Animal sounds: birds, insects, farm life and a purring cat

Thirteen recordings of creatures large and small make up this group. Night belongs to chirping crickets, croaking frogs and hooting owls; hot afternoons to cicadas and buzzing bees; mornings to singing birds and a crowing rooster. The farm corner has clucking chickens, a busy coop, bleating sheep and village dogs, while crying seagulls belong by the sea. And then there is a cat’s purring, a favourite for anyone who misses a pet curled up on their lap.

Animal sounds rarely carry a whole evening on their own, but they are what makes a scene feel alive. Birdsong gives a morning routine a gentle start, crickets turn a stuffy bedroom into a summer night, and the purr is soft company for reading or dozing on the sofa. The farmyard recordings also make a simple listening game for small children.

Pair each animal with a matching backdrop from the nature category: crickets with rain, seagulls with the ocean, birds with a forest walk. Keep the animal a little quieter than its backdrop, so the calls surface now and then instead of dominating the mix.