Shazam for songbirds. Those three words alone might be enough to pique your interest in BirdNET. Especially if, like me, you have at least a passing interest in our feathered friends – and a curiosity to make sense of the chorus of tweets and calls all around you during a walk outside.
At its heart, this is properly geeky stuff. BirdNET is a citizen science project from Cornell University, designed to help people monitor and protect birds by identifying them at scale. Today, the AI-powered platform can recognize around 3,000 of the world’s most common species. Which means you can point your phone at just about any chirp, trill, or tweet and quickly find out who’s behind it.
Despite all the clever tech under the hood, the app couldn’t be easier to use. The moment it launches, you’ll see a scrolling visualization of the sounds around you. Birdsong (and other prominent noises) appear as flashes of bright color atop a blue background haze. Want to identify something? Drag across it and the recording pauses, allowing you to save the clip, or – if you’re online – send it for instant analysis. Most of the time, BirdNET will confidently tell you what you’ve just heard. When it’s less sure, it’ll suggest a couple of likely candidates instead.
When you’re not outside, there’s still plenty to explore. The app includes tools for checking which species are active in your area right now, along with a global map of recent recordings, charmingly dubbed ‘Bird Weather.’
Your own recordings are stored locally, and can be browsed by date or by species. Tap any entry to replay it and see exactly where it was captured. Select a bird name and you can dive into its entry on Wikipedia, the Macaulay Library and eBird, each of which provides a treasure trove of photos, videos, and sound clips to confirm your findings. Just remember: if you play audio from these sources outside, use headphones, or you may confuse wild birds and cause them distress.
In all, this is a fantastic project and a delightful app. In a world where technology is often accused of pulling us away from nature, BirdNET does the opposite, giving you the tools to understand, appreciate, and feel more connected to the world around you.
BirdNET is free on the App Store. You can also donate to the project online.