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

Sargasso Shearwater

Puffinus lherminieri

A small, compact tropical shearwater characterized by its dark upperparts, white underparts, and rapid, fluttering flight style low over the waves.

What it sounds like

A rhythmic, high-pitched series of wheezing cackles and nasal whistles, often described as 'kew-kew-kew-errr'.

Reference call, compare with what you heard

0:00 / 1:33

Rec. Robson Silva e Silva · BrazilCC BY-NC-SA Xeno-canto

Field notes

It is a pursuit-diver that uses its wings to 'fly' underwater while hunting small fish and squid.
Unlike most shearwaters, this species is largely non-migratory and stays in tropical waters year-round.
Adults are strictly nocturnal at breeding colonies to avoid predation by larger gulls and hawks.
The species is highly sensitive to light pollution, which can disorient fledglings as they leave their burrows.
Taxonomists frequently debate its classification, as it belongs to a complex of several closely related island-dwelling forms.

Habitat

Warm pelagic waters and offshore tropical islands or cays with rocky crevices or soft soil for burrowing.

Range

Tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean.

Similar & commonly confused birds

Balearic ShearwaterPuffinus mauretanicus Bannerman's ShearwaterPuffinus bannermani Barolo ShearwaterPuffinus baroli Black-vented ShearwaterPuffinus opisthomelas Boyd's ShearwaterPuffinus boydi Bryan's ShearwaterPuffinus bryani Christmas ShearwaterPuffinus nativitatis Fluttering ShearwaterPuffinus gavia

Heard a Sargasso Shearwater?

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