Birds of Haiti iPhone App to Benefit Disaster Relief

There is a new iPhone app for the Birds of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and its sales will benefit continuing disaster relief efforts in Haiti.

100% of the app sales will go immediately to relief efforts in Haiti led by Partners in Health and Habitat for Humanity. The funds will directly support on-the-ground efforts to provide medical care and critical supplies to those affected by the earthquake, as well as to long term strategies to rebuild stronger and more sustainable communities in Haiti.

Partners in Health and Habitat for Humanity were chosen because they have been doing humanitarian work in Haiti for several decades.

The app features 58 birds that are endemic on the island of Hispaniola. Some birds, like Yellow Warbler, will look familiar to North American birders but occur on the island as endemic subspecies. One, Bicknell's Thrush, is not endemic, but the island is its primary winter range. Most are Caribbean specialties, such as the Hispaniolan Crossbill pictured at left. The app reproduces text and illustrations from a recently-published field guide, Birds of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. In addition, there are audio samples for the songs and calls of each species.

 This is not a complete field guide for Haiti and the Dominican Republic since the omits species that the island shares with the rest of the West Indies or that occur as migrants. However, it provides an interesting look at the birds that live there.