Paper short abstract:

Iceland allows for quiet places devoid of anthropogenic sounds. Besides desired quietude there is another, uncomfortable silence expressed by declining numbers of birds. Based on multispecies fieldwork, the contribution explores the sonic relationship between humans, birds and their fragile habitat.

Paper long abstract:

The fascination with Iceland's remoteness, which allows for quiet places devoid of anthropogenic sounds, can be juxtaposed with another, uncomfortable silence that can be particularly grasped in declining numbers of birds. Through multispecific fieldwork in bird habitats in Iceland, this article explores the auditory-sonic relationship between humans, birds and their shared fragile habitat. Based on personal field ornithological explorations and conversations with ornitho- and audiophilic people, the contributation traces eco-activist and artistic resonances triggered by this fragile northern lifeworld. It will focus on the role of sounding or silencing by referencing three bird species: the extinct Great Auk, the Arctic Terns and the Northern Fulmars. The multispecies eth(n)ographical field trip was based on an idea of a perceptual learning about lifeworlds (ethe) (van Dooren and Rose, 2016; Ingold 2017; Gibson 1955, 1963, 1986) and during which these three species became important "teachers".