People involved from the Start Mike Langman Mike is one of the UK’s best and most respected bird artists being chosen by the RSPB for the vast majority of their collection. His illustrations have been printed in the Organiser at ultra high resolution to best show off the intricate detail of his work. Throughout Mike’s career including a 9 year period with the RSPB he has been known for his attention to detail and the reality of his illustrations. On BirdVoice: “Having been Devon's County Bird Recorder in the past I know how difficult people find bird song recognition. BirdVoice is the best way that I know to learn British bird songs and calls, it is so instantaneous and easy to move from one call or song to another. It even helped a close birding friend of mine to learn the call of Lesser Whitethroat while we were still watching the bird and then compare it to Blackcap and Garden Warbler in seconds! Geoff Sample's commentary is brilliantly concise when I find it difficult to explain some of the more subtle differences in song or call.” - Mike Langman On Bird Art: “Birds are a fascinating subject to paint; the more I look at each species the more I learn about character or plumage tones. I relish sketching or painting all bird species but seabirds are probably my favourite, each species can change it's flight method depending on the weather conditions. To see a shearwater or skua heading into a strong wind and huge sea is an awe-inspiring sight and something I have tried to capture in my paintings many times. Even common garden bird's plumage can bring surprises - look closely at a Bullfinch, birdwatchers of many years have commented to me the first time they notice the rusty, purple top tertial feather and smokey grey and not white wingbar.” - Mike Langman Jean C. Roché Jean is one of, if not the worlds most respected bird sound recording artists. His immense collection and years of dedicated work in this field have been brought together in the BirdVoice range. Geoff Sample Geoff’s is the voice you hear throughout BirdVoice and is our resident guide. His vast expertise spans TV, Radio and a massive array of CD titles that he has produced through his company Wildsong. On BirdVoice: “The instant access is impressive – I think this is the real strength of birdvoice. We all struggle to retain a clear impression of a sound in our mind for any length of time, so the quick reference and immediate comparisons offered by the talking pen technology are a great help. No elaborate menus on a tiny LCD screen or endless finger-tapping to locate the right CD track.” - Geoff Sample On bird sound: “Getting to grips with bird sounds is not just about finding and identifying species. It helps you to tune in more fully to the world of birds and become more alert to their behaviour: you also become more aware of the subtleties of changing seasons and the different aspects of birds’ daily lives. Sound awareness generates an added intimacy with one’s environment and birdsong, maybe a curlew over the moors, a robin in a conifer wood in the evening or nightjars on a heath, has a way of bringing a landscape to life.” - Geoff Sample Paul Gladstone Paul is the founder of the BirdVoice project. It is the hours of him and his team who have crafted the technology to provide the instantaneous recognition throughout the range of BirdVoice guides. “Bringing this technology, a love of nature, and the passion of the people involved in this project together has been an incredible experience that I hope is brought to light through the BirdVoice range itself” - Paul Gladstone