Big Thicket's Soundscape

A location's soundscape may have a positive or negative impact on a person's experience in a national park. Here at Big Thicket National Preserve, we want to reduce any potential negative impacts. We're doing that by listing the major sounds you could hear while visiting our park.

Please note: The preserve is spread out among several counties and interspersed among private, city, and state property. The list below is common within many of our units, but there may be other noises that affect the soundscape of a particular unit over another.

 

Hunting is one activity that makes this national park site a preserve.

NPS Photo: I. Kessler

Hunter Gunshots

Bang! Pop! These sharp, sudden sounds are common during hunting season from September through February. (Note: There is no hunting allowed in the Turkey Creek Unit where are more popular trails are located, however you may still hear the sound of shots in the distance.)

 

Bug spray is a must on the trails during the summer.

NPS Photo: S. Sharaga

Mosquitoes

Buzz! Usually followed by several swats and a slap. These mosquitoes are found along the trails in warmer weather (typically April - August).

 

Fast Moving Cars

Woosh! Be careful near highways. It is especially loud near the visitor center.

 

The loud, ratattatt sound of a Red-headed woodpecker resonates throughout the forest.

NPS Photo: N. Pattee

Woodpeckers

Tap, tap, tap as the woodpecker hammers its beak into tree bark.

 

The short, raspy sound of a Golf Coast toad can be heard most evenings near our water sources.

NPS Photo: S. Sharaga

Frogs and Toads

"Yep, yep, yep" and "baaa" are heard outside the visitor center in the warm months after a rain.

 

Most grasshoppers create their songs by rubbing their back legs against their wings.

NPS Photo

Crickets and Grasshoppers

Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp.....They never stop in the Big Thicket.

 

Male cicadas have a hollow abdomen which creates various sounds as the sound waves vibrate through 300-400 times per second.

NPS Photo: A. Halbrook

Cicadas

Loud, steady, electric whistle vibrates through the woods. The shrill of the cicada can create various high-pitched noises, such as clicking and buzzing. This is an ever-present sound while hiking on our trails in the summer.

 

The Cardinal's whistle is a common sound in the morning hours.

NPS Photo: S. Sharaga

Bird Calls

About 300 species of birds pass through, feed, or nest in the Big Thicket. Each species has a unique call. If you're here at night, the chattering squawks and squeaks of bats can be heard too!

 

It can be hard to hike quietly on this section of the Kirby Nature Trail.

NPS Photo: T. Gray

Dried Leaves on the Ground

Crunch, crunch, crunch as you walk on the dried leaves along the trails.

 

A baygall is a swamp habitat with acidic water, low oxygen, and almost no water flow.

NPS Photo

Water

Silence! Our sloughs and bayous are very low flow. Therefore, you won't hear many babbling brooks in the Big Thicket.