this time, Lynden Schofield, David Eberly, and Josh Fecteau! Now that spring is well upon us here in the Northern Hemisphere, bird song fills the air! Why let it go undocumented? As a way to encourage everyone out there to go out…

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The Macaulay Library in the Sonic Sea

The Macaulay Library in the Sonic Sea

By Macaulay Library Team 7 Apr 2017

Jacques Cousteau’s The Silent World (1956) seriously underestimated the sounds marine life make, but he may have captured a bygone time when the ocean was quieter than it is now. The Sonic Sea documents the cacophony humans have created in the ocean. With increasingly global commerce, ships with loud engines are crisscrossing oceans on super highways,…

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Macaulay Goes to the Movies

Macaulay Goes to the Movies

By Macaulay Library Team 6 Mar 2017

The bird songs recorded in the Macaulay Library can provide serious entertainment. Recordings from the collection are used for media productions, either for authentic representations of animal sounds, or mixed to create an entertaining atmosphere. You may have heard a strange, prehistoric cry from the mythical phoenix Fawkes in the Warner Brothers movie Harry Potter…

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“What is Missing?”

“What is Missing?”

By Macaulay Library Team 27 Feb 2017

  A Multimedia Exhibit by Artist Maya Lin World renowned artist Maya Lin created a one-of-a-kind multimedia experience to explore species extinction and our perception and memories of the past, present and future. What is Missing debuted in 2009, and is an on-going interactive project for visitors to explore videos and sounds, learn about species and habitat loss,…

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How To Record Audio – Parabola

How To Record Audio – Parabola

By Macaulay Library Team 5 Dec 2016

Recording the natural sounds around you is a great way to learn more about birds and help scientists study the natural world. The directionality and amplification of a parabolic microphone system will help you obtain a good quality recording in challenging sound environments. Find out more about how to use a parabolic microphone system in…

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How To Record Audio – Shotgun Microphone

How To Record Audio – Shotgun Microphone

By Macaulay Library Team 5 Dec 2016

Recording the natural sounds around you is a great way to learn more about birds and help scientists study the natural world. Using a directional shotgun microphone will help minimize the impact of unwanted sounds in challenging sound environments and render a clearer recording of the animal’s sound. Find out more about the advantages of…

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How To Record Audio – The Basics

How To Record Audio – The Basics

By Macaulay Library Team 5 Dec 2016

Recording wildlife is an invaluable way to contribute to our understanding of the natural world and to document observations. This video walks you through the basic steps you need to know for making a good wildlife recording. Though one might be tempted to think “everything has been recorded,” nothing could be further from the case.…

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