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

Burchell's Sandgrouse

Pterocles burchelli

A small, attractively speckled ground bird of southern Africa's arid regions, best known for its intricate camouflage and specialized water-carrying behavior.

What it sounds like

A soft, liquid, and rhythmic 'choo-choo' or 'chwi-chwi-chwi' frequently uttered during flight to water.

Reference call, compare with what you heard

0:00 / --:--

Rec. Dries Van de Loock · ZimbabweCC BY-NC-ND Xeno-canto

Field notes

The male's belly feathers are specially adapted to absorb and hold water like a sponge to transport it to chicks over long distances.
Their cinnamon-brown plumage is covered in small white spots, providing exceptional camouflage against the sandy Kalahari soils.
They are highly gregarious and gather in large flocks of hundreds at waterholes, typically arriving several hours after sunrise.
Their diet is almost exclusively granivorous, consisting of small seeds from grasses and ephemeral plants found in arid environments.
Unlike many other sandgrouse, this species is largely sedentary, though it may move locally in response to rainfall and food availability.

Habitat

Arid to semi-arid savannas, sandy grasslands, and open woodland with scattered shrubs.

Range

Southern Africa, primarily the Kalahari Basin encompassing parts of Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.

Similar & commonly confused birds

Black-bellied SandgrousePterocles orientalis Black-faced SandgrousePterocles decoratus Chestnut-bellied SandgrousePterocles exustus Crowned SandgrousePterocles coronatus Double-banded SandgrousePterocles bicinctus Four-banded SandgrousePterocles quadricinctus Lichtenstein's SandgrousePterocles lichtensteinii Madagascar SandgrousePterocles personatus

Heard a Burchell's Sandgrouse?

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