Description

Recording insects & swarms sound effects in Bali, Indonesia

At our home near the jungle in Bali, we heard many types of insects. After sunset one day, these little creators came out of the darkness and flew to the closest light source. This swarm included hundreds of these large insects and it lasted for a few hours.

The next morning the aftermath was quite visible. Luckily, some hungry geckos, birds, ants, and spiders came by to pick up the mess of hundreds of deceased insects.

I also recorded the ant highway on our terrace. The “nature police”, (what we call ants in Germany) came together and spent hours cleaning up. The carnage was incredible with the wings covering the floor. I felt terrible but it seemed like the insects didn’t know how to fly and nature was taking its course.

The equipment used to record the insects & swarms sound effects

With my Zoom H6, a pair of my new Micro USI Pro by LOM I recording the swarm in action. I also tried one recording with the Limpet mics contact microphones and mixed together with one of the regular sounds.

I put the Zoom direct under the light. The insects on the ground hang out on the microphone and walked on top of the windjammer. This alone created an amazing sound, but after I attached the microphones to the light source, I could record the wings and the vibration of the insects on the microphones too!

Other sounds in the recordings are cicadas, our night frog would come out every evening and sit on the same plant and croak. I think he was briefing me on his daily activities! We have dogs and several chickens in the background as well!

Review & download the metadata here!