Sometimes they are colorful, sometimes inconspicuous, they flutter around or hide in the bushes. There are innumerable species of birds in nature - but many can only identify the most well-known species, such as sparrows, blackbirds and robins. Fortunately, there are now apps that can help you identify birds. Often all you have to do is answer a few questions or record the singing with your smartphone. In this article, you will learn about some free bird identification apps.
Attention: Only play recorded bird calls quietly in nature. Otherwise you run the risk of irritating or frightening birds or even disturbing their breeding behavior.
NABU Bird World app
The Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU) has developed its own bird app. In the NABU Vogelwelt you will find over 1,000 cropped photos of 308 bird species, as well as detailed species portraits. You can use it to identify birds by entering their characteristics (such as colors, beak shape and size). You can also report where you have observed which bird. The app also has distribution maps for every species of Europe. Bird world is free, you can add many functions via in-app purchase (for example, Germany distribution maps, bird calls and image recognition, or augmented reality birds)..
In the NABU Vogelwelt app, you can access a questionnaire using the filter symbol at the bottom left. There you enter the characteristics of a bird to identify it. From a hobby ornithologist: the bird app!
The bird app! was developed by the hobby ornithologist Dörte Krüger. In this free app you can use features to narrow down which bird you have observed. You specify the habitat, size, plumage color and shape of the bird. You can note your observations in the app and you can also compare similar birds directly with one another. The app also works offline and contains over 230 bird species native to Central Europe - each with a photo, detailed information and mostly also with an audio sample.
The user interface of Die Vogel App! is designed very clearly. This is how you get a result quickly. Identification also by photo: Merlin Bird ID
With the free Merlin Bird ID app , you can identify birds in two ways: Either answer five questions about the bird you are observing ("Bird ID"), or you can take a photo ("Photo ID"). Way one works well: you just have to choose where and when you spotted the bird, how big it was, what color (s) it was, and how it behaved. For path two you need very high quality photos up close, and you also have to load the additional function into the app. Depending on the location, you can download the right Vogel package from the menu, for example for Asia or North America. The app interface is partly in English because the app comes from Cornell University in New York. But you can change the language. You also have to enter your email address,to use the app..
At Merlin Bird ID you can get good results by asking five questions. To identify a bird by photo, you have to download an additional part of the app. Recognize bird calls with Birdnet
You can use the free Birdnet app to make sound recordings of birdsong. If you wish, you can cut these to size and then have them analyzed. An algorithm from the TU Chemnitz analyzes your recording and at the end spits out a result. The app imports further information from Wikipedia. Your recording is saved anonymously in order to improve the algorithm. For this app, the TU Chemnitz is working together with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, which also developed the Merlin Bird ID app.
The user interface of Birdnet is kept very simple and therefore easy to use. For the city: nature view
The federal government supports the Naturblick app , which was developed by the Berlin Natural History Museum. It is primarily intended for the urban environment, where it recognizes not only plants but also birds based on their song or other characteristics. You can find the species you have observed in your "field book" in the smartphone app. Nature view is free.
With the App Naturblick you can recognize bird calls of species that live in urban areas. Community help: iNaturalist
With the iNaturalist app , you can identify plants and insects as well as birds based on their song. Tap "Make an observation" and make a sound recording or select it from your library. You can also see which bird species other users have already discovered at your location or in the vicinity. This app is also free, it is a project of the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society. You can skip registration.
In the iNaturalist app, with the help of the community, you can recognize many bird species based on their song.