Merlin

Have you ever been sitting on your deck or walking in the woods and hear a bird singing its heart out and have no idea what kind of bird is serenading you?  It happens to me all the time.  Then I found the Merlin app and pure magic entered my life – abracadabra!

Merlin Bird ID is a nature app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology (Study of Birds so you know for a future Jeopardy game.) It is free and once you start using it, you will use it every day or at least I have. All you do is open the app and tap the green sound button. The app then begins to record the bird sounds that you are hearing and some you do not hear.  As different birds sings, they are identified, and a little picture appears of the bird. Each time that bird sings the bird’s name is highlighted in yellow. If you touch the bird picture, a small paragraph appears with info about the bird. You can also play the bird song of a particular bird and learn to identify the bird yourself. I didn’t realize that I was surrounded by birds. I don’t see them, but they are there.  So far this summer, the app has identified 20ish species. 

Cornell Lab has a wealth of information about birds at their website cornellbirds@cornell.edu.  They offer great classes such as The Wonderful World of Hummingbirds to art classes to everything you ever wanted to know about birding – all at reasonable fees.  They have bird cams to view baby birds hatch and grow up.  There are bird counts that you can participate in with people from all over the country and the world.  I am always finding one more bit of information on everything bird, science, and conservation on the site.

If you join the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, you will receive their eBulletin and their wonderful bi-annual magazine, Living Bird which has exquisite photographs and excellent articles on birds.  Supporter level is $39.00, and a family subscription is $60.00.  It provides a lot of bang for the buck. 

Nature gives us so many gifts, and the choir of our feather friends is so often taken for granted in our daily lives.  If you stop and take a moment, you can hear their greatest hits and feel the magic!  

Mary Ann