I used to know what a Cardinal’s call sounded like. Now I’m not so sure anymore. We see and hear so many different birds at the property that it’s all beginning to run together and blur in my mind.
In addition to Cardinals, Robins, Sparrows, and Mourning Doves, we’re seeing so many birds we’re not used to - Orchard Orioles, House Wrens, Long-Eared Owls, and Eastern Phoebes. In the early hours of the morning when I naturally wake up, I hear a symphony of bird calls that I cannot identify; I’ve even heard bird calls that sound like a cat (and as it turns out, there is such a thing as a Catbird).
Ed brought his bird identification book to the property and we have been using that to try and identify unknown birds that we are seeing. Turns out, this is a little more difficult than we would have imagined. Birds, it seems, do not stay put while you try and look them up in a book.
Recently, Ed found a free bird identification app (the Merlin Bird ID App) for his phone. We put this to the test last weekend when we saw an unfamiliar bird. The app asks five questions: Your location (actually the location of the bird - state and city), the date you saw the bird, the position of the bird (perching, on the ground, etc.), the main colors of the bird, and the size of the bird. It them comes back with a ranked listing of birds and their associated photos. It worked like a charm! We identified an Eastern Flycatcher! It even gives you the option to hear the birds’ call. We live in amazing times!
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