Lazy morning in Central Kenya - Sounds of the African savanna

When I think of the vast savannas of Central Kenya, there's a certain image and associated soundscape that comes to mind. On my 2021 expedition to East Africa I spent some time exploring and recording in Laikipia county. I was arriving immediately after torrential rains and that image I had in my mind went out the window quickly. I found lush green hills and incredibly busy soundscapes in a place I was expecting to be dusty, yellow and quiet. It was more reminiscent of a humid tropical forest than of Kenyan savannas.

The recording starts just before dawn. A lone nightjar is winding down for the night while some frogs croak and peep from a muddy pool nearby. Distant birds start to call while the insect chorus fades in and out. Occasionally you may hear very distant roosters or cattle from a Samburu village nearby. Soft wind moving through the vegetation underpins everything. It doesn't take long for the soundscape to develop into a beautiful cacophony of birdsong and wildlife calls at various distances all around.

This is one of the aspects that fascinates me the most. The layers of biophony that you can hear are clearly differentiated as they come from different directions, distances and angles. The further the sound source, the less high frequency content the sound carries. As it bounces around the local topography, complex interactions colour the sound even more. Very complicated from a physics standpoint, but easy to interpret on a subconscious level for the human auditory cortex.

Sit back and immerse yourself into this remote and lush savanna as night turns to day and wildlife goes about its daily activities. Recorded in Laikipia county, Kenya with Sony PCM A10 and Lom mikroUsi. Enjoying the videos I upload on here? Feel free to support me by:

#africa #kenya #naturesounds

[ToothpasteJuiceBox]

I don’t know what to say anymore George. All your savanna recordings have a special place in my heart. Keep making these please.

[ashstrakoop]

I am so glad I caught the premier for the soundscape! I use natural soundscapes 24 hours a day in my daily life and I have recently moved from Kenya to Canada. The shift in sound has been very significant for me, thus finding this recording feels like a blessing. Thank you for making it!

[Blue_Lugia]

These soundscapes takes me to another part of the world and help me forget the harsh reality I'm living in for a little while.
I think we all need to be escapists sometimes.

[bigtatos]

Wow, this is beautiful! I've never given though to the soundscape of this environment before, but it's wonderful to know what it's like.

[cobus]

Your videos, especially of the African bushveld sounds, are soothing and comforting. I listen to it when I go to bed and it you have no idea how relaxed I fall asleep. I just visited the bush ( Northern Kruger - South Africa) and I am transported there via your videos. Thanks

[pinkdragon]

Amazing as always!Do you plan on doing some rainforest recordings soon?

[TheHudsonValleyWanderer]

Man this is so awesome! I didn't realize how many sounds can be picked up with smaller recorders. I mainly do video and have been wanting to get better in field sounds from water falls because even a mic plugged into my cameras preamp sounds pretty bad for flowing water. Thanks for the inspiration.

[TheHudsonValleyWanderer]

Can you get similar results from a Zoom H1n Handy Recorder? or something somewhat in the same price range.

[miroslavapavlikovamala]

Would be posibble to load hear longer sound for sleeping?