Every time you go outside, you’re most likely greeted by the sounds of birds. Whether in the country or the city, these creatures find a way to make an impact on our lives with the songs and calls they make, and sometimes even hold personal importance. Many times, we can actually recognize a bird species just by hearing it, but what can you do if there’s a certain song or call that you don’t recognize? We frequently get asked about particular bird songs people are hearing and which species the voice belongs to. Luckily, there are some things you can do to help you answer the question of “What bird am I hearing?” Here are three things you can do to find out what bird song or call you are hearing.
Download an App
One of the most incredible technological advances in bird identification in the last decade has been the creation of apps that can identify birds by their song and call. Among these apps are bird net and Merlin Bird ID. Merlin is probably the most well-known and widely used app for this purpose. It’s free to download, and extremely easy to use. All you have to do is press a button and it records sounds and provides live identification suggestions. I say suggestions because it isn’t always right 100 percent of the time. However, it is quite impressive with what it does get right. For more information on how to use it, you can check out our video on the subject linked in the description below. Bird networks in a similar fashion and also has a web-based version where you can upload existing recordings and get identification suggestions that way. This means you could finally get an identification on a recording you’ve had on your phone for years. Both of these apps are fantastic options and have revolutionized the way people identify birds in the field. As I mentioned, just be careful when using these types of apps as they are not always 100 percent accurate and doing your due diligence in verifying the identification is a must.
Ask an Expert
Even with all of the advances in bird identification technology, sometimes the best thing to do is the tried-and-true tactic of asking someone knowledgeable. It doesn’t have to be an “expert” per se as there are plenty of seasoned birders out there that are happy to help answer questions. Reach out to any of your friends who are interested in birds, reach out to bird clubs and other organizations, or ask your questions on birding Facebook groups. Many different birding Facebook groups operate on a state-by-state basis, and those can be places to pose sound ID questions. Additionally, there are identification specific groups to post ID questions as well. However, it’s always a good idea to at least try and figure out what the bird song or call is on your own before posting in these groups since a lot of people have questions and posts can sometimes get lost in the feed.
Use Online Resources
While reaching out to someone else can definitely be a good way to figure out what bird song or call you’re hearing, there are also other resources that can allow you to find the answer. If you have a rough idea of what bird it could be, you can listen to songs and calls of almost every species that lives in the United States on the Cornell all about birds website. You can also check out our videos on common bird songs and calls that are based on region, habitat, or bird category. Many times, when we’re asked to identify a bird song it ends up being a common species that makes a distinctive noise such as a Northern Cardinal or a White-throated Sparrow so these videos can be of great help when searching for answers if you aren’t entirely sure where to start.
Bird songs add a lot of pleasant sound to the world and can indeed be nostalgic, but not being able to figure out exactly what specie you’re hearing or remembering can be frustrating. Fortunately, by using these three methods you can find out which bird is the culprit.