The Can Opener App

Merlin falco columbarius

Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. ~Luke 24:44

It strikes me as fitting that the free app utilizing AI to identify birds by sound from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology is named Merlin. Apparently it is named after the small falcon not the mythical wizard, though given its seemingly magical ability to conjure species out of thin air the latter might be as appropriate as the former. Curiously, the etymology of the two names differs, the bird name coming from French roots, and the wizard from Celtic ones. This would be a linguistic parallel to what is called convergent evolution in nature, where different organism that are not related develop similar traits, typically as a result of the environmental niche they inhabit. Ironically, falcons are an ornithological example as they are more closely related to parrots than the hawks they resemble. Similarly, this tool designed to bring clarity has also opened a Pandora’s box of confusion.

Don’t get me wrong, this app is quite amazing. It relentlessly compares the data it receives to an extensive knowledge base and produced best suggestions. And there’s the rub, they are suggestions, often spot on, sometimes, well, let’s say they are a stretch. As a tool in the toolbox, it is exceptional. Merlin never loses focus or gets distracted like human birders on the chase. But Merlin also seems to share a human impatient eagerness to make an identification, to such a degree that I’ve been known to say, “Go home, Merlin, you’re drunk.” But when the symphony of birdsong is the can that needs opening, Merlin is definitely the top-of-the-line can opener you want.

My daily routine typically involves pausing on the landing on the stairs as I’m on my way to morning coffee. This puts me at eye level with the zone that birds seem to like in the trees in my yard. Yesterday, I heard what I thought was a Scarlet Tanager, I turned to Merlin for confirmation. When the app immediately agreed, I made an immediate change in routine, opened the back door and went outside. Unsurprisingly, immersed in 360 degrees of sights and sounds, other birds “appeared.” Merlin helped me note the singing of the invisible Blackpoll and Magnolia Warblers, though it was only indirectly responsible for my discovering a Chestnut-sided Warbler and a couple of Cape May Warblers in the distance flitting about in a neighbor’s tall pine tree.

I wonder what it was like for the disciples, who may have already thought themselves knowledgeable in scripture to have Jesus open it up for them. Was it like finally knowing what birds were singing those songs? Perhaps it was like discovering there were more songs singing than just the loudest, most persistent ones. Surely, it was at least an invitation to open the door to new possibilities and step out of their comfort zone and into new understandings.

Prayer: Singer of Songs both obvious and subtle, gives us ears to hear and open our hearts to the endless revelations. Amen.