*The primary take-home message from this post*: Recordings of SINGING birds
> provide the only truly definitive documentation. Not calling birds. Not
> whining birds. Singing birds, *and* singing birds singing *full* songs.
> That means that all of our phones’ audio recorders will be getting a
> workout come May. That also means that non-singing birds are essentially
> unidentifiable, and should be recorded as “Eastern/Western Warbling Vireo”
> (or some such entry).
>
> Agreed, but I might add a few points:
1. The Merlin Bird ID app, once it goes through mandatory training, will
probably get fairly good, but far from infallible, at separating the two
warbling[-]vireos. *However...* ;-)
2. It is good to understand a few quirks about the mind of Merlin. For
starters, Merlin "thinks out loud" as it chugs along listening to
three-second cuts of audio. A huge number of people don't know this. Merlin
is actually rather like a human in this regard. Picture, oh what the heck,
me and Tony listening to a "solitary vireo" in the Boulder foothills in
May. The bird gives a bunch of "classic" Plumbeous song elements, but then
the 14th sounds more like a Cassin's, and Tony says, "Interesting...that
was closer to Cassin's than to Plumbeous." Tony doesn't mean that the bird
suddenly turned into a Cassin's Vireo. He just means that it gave a single
song element that was Cassin's-like. Merlin does that, too! Imagine that
you're out and about, and you get Merlin output like this: Western,
Western, Western, Western, Western, Eastern, Western, Western, Eastern,
Western. That doesn't necessarily mean that both warbling[-]vireos are
present. Rather, it means that the app is "thinking"—and that,
Leukering-like, it's remarking on how the 6th and 9th songs sound
Eastern-like. Which isn't the same thing as saying it *is* an Eastern.
3. Don't ever, *ever,* say in your eBird notes, *without discussion,* that
an ID is supported by Merlin. If I were an eBird reviewer—oh, wait, I
actually am—I would summarily reject any problematic ID "supported" by the
one-word throwaway "Merlin." The only thing more egregious than that is the
one-word throwaway "photos." In the same way that you would, needless to
say, indicate "photos," *and then upload said photos* (I can't believe I
even have to say that), it is totally fine to say "Merlin," if, and only
if, you *also include the audio recording.* And that's the great thing
about Merlin. It makes recordings of everything you listen to! (Including
your grumblings about the propellerheads at Cornell, or your ex, or me and
Tony, or the person who raided the fridge and took the last slice of
Velveeta® you were so looking forward to). Just put the audio there and,
sooner or later, Eric DeFonso or Nathan Pieplow or someone will validate
the ID.
4. Make long recordings! Yes, there is a sort of "classic" Eastern and also
a somewhat "classic" Western, but there are many, many 'tweeners. (Same as
with Plumbeous and Cassin's vireos.) Fortunately, warbling[-]vireos during
the breeding season sing their heads off, and they sing loudly. Record for
at least a minute, upload the recording, and wait around for Eric and
Nathan & Co. to do their thing.
5. If possible, upload photos or video. Tony takes the cautious view that
photos alone are insufficient for making the call, and I think that's
largely correct. (And it's distinctly different from the multitudes of
self-proclaimed experts on social media suddenly and confidently ID'ing as
Eastern the birds in seemingly all photos of extraseasonal
warbling[-]vireos in the East.) That said, a good photo or video may well
support the ID as one singing warbling[-]vireo or another.
And, hey, look at it on the bright side: None of us has to worry about any
of this at all for at least four full months.
Ted Floyd
Lafayette, Boulder Co.
P. s. Warbling[-]vireos because the orthography is a total cluster. AOS has
them as Eastern and Western warbling-vireos, whereas eBird has them as
Eastern and Western warbling vireos. The four-letter code overlords follow
AOS, not eBird, in these matters, so the birds are officially EAWV and
WEWV, respectively. Here's an idea for a New Year's resolution: Just don't
use four-letter codes.
P. p. s. Remember MYWA, the butterbutt, the Myrtle Warbler. Okay, but what
about Mangrove Yellow Warbler? ;-)
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