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Anyone use Merlin with location off? I've used and watched it be ultra common/vague but mostly fail in 6 countries. Is it simply using location and the merest hint of sound captured to calculate the suggested bird? Full disclosure, I haven't used it (since) for around a year, some things can change for the better. I also have a brand new iPhone since - better mics?

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Bird vocalizations are variable and with only so much space within which they can vary not all sounds can be identified even with close study of the spectrogram. Plus there are plenty of birds which mimic the calls of other birds very accurately. If you're taking away context clues from location it is not surprising that it would not work super well.

Yes pretty much but usually that is enough. It is usually accurate enough to distinguish Northern Flickers and Gilded Flickers which sound almost identical so good enough.

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