If you have a PDA running Palm OS, you might be interested in Greg Sepesi's creations. He's working on a Universal Field Guide that sits on a PDA. I have been using an earlier version for a couple of years and really like it. Getting it up and running can be a bit tricky, but Greg is quick to respond to questions. Once you do have it running, it includes photographs, audio, detailed Wikipedia articles on each species, identification characteristics, even comparative mDNA! It also links to a feature for recording your sightings which you can then compile into a file and upload easily to Cornell's ebird.org website. If you are interested his site is www.eduneer.com<http://www.eduneer.com>. If you're slightly tech savvy it only costs 16.95 to download the stuff yourself, or you can get a preloaded disc for about $40. Rob Foster From: birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Bennett, Mark Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 10:58 AM To: Bennett, Mark; hshankla@xxxxxxxxx; birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [birdky] Re: help identifying by song Opps. On the e-Field Guide, I should have mentioned Thayer's Mark Bennett 270.726.2436 [cid:image001.jpg@01C9934C.3AB94DF0] "We are all, by any practical defintion of the words, foolproof and incapable of error." HAL "No ... computer has ever made a mistake or distorted information". HAL "It can only be attributed to human error." HAL "This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeorpardize it." HAL From: birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Bennett, Mark Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 9:56 AM To: hshankla@xxxxxxxxx; birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [birdky] Re: help identifying by song Birding by Ear is really good for the anyone learning songs of common birds, especially passerines and other land birds. Another tool is the software bird guide, e-Field Guide. That Software has multiple images of birds, some good others not so good and a song/sound for each species that can be played or "looped" for repeat help without clicking. There is something about being able to see an image of the bird as you here its sound that helps me associate it a little better. This guide for example helped me to at least appreciate that the shorebirds "calls" can be useful in identification. I have not mastered that, but this spring if the water comes, who knows. I meant to reply to this post earlier. I regret my tardiness. Mark Bennett 270.726.2436 [cid:image001.jpg@01C9934C.3AB94DF0] "We are all, by any practical defintion of the words, foolproof and incapable of error." HAL "No ... computer has ever made a mistake or distorted information". HAL "It can only be attributed to human error." HAL "This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeorpardize it." HAL From: birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of s hankla Sent: Friday, February 20, 2009 9:47 AM To: birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [birdky] Re: help identifying by song I agree that it's a carolina wren. Someone also described the song as "cheeseburger, cheeseburger, cheeseburger." I recommend "Birding by Ear" by Walton and Lawson. It groups similar sounding bird songs and then compares and contrasts them. Scott --- On Thu, 2/19/09, Marsh, Scott <SMarsh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: From: Marsh, Scott <SMarsh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Subject: [birdky] Re: help identifying by song To: racehoss00@xxxxxxxxx, birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Date: Thursday, February 19, 2009, 8:42 AM Sounds like a Carolina Wren to me. This would be the more likely bird to be repeated singing at this time also. Scott lexington From: birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:birdky-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Nicole McClure Sent: Thursday, February 19, 2009 8:36 AM To: birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [birdky] help identifying by song Hello everyone, I am extremely new to the whole idea of birding and identifying birds visually, so identifying by song is even more of a challenge for me. I have heard a bird several times in the last week and it's driving me nuts trying to identify it. To newbie me, it sounds like he is singing, "hangover hangover hangover QUIT." Nine times out of 10 he does 3 "hangovers", sometimes only 2, sometimes 4...and it's always the three syllables. The end "quit" part is pretty shrill, and I believe it sounds like it ascends. Again, I apologize for not being better at describing, but I thought I would take a shot at asking you. Thanks! Nicole McClure Lexington, KY