DiscoverThe Seán Chorus
The Seán Chorus

The Seán Chorus

Author: HeadStuff Podcasts

Subscribed: 563Played: 1,801
Share

Description

Hosted by Cork-born ornithologist and wildlife sound recordist Seán Ronayne, The Seán Chorus brings the beauty of the natural world directly to your ears.
Following a five-year journey to record all of Ireland's birds, Seán has built an extraordinary archive of over 40,000 recordings. From farting seals to vibrating leafhoppers, and of course plenty of birdsong, if it's natural and makes a sound, Seán has it.
Now, with his new podcast, Seán has found the perfect way to bring these sounds to life and tell the personal stories and adventures behind them.
A sanctuary of calm from the madness of daily life, the show blends unscripted field audio, studio reflections, and conversations with nature lovers.


This show is part of HeadStuff Podcasts, you can support the show, access bonus content, and ad-free listening by signing up to HeadStuff+.

11 Episodes
Reverse
Can Dimoni

Can Dimoni

2026-10-2951:36

Take another journey through the agricultural fields in Barcelona accompanied with sounds from four-foot ladder snakes, praying mantis and much more. Along the way, Seán reflects on the stark contrast between Barcelona's urban sprawl and the wildlife that clings on beside it, the challenges of ADHD and admin, why even mosquitoes and feral pigeons deserve their place, and the thrill of intercepting birds on their journey to Africa. This is a HeadStuff podcast produced by Hilary Barry and Dan Wilcox. Original artwork is by Matt Mahon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Rare Thrills

Rare Thrills

2026-10-2201:00:00

Seán returns with a late October walkabout at Knockadoon, East Cork, in search of rare autumn migrants. Take an audible adventure through this peninsula and discover why it's a magnet for visiting birds, encounters redshanks, pipits, greenfinches, and fox moth caterpillars along the shore, and shares remarkable news of recording two red-throated pipits a species that turns up in Ireland roughly once every two years, just 12 days apart at the same site! This is a HeadStuff podcast produced by Hilary Barry and Dan Wilcox. Original artwork is by Matt Mahon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A Moonlit Listen

A Moonlit Listen

2026-10-1544:18

In this episode, Seán records through the night at Ballynamona Strand in East Cork, capturing golden plover wing beats overhead, a bat buzzing past his microphone, and the underwater sounds of fish and prawns beneath Ballycotton Pier.Interwoven with field recordings of bar-tailed godwits, curlew, oystercatchers, and a lesser yellowlegs, Seán reflects on autumn migration, the devastating decline of curlew in Ireland, the impact of off-lead dogs on wading birds, and a spooky encounter at a nighttime rewilding site!This is a HeadStuff podcast produced by Hilary Barry and Dan Wilcox. Original artwork is by Matt Mahon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
From the Heart

From the Heart

2026-10-0850:34

In this episode, Seán recalls his beginnings and how a Catalan woman walked into a Cork city bar and changed the trajectory of his life forever.Interwoven with more sound recordings, Seán details his move to Catalonia, including encounters with roe deer, flamingos recorded over Barcelona's skyscrapers, screaming neighbours and amateur trumpetersThis is a HeadStuff podcast produced by Hilary Barry and Dan Wilcox. Original artwork is by Matt Mahon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Sounds of Autumn

The Sounds of Autumn

2026-10-0146:48

This episode is a celebration of autumn bird migration — the great movements of birds that arrive on Irish shores each year from Scandinavia, Siberia, and beyond. With field recordings of yellow-browed warblers, redwings, fieldfares, ring ouzels, and mixed flocks of chaffinches, goldfinches, bramblings, redpolls and siskins visibly migrating over East Cork. Plus the nasal calls of bramblings arriving off the sea in West Cork, the high-pitched trill of waxwings, the roding displays of woodcock, short-eared owls calling after their sea crossing, and the distinctive chuwit of a spotted redshank in Ballycotton. As mentioned in the episode, please check out the "YouTube of Birdsong" website https://xeno-canto.org/ This is a HeadStuff podcast produced by Hilary Barry and Dan Wilcox. Original artwork is by Matt Mahon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
loading
Comments