How accurate is Birdsong's bird identifier?

It runs Google's Perch, a research-grade acoustic model covering nearly 15,000 species. When a call is ambiguous, we say so honestly and let you record a second clip to confirm, rather than guessing.

Is my recording stored?

No. Your audio is used to identify the bird in the moment and isn't saved to our servers. The birds you confirm are kept as cards in your own field journal; the recordings themselves are not.

Is the bird identifier free?

Yes — identify birds every day for free, no account required. Birdsong Pro ($3.99/mo or $39.99/yr) unlocks unlimited IDs, full field guides, your growing collection, and shareable Field Report cards.

Do I need an account or internet to identify a bird?

You'll need a connection to identify, since the AI runs in the cloud. No account is needed to try it — sign in with Google or email to save your field journal and sync it across devices.

Birdsong field guide

Akikiki

Oreomystis bairdi

The Akikiki is a small, critically endangered Hawaiian honeycreeper endemic to the high-elevation forests of Kauaʻi. Often called the Kauaʻi Creeper, it is specialized for gleaning invertebrates from the bark and moss of native trees.

What it sounds like

A simple, high-pitched 'whit' or 'zeet' call and a short, thin descending trill.

Reference call, compare with what you heard

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Rec. Patrick Blake · United StatesCC BY-NC-SA Xeno-canto

Field notes

It mimics the behavior of a nuthatch or creeper, using its bill to pry arthropods from crevices in the bark of 'ōhi'a lehua and koa trees.
The species is facing an imminent extinction crisis, with the wild population estimated to be fewer than 50 individuals as of 2023.
Juvenile Akikiki are characterized by prominent white 'spectacles' around their eyes that fade as they mature into their drab grey-and-white adult plumage.
Unlike many of its nectar-feeding relatives, the Akikiki is almost exclusively insectivorous and lacks a specialized tongue for drinking syrup.
Warming temperatures have allowed invasive mosquitoes to move higher into the Alakaʻi Plateau, exposing the population to lethal avian malaria.

Habitat

Montane wet forests and bogs at elevations above 1,100 meters.

Range

Endemic to the Alakaʻi Wilderness Preserve on the island of Kauaʻi, Hawaii.

Heard a Akikiki?

Open Birdsong, tap record, and identify the bird singing near you in seconds — then collect it in your field journal.

Identify a bird by its song