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How was my default 'Taxonomic Authority' chosen?
How was my default 'Taxonomic Authority' chosen?

When you create an account on Birda, your taxonomic authority will be automatically set based on the taxonomy commonly used in your country.

John White avatar
Written by John White
Updated over a week ago

When you create an account on Birda, your taxonomic authority will be automatically set based on the taxonomy commonly used in your country. This will ensure that the species and the common names you see in local bird books will match what you see in the Birda app.

If you don't think the taxonomic authority default is right for your country, please let us know by emailing us at support@birda.org. If you have a particular authority that you prefer to use, then you can change your taxonomy via the settings in the Birda app here: Profile > Settings > Taxonomic Authority.

If you want to use a different species language, take a look at our Changing Your ‘Species Language’ article for more details on how to change it.

To read more about taxonomy in Birda read this article: Bird Taxonomy Explained.

Country

Default Species Common Name Language

Default Taxonomic Authority

Afghanistan

English (IOC)

IOC

Åland Islands

Finnish

IOC

Albania

English (IOC)

IOC

Algeria

French

IOC

American Samoa

English (IOC)

IOC

Andorra

Catalan

IOC

Angola

Portuguese

IOC

Anguilla

English (IOC)

IOC

Antarctica

English (IOC)

IOC

Antigua and Barbuda

English (IOC)

IOC

Argentina

Spanish

IOC

Armenia

English (IOC)

IOC

Aruba

Dutch

IOC

Australia

English (IOC)

IOC

Austria

German

IOC

Azerbaijan

English (IOC)

IOC

Bahamas

English (IOC)

IOC

Bahrain

English (IOC)

IOC

Bangladesh

English (IOC)

IOC

Barbados

English (IOC)

IOC

Belarus

English (IOC)

IOC

Belgium

Dutch

IOC

Belize

English (IOC)

IOC

Benin

French

IOC

Bermuda

English (IOC)

IOC

Bhutan

English (IOC)

IOC

Bolivia, Plurinational State of

Spanish

IOC

Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba

Dutch

IOC

Bosnia and Herzegovina

English (IOC)

IOC

Botswana

English (South Africa)

IOC

Bouvet Island

Norwegian

IOC

Brazil

Portuguese

IOC

British Indian Ocean Territory

English (UK)

IOC

Brunei Darussalam

English (IOC)

IOC

Bulgaria

English (IOC)

IOC

Burkina Faso

French

IOC

Burundi

French

IOC

Cambodia

English (IOC)

IOC

Cameroon

English (IOC)

IOC

Canada

English (IOC)

IOC

Cape Verde

Portuguese

IOC

Cayman Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Central African Republic

French

IOC

Chad

French

IOC

Chile

Spanish

IOC

China

Chinese

IOC

Christmas Island

English (IOC)

IOC

Cocos (Keeling) Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Colombia

Spanish

IOC

Comoros

French

IOC

Congo

French

IOC

Congo, The Democratic Republic of the

French

IOC

Cook Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Costa Rica

Spanish

IOC

Côte d'Ivoire

French

IOC

Croatia

English (IOC)

IOC

Cuba

Spanish

IOC

Curaçao

Dutch

IOC

Cyprus

English (IOC)

IOC

Czech Republic

Czech

IOC

Denmark

Danish

IOC

Djibouti

French

IOC

Dominica

English (IOC)

IOC

Dominican Republic

Spanish

IOC

Ecuador

Spanish

IOC

Egypt

English (IOC)

IOC

El Salvador

Spanish

IOC

Equatorial Guinea

French

IOC

Eritrea

English (IOC)

IOC

Estonia

Estonian

IOC

Ethiopia

English (IOC)

IOC

Falkland Islands (Malvinas)

English (UK)

IOC

Faroe Islands

Danish

IOC

Fiji

English (IOC)

IOC

Finland

Finnish

IOC

France

French

IOC

French Guiana

French

IOC

French Polynesia

French

IOC

French Southern Territories

French

IOC

Gabon

French

IOC

Gambia

English (IOC)

IOC

Georgia

English (IOC)

IOC

Germany

German

IOC

Ghana

English (IOC)

IOC

Gibraltar

English (UK)

IOC

Greece

English (IOC)

IOC

Greenland

Danish

IOC

Grenada

English (IOC)

IOC

Guadeloupe

French

IOC

Guam

English (IOC)

IOC

Guatemala

Spanish