eBird by Cornell Lab

Cornell Lab of Ornithology

About this app

eBird Mobile makes it easy to record the birds you see in the field, and seamlessly link these observations with eBird--a global online database of bird records used by hundreds of thousands of birders around the world. This free resource makes it easy to keep track of what you see, while making your data openly available for scientific research, education, and conservation. eBird Mobile is the only app that passes information directly from the Android device to your eBird account on the web.

Features

- Track your bird sightings from anywhere in the world.
- View your Life, Year, and Month lists for any region or nearby location.
- Full global taxonomy based on The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World.
- Common names available in 41 languages and regional versions (e.g., Portuguese names in Brazil or in Portugal).
- Checklists customized for your location and time of year, showing most likely species based on eBird data.
- Real-time feedback on whether a sighting is rare in the area.
- Quick entry tools to make note-taking faster than ever before.
- GPS enabled location plotting and tracking options.
- Map tools that show you hundreds of thousands of eBird Hotspots.
- Full offline functionality, enabling use in places with limited or no Internet connection.
- Entire app translated to Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, German, Spanish, Finnish, French, Hebrew, Croatian, Khmer, Norwegian, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Serbian, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Chinese (Simplified), and Chinese (Traditional).

Ratings and reviews

It's a nice idea, but it's too complicated for a simple life list. I just want something that let's me search a database by bird and fill in the rest manually. I don't need timers and checklists. Also, it should just be part of the Merlin app, especially since the bird packs have to be downloaded twice (and eBird doesn't have an option for all of North America, just each state).

After taking the "eBird Essentials" course, I found the app easy to use in the field. It is extremely helpful when there are more than a few birds, or when you will be moving around the site for more than a few minutes, because it offers quick data entry and automatic tracking of time and distance. Initially I encountered an error about downloading a bird list when trying to choose a location but this later disappeared. Recommend that developer removes the bird list download at this point.

This was working perfectly from October 2023 until today February 2024. I got a new phone but my app data was backed up. However, when I logged in, it no longer lets me save birds or add a new location. It only allows me to choose from "nearby" locations that are over 1 mile, or an old one. I absolutely loved this app, I don't know what I'll use to bird watch now :(

What's new

Minor bug fixes and performance enhancements