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

Purple Martin

Progne subis

The Purple Martin is the largest North American swallow, distinguished by its iridescent plumage and specialized colonial nesting habits. They are highly aerial insectivores that have developed a unique, centuries-old symbiotic relationship with humans.

What it sounds like

A series of rich, liquid chirps, throaty gurgles, and low-pitched croaks often described as musical and 'chubb' sounds.

Reference call, compare with what you heard

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Rec. Pat Goltz · United StatesCC BY-NC-SA Xeno-canto

Field notes

Eastern populations are almost entirely dependent on human-provided nesting structures like gourds and multi-room birdhouses.
They are long-distance migrants that travel thousands of miles to wintering grounds in the Amazon basin and surrounding South American regions.
Despite popular myths, mosquitoes make up a negligible portion of their diet; they prefer larger flying insects like dragonflies, wasps, and beetles.
They exhibit delayed plumage maturation, where one-year-old 'subadult' males look very similar to adult females.
During pre-migration, they gather in massive communal roosts that can contain hundreds of thousands of individuals and are detectable on weather radar.

Habitat

Open areas near water, including suburban parks, marshes, and meadows where nesting cavities are available.

Range

Breeds across temperate North America; winters primarily in the Amazon basin of South America.

Similar & commonly confused birds

Brown-chested MartinProgne tapera Caribbean MartinProgne dominicensis Cuban MartinProgne cryptoleuca Galapagos MartinProgne modesta Gray-breasted MartinProgne chalybea Peruvian MartinProgne murphyi Sinaloa MartinProgne sinaloae Southern MartinProgne elegans

Heard a Purple Martin?

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Identify a bird by its song