This is a more traditional bird sound.

Western meadowlark.

[Western meadowlark] I recorded singing rock wren, and I was really excited because the bird was just broadcasting right to me not too far away, great signal.

[Western meadowlark] I recorded it for 18 minutes, but I remember standing there recording as it was broadcasting to me, just thinking Im capturing something just so elemental and so much part of Earth history in a way.

[Western meadowlark] Birds have been on Earth for 100 million years or more, but it's just this moment that I'm the only human who's experiencing it.

It felt very sacred in a way.

[Lark bunting] And I feel that way a lot when I capture these sounds.

[Lark bunting] I think it's a good estimate that I probably have samples of at least 4000 species.

I've got Japan on here.

There's some New Zealand.

We'll do the Rocky Mountains.

So if I hit shuffle.

[car] Northern pintail.

[Northern pintail] A friend suggested that I go to a sound recording workshop.

It was like a summer camp for birders.

And it just got me so enthusiastic about recording.

[Western grebe] In 2011, I spent the entire calendar year working and traveling in four different countries: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil.

Ive been able to survey in Southeastern Colorado on at least three different seasons, I think four different seasons.

[Bird chipping] On the Eastern Plains especially, with climate change, there's been long periods of drought.

[Birds chipping] And I did a survey, this was a year where it had been very dry... and it was quiet.

[footsteps] When it's very quiet, you have this feeling of a little overwhelm.

[footsteps] It definitely affects me.

[airplane] In the United States, and certainly out in the western U.S., birds have been in decline.

It's hard to see that year over year in a given locality, but when you assess all the data, it does seem to be coming through fairly consistently.

But that's why I do it, because this might be helpful in increasing our understanding of birds and their behaviors, and how they're doing.

You can still sense that there's something of great import.

And that seems to be the draw for me.

I've been doing this for almost three decades now, and my interest has never flagged.

I just keep getting more and more drawn into birds and bird life, and I've had my own doubts about Why am I here?

Why am I doing all this stuff?

But the birds inspire me, and I think, “Well, gosh, they have a pretty tough life, tougher than mine, and they keep doing what they need to do.” I learned from them how to be, a steadfast person, in a way.

And I, I admire that greatly in them.

[Geese honking]