# Song Sleuth Bird Song Analyzer — w/ David Sibley Bird Reference > Bird song identification and learning app with reference guide. (iPhone/iPad app by Wildlife Acoustics Inc..) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/song-sleuth-bird-song-analyzer/id968399159 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Wildlife Acoustics Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/605247214) - Category: Reference, Education - Price: Free - Rating: 3.26/5 from 316 App Store ratings · 52 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 4+ - Requires: iOS 12.0 · 371 MB - Languages: English - Released: 2017-02-15 - Data updated: 2026-06-10 - Monetization: free - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/song-sleuth-bird-song-analyzer/id968399159/reviews.md ## What is Song Sleuth Bird Song Analyzer? Song Sleuth turns your iPhone or iPad into a bird song analysis powerhouse covering the 200 most common vocalizing land birds in North America. Developed by Wildlife Acoustics, in collaboration with world-renowned bird expert and illustrator David Sibley, the app records bird songs, allows you to compare your songs to known species, has a reference to research and learn bird song, and even suggests matching species. Not just for beginners, the app also has features for intermediate birders who might need an identification hint or wish to study the included example recordings to take their ear birding to the next level. Advanced birders who don’t need any identification help will appreciate the ability to make and keep recordings for further study. PLEASE READ BEFORE DOWNLOADING Song Sleuth Auto-ID gets you started with suggested matches, but it is not perfect. Ultimately, it’s up to you to make the final identification. The app is intended to be an interactive and fun way to learn birding by ear. The more engaged you are in the process, the more we hope you will learn. Please read the following information on the app’s capabilities and limitations: -The app does not identify simple calls, chips and scolds, only bird songs and more distinct calls that are characteristic of that species. -The app does not recognize birds that are mimicking other birds such as the Thrashers and Mockingbird. -It is ideal to get a recording of a single bird singing. The app can be confused by noise or background birds but tools are provided to trim and filter your recordings to improve the results. - The app performs best outdoors with live birds, and not as well with pre-recorded sounds. Also, Song Sleuth automatically selects the birds that are likely to be in your area at the present time of year, so you need to be sure the birds you are playing are selected in the SPECIES LIST. SONG SLEUTH HELPS YOU IDENTIFY SINGING BIRDS Simply press the record button when you hear a bird singing and the app begins recording a few seconds back in time using the built-in microphone. Tap the record button again when the song is complete and Song Sleuth immediately shows you three most likely species. To assist you in determining the correct bird, you can listen to your recording and the example recordings of the likely matches as well as compare their spectrograms side-by-side. SAVE, VIEW, LISTEN TO AND SHARE RECORDINGS Recordings are saved in the RECORDING LIST where you can view the recording’s spectrogram, listen to the recording (and speed it up or slow down), add a text note, or view the GPS location. You can also trim the recording or filter the frequency range to remove extraneous sounds. Recordings can be shared with other Song Sleuth users via text messaging or email. INCLUDES DAVID SIBLEY BIRD REFERENCE INFORMATION The included David Sibley Bird Reference lets you learn more about each species. The reference includes Sibley illustrations of each bird, a description of each bird and its songs, zoomable range maps and a bar chart showing the likelihood of each bird’s presence in your area throughout the year, using Sibley’s extensive database of bird presence. COMPLETE COLLECTION OF EXAMPLE RECORDINGS Well-known nature recordist Lang Elliot and friends spent countless hours recording in the field to provide over 1,000 world-class recording examples of the included bird species. You can listen to a all the vocalizations made by each species or compare spectrograms to your own recordings or examples from other species. SEE YOUR RECORDING LOCATIONS Recording locations can be viewed on a satellite or road map or transferred to a computer and viewed in Google Earth. (Continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life.) ## Key features - Record bird songs - Compare songs to species - Reference guide for learning - Suggests matching species - Save and share recordings - Trim and filter recordings ## What do users think of Song Sleuth Bird Song Analyzer? Overall sentiment: mixed **Pros** - ✨ Auto-analyzer isolates bird calls - 👍 Intuitive and easy