Sorry to hijack this thread, but this is as good an opportunity as any to point out to everybody that birds identified by Merlin Sound ID only should not be reported on eBird checklists or otherwise unless independently verified by the birder either visually or through a diagnostic vocalization *in the field*. Unfortunately, Merlin has a bad habit of misidentifying common birds, and there has been a spate of eBird checklists in Orange County lately with multitudes of birds reported with only the comments that they were identified by Merlin, many of which were rarities. Merlin does have its upsides, but I feel that there are too many people who consider its identifications to be the final word or the gospel or whatever you want to call it. They're not. I've run personal tests against it myself and it was pulling out random rarities that I know were not there. This is not to discourage people from using Merlin Sound ID, although I personally am not a fan due to the amount of misuse that I see, but all users of this app should always try to independently verify any bird reported on it for themselves. Scanning the list of birds at the end of a recording and adding them on to an eBird checklist, especially any birds that weren't actually detected in the field by the observer, should not be done and is not how the app was intended to be used.
Thank you, Drew, for taking the ID with a grain of salt. I was recently told by Sherry Meddick that Merlin Sound ID misidentifies Lazuli Buntings as Indigo Buntings nearly every day at her house in Silverado Canyon.

I will now step down from my soapbox...

   
    
     
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