Mystery Sound. Recorded June 7, 2024, Buffalo Camp, American Prairie Preserve east of Zortman, Montana. © Lang Elliott. The most exciting section is near the end, from 3:35-4:00.

Note: The recording featured above is a “3D binaural soundscape”. Please wear headphones for a profound listening experience that will make you think you’re actually out there, immersed in the natural world!

I recorded this rather amazing vocalization made by an unknown animal (presumably a mammal) in the American Prairie Preserve in Montana. At dusk, I set my microphone near the edge of Second Creek, just south of the Buffalo Camp campground. This unusual sound event occurred not long after midnight.

This is really a rather outrageous vocalization. Especially notable is the way it rises in pitch initially, then gradually drops in pitch, sometimes with a drawn-out ending (there’s a good example at around 4min).

So … can anyone out there in the “Big Wide World” help me identify what animal is likely to have made these extraordinary sounds? These don’t feel like alarm calls, such as those given during an aggressive encounter. But, if not alarm or concern, then what might their purpose be? Some kind of mating call? It would be wise, of course, to nail down the species before conjecturing about function.

NEWS FLASH (one hour after posting):

I just figured it out! I did a google search for Porcupine sounds and came up with a video featuring one doing this exact same vocalization (see below).

So there’s no doubt about it: It’s a PORCUPINE! What an expressive vocalization! But what does it mean? One attractive hypothesis (suggested by Liz in the comments below), is that these are the sounds of a youngster (a “porcupette”) begging for food. This fits quite well with the Porcupine’s life cycle.

Porcupines breed in the autumn. Gestation lasts about 7 months, with young being born in late spring and being nursed for another 3-4 months. So, the timing would be right for this being a youngster still dependent on parents, yet quite able to amble along on its own.

Note that there are plenty of rustling sounds in the recording. It’s possible there were two moving through, with only the one calling … a porcupette following mama and repeatedly begging for food. I truly hope that is the right explanation because it makes for a really lovely story.

Naturally Yours,

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