to use - 💡 Spectrograms visualize sound patterns - 🪄 Identifies non-bird sounds (frogs) - 📚 Extensive information provided - 🚀 Quick to open and use - 🎧 Great for recording bird songs - 🗺️ Geotags recordings - 🎶 Visualizations help memorize songs - 🔄 Records in a loop (includes previous seconds) - 🔊 Ability to reduce background noise - 🤩 Calls in birds when played back - 🎨 Beautifully laid out database - ✅ Works well for songs, not simple chirps **Cons** - 😞 ID accuracy is inconsistent - ❓ Suggestions are often incorrect - 🤷🏽‍♀️ Recent update made it unusable for some - 📉 Functionality issues after updates - 🪲 Buggy with changing settings - ❌ Does not work for simple chirps/vague sounds - ⚠️ Rarity of birds is inaccurate - 💸 Paid twice for iPad/iPhone - 🚫 FAQ not found error - 👎 Cropping tool not intuitive - 🤔 Predictive function confusing - 😵‍💫 Inconsistent screen opening **Commonly reported bugs** - Recent update makes app unusable - App wants user to select bird first - App not picking up loud, clear bird calls - Crashes when changing settings - FAQ not found error - Black search bar with black text - App requests rating upon opening, missing recordings - Cropping tool not intuitive - Predictive function confusing - Does not open consistently to the same screen **Most requested features** - Add hummingbirds to the catalog - Add purple Martins to the catalog - Organize favorite recordings into custom folders - Organize own recordings into groups or folders - Ability to add local recordings to species information pages - Option to play audio on Bluetooth speaker - Fix black search bar bug ## Recent user reviews (10 of 52) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/song-sleuth-bird-song-analyzer/id968399159/reviews.md ### 5/5 — Auto analyzer very helpful *2024-02-05* Appreciate the app and how it isolates the bird call for me, without needing to know how to use recording equipment. When you’re trying to ID the bird quickly, the last thing you need to try to figure out is how the app works, but this is intuitive and does it for you! Sad that it will not be continued, but thank you! ### 1/5 — Used to be excellent *2023-07-06* This used to be my go-to app to identify bird songs/calls. It was, for the most part, quite accurate. Apparently, a recent update makes it unusable in that it wants you to select the bird first. The whole point is to figure out what sounds I am hearing from which bird(s). If I can’t search for that sound, I won’t know which bird it is. Deleting the app. It doesn’t work the way it used to. Update: I was told the app glitch had been fixed. So I decided to give it another chance. We are sitting in our back porch listening g to all the birds. There is a mockingbird in one of our trees. We turned on sing sleuth to identify the other birds around. The mockingbird is loud and clear to use. The app is picking up every other bird but the mockingbird. So, we wonder why we should continue with this app at all, again. 🤷🏽‍♀️ ### 5/5 — Tech-No Geek *2023-01-15, version 2.3.2* One of the best programs I’ve ever used. Ok, I’m not getting 100% id or even close. I get that it’s a tool and I’m just learning. However, the functionality is superb, the operation flawless and the Help section has a clarity and thoroughness seldom seen anymore. But the best part- going Geek now - is ‘seeing’ sounds, any and all. Anything you can hear, or feel, you can also see. The spectrogram helps see the patterns, frequencies and overtones from any vibrating source, from running water to Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in Dm on a pipe organ (I was having issues with an extraneous note being played). Thanks for the tool guys! ### 5/5 — Works like magic! *2022-06-18, version 2.2.9* This app is terrific. It helped me automatically identify the “birds” that would sing for hours after dark in my backyard —and they turned out to be Grey Tree Frogs! Without this app, I would have never figured it out. ### 4/5 — Great app, but please… *2022-06-04, version 2.2.9* Love this app so much and use it all the time to identify birds! But please please please consider adding hummingbirds to the catalogue of options!! They def have a song and they sing in my yard all the time! ### 5/5 — Question about Birds not listed *2021-06-23, version 2.2.9* I just love this app!! But I have a question. I have purple Martin nesting near by and I noticed they are not listed on this app. How can they be added? ### 1/5 — No Sleuthing *2021-06-20, version 2.2.9* I was very excited to be able to learn to ID birds from their song but have been disappointed in the apps performance. The process is straightforward and clever but the birds it IDs based on recording their song are way off. I have tried it about a half dozen times and it hasn’t come close. It seems to just suggest the most common bird in the area (like a robin) even if the song recorded isn’t at all like a