Familiar Nature Sounds Are More Soothing

A cross‑national team played short soundscapes to 195 German students and found that recordings of local temperate forests and familiar bird and tree sounds produced greater relaxation and feelings of awe than exotic tropical forest sounds, and that species diversity only helped when the species were familiar. This suggests the mental‑health value of nature soundscapes depends on cultural and experiential familiarity, not just raw biodiversity or exoticness. — If familiarity drives the mental‑health benefits of nature, planners and health programs should prioritize local soundscapes and culturally familiar biodiversity in urban design, therapeutic apps, and conservation messaging.