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

Sabine's Gull

Xema sabini

A small, distinctive gull characterized by a striking tri-colored wing pattern and a deeply forked tail, spending most of its life at sea. It is the sole member of its genus and exhibits unique tern-like foraging behaviors.

What it sounds like

A high-pitched, harsh, and grating 'tshick' or 'kyirrr' that sounds more like a tern than a typical gull.

Reference call, compare with what you heard

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Rec. Stein Ø. Nilsen · NorwayCC BY-NC-SA Xeno-canto

Field notes

It is the only species in the genus Xema and possesses a structural rarity among gulls: a deeply forked tail.
The species displays a unique wing pattern in flight consisting of three distinct triangles of black, white, and slate-gray.
During the breeding season, adults develop a dark slate-gray hood bordered by a thin, black collar.
It is a long-distance, trans-equatorial migrant that winters primarily in nutrient-rich oceanic upwelling zones off the coasts of South America and Africa.
Unlike most gulls, it often forages by picking insects from the tundra or spinning in circles on the water like a phalarope to stir up prey.

Habitat

Arctic tundra during the breeding season; pelagic waters and continental shelf breaks during the winter.

Range

Circumpolar Arctic breeding range; winters in the South Pacific (Humboldt Current) and South Atlantic (Benguela Current).

Heard a Sabine's Gull?

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