robin’s song. Too bad. ### 5/5 — Really powerful and useful *2021-06-15, version 2.2.9* Despite some odd UI this app is surprisingly capable , the spectrum analyzer tools are fantastic and I like that it gives you multiple suggestions in case you’re not really confident about your recordings. The audio sample Easter egg for recognizing humans won my heart. ### 1/5 — Great idea, but *2021-06-03, version 2.2.9* While I have been a fan Sibley’s products in print and electronic , this app simply does not produce accurate results in my experience. I’m pretty knowledgeable about birdsong and have tried it on easy ones such as spotted towhees and chickadees, but it rarely offers a correct i.d. Also the fact that it appears to isolate such a small fragment of the soundscape perplexes me. I’ve tried expanding the analysis frame to no avail. ### 2/5 — Just rarely correct *2021-05-18, version 2.2.9* I try and try to like this app, but it is so rarely accurate. I can point it right at a bird I know that is in song, and it was come back with chipmunk, squirrel, human, or some bird not common to the area. I keep it and try it because I hope it will work and improve. Once in awhile it does. I just think the technology is not there. I am surprised that it cannot ID more accurately from the sound map as many of these are cataloged. ## Frequently asked questions about Song Sleuth Bird Song Analyzer ### What does the Song Sleuth app do? Song Sleuth turns your device into a bird song analysis tool. It records bird songs, allows you to compare them to known species, and provides a reference guide to help you learn and identify birds by their vocalizations. It covers the 200 most common vocalizing land birds in North America. ### How does the bird song identification work? When you hear a bird singing, you press the record button. The app records a few seconds of the song and then presents the three most likely species. You can listen to your recording and example recordings of the suggested matches, and compare their spectrograms to aid in identification. ### What are the limitations of the app's identification? The app primarily identifies distinct bird songs and characteristic calls, not simple chips or scolds. It may also struggle with birds that mimic others, like mockingbirds. For best results, recordings should be of a single bird singing, with minimal background noise or other birds. ### Is the app free to use? Yes, the app is free to download and use. It offers a comprehensive set of features for identifying and learning about bird songs without any cost to the user. ### Who is the David Sibley Bird Reference feature for? The included David Sibley Bird Reference is for anyone who wants to learn more about each bird species. It features Sibley's illustrations, descriptions, and information to deepen your understanding of bird identification and behavior. ## Version history (last 4 releases) ### 2.5 — 2024-01-22 Unfortunately, Song Sleuth is being discontinued and this will be the last update. The app will continue to work on your device, but it won't appear in the store anymore. We have a new app for bioacoustics professionals called Song Meter Touch. You will find more details from within the app. ### 2.3.4 — 2023-05-12 +Fixes broken auto-identification. ### 2.3.3 — 2023-04-22 +Several crash fixes. ### 2.3.2 — 2022-11-28 +Minor bug fixes. ## Apps similar to Song Sleuth Bird Song Analyzer | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Picture Bird: Bird identifier](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/picture-bird-bird-identifier/id1474586978) | 4.7 (34,897) | Free | Reference | | [Bird Identifier, Bird Id](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/bird-identifier-bird-id/id1578998208) | 4.5 (1,846) | Free | Reference | | [eBird](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ebird/id988799279) | 3.8 (727) | Free | Reference | | [Sibley Birds 2nd Edition](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sibley-birds-2nd-edition/id1236011411) | 4.9 (2,446) | $19.99 | Reference | | [ChirpOMatic - BirdSong USA](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chirpomatic-birdsong-usa/id1233785633) | 4.6 (1,633) | Free | Reference | | [BirdsEye Bird Finding Guide](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/birdseye-bird-finding-guide/id324168850) | 4.5 (1,814) | Free | Reference | ## More apps by Wildlife Acoustics Inc. - [Echo Meter Touch Bat Detector](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/echo-meter-touch-bat-detector/id693958125) - [Song Meter Configurator](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/song-meter-configurator/id1459516313) - [Song Meter Touch](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/song-meter-touch/id1660422957) All apps by Wildlife Acoustics Inc.: https://appshunter.io/developer/605247214 --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*