What Taxonomy Does Birda Use?

Here's a quick rundown of what AviList is, why we've made the switch, and what it means for your sightings.

AviList is a unified global bird checklist launched in 2025. Ornithologists from around the world came together to create a single, agreed-upon list of every bird species, resolving hundreds of disagreements between the previous major checklists.

Before AviList, the bird world had three widely used global lists: IOC, Clements (used by eBird), and BirdLife. These lists didn't always agree on species names, species counts, or how birds were grouped into families. Different platforms used different lists, which meant the same bird could have different names or even a different species status depending on where you looked.

AviList replaces all of that with one consistent standard.

Previously, Birda supported three taxonomies (IOC, Clements, and BirdLife) with complex mapping between them. This was difficult to maintain and could cause inconsistencies.

With AviList being adopted globally across birding platforms and conservation organisations, we're confident this is the right move for our community. It means simpler, more consistent data for everyone.
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