Capturing the symphony of the Cretan wilderness

You find yourself in nature, surrounded by a forest, on a slope, by a stream. As you close your eyes and listen to the sounds around you, it takes several minutes to truly appreciate the richness of the environment. As your mind begins to calm, it starts to wander and explore, distinguishing the various sounds it hears. It's a wonderful sensation - a deep connection with the surroundings and an abundance of auditory information. A similar experience, but on a much larger scale, has been unfolding over the past two to three years through a groundbreaking research project in Greece.

Several terabytes of audio recordings have already captured the sounds of the Cretan White Mountains (Lefka Ori) and Samaria Gorge. These recordings encompass a variety of "voices": the chirping of birds, the buzzing of bees and other insects, the chorus of cicadas, bleating sheep, the rustling of...