Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab

11/10/2022

Today marks a new milestone in avian research and conservation with the release of the eBird Trends maps. eBird Trends maps provide an unprecedented fine-scale view of where 586 bird species are increasing or decreasing. Identifying such trends is the crucial first step to begin identifying ways to reverse declines like the ones identified by the 2022 U.S. State of the Birds report and the State of the World's Birds. https://bit.ly/3Tof616

A new generation of eBird Trends maps, released in November 2022, provides an unprecedented fine-scale view of where bird species are increasing or decreasing. Identifying such trends is the crucial first step to begin identifying ways to reverse pervasive declines like the ones identified by the 20...

10/04/2022

Longtime Macaulay Library contributor David L. Ross, Jr. recently sat down with ML staff to talk about his passion for nature and sound recording. Learn more about Dave’s spark bird, favorite recordings, balancing act as a father and sound recordist, and efforts to create the “Voices of the Cloud Forest” audio production in our latest Recordist of Note:

In 1992, David L. Ross, Jr. and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology released a groundbreaking audio production: Voices of the Cloud Forest, a stereo audio journey through a day in Costa Rica’s Monteverde

09/10/2022

Watching birds at your feeder provides hours of entertainment. And every once in a while, a Cooper’s Hawk or a Sharp-shinned Hawk might fly in and stir things up. New research using FeederWatch data set out to learn more about these similar bird-eating raptors. Sharp-Shinned and Cooper's Hawks are choosing different foods based on size, which may allow them to coexist. Read more about the study at:

By Kathi Borgmann Watching chickadees and finches jostle at your feeder provides countless hours of entertainment. And every once in a while, a Cooper’s Hawk or a Sharp-shinned Hawk might fly in and stir things up. These two bird-eating raptors co-occur throughout much of North America, but given ...

08/31/2022

Have you been recording bird sounds recently? Just as you might crop your photo before you add it to your eBird checklist, you'll also want to trim your recording to get rid of any handling noise at the beginning or end of your recording. Learn more about best practices at our help center https://bit.ly/3aAY8Mw

[Image description: a graphic of a sound recording indicating what parts to trim.]

08/21/2022

Recordings in the Macaulay Library power birding tools like Merlin Bird ID and Merlin's new Sound ID feature, plus science, conservation, and the arts. Add your recordings to your eBird checklist to be part of science and the future of birding tools.
[image description: a singing male Red-winged Blackbird perched on a post.]

08/16/2022

New research finds that a bird's response to alarm calls is innate. Pishing, the noise birders often make to bring birds out into the open, may also work in similar ways. Learn more at:
https://bit.ly/3JV1Hdw
Laboratorio de Ecología Urbana y Comunicación Animal
[image description: Black-capped Chickadee perched on a branch and calling.]

Our environment is filled with sounds from bird songs to sirens, from music to barking dogs. As humans we’ve mostly learned what each sound means and we respond appropriately—we may seek shelter w

08/15/2022

No matter where you are in your sound recording journey, the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology wants to support you with key information on How to Record Bird Sounds. Learn more about our new, online course!

A friendly guide to finding birds, fieldcraft, gear, sound editing, and the joy of recording bird sounds.

08/12/2022

Merlin’s new Sound ID feature is magical, but it’s important to compare each sound identification suggestion in Merlin against the example recordings and range maps to make sure the ID is a good fit. If possible, try to see the bird making the sound!

[Image description: a singing Worm-eating Warbler perched on a branch and a screenshot of Merlin Bird ID's Sound ID feature in action.]

08/08/2022

Merlin Bird ID can keep track of the birds you see. Tap the menu button to sign in and start your life list. If you’re an eBird user, Merlin also syncs with eBird and can quickly tell you how many bird species you’ve seen.
[Image Description: screenshots of the Merlin Bird ID app, with circles around the menu button and the life list button.]

08/02/2022

eBird’s Manage Media tool enables you to rapidly add comments, behaviors, additional species, and more to your photos and sounds. Tags make your media easier to find in the Macaulay Library and enhance its research value. https://bit.ly/3t7qYKz
[Image description: a White-tailed Shrike standing on the ground eating an insect.]

07/23/2022

Audio recordings inform science but also inspire art and a new way to connect with our world. Artist Millicent Young created a multi-media installation about extinction and loss titled "Remains" that features the song of the now extinct Kauai O'o from the Macaulay Library.

This is "Millicent Young - Remains v3" by myoung on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

07/15/2022

New research finds that Ruby-crowned Kinglets with small but mighty voices have different song dialects suggesting that song is a learned behavior. Mapping dialects can help better understand migratory connectivity 🌎. This research was made possible thanks to many Macaulay Library contributors.

Song dialects of the Ruby-crowned Kinglet June 20, 2022June 20, 2022 Ed Pandolfino Many bird species, like humans, have distinct regional dialects. A New Yorker may refer to a midday meal as “lunch”, but in the south that meal is “dinner”. Likewise, the song of a Common Yellowthroat in the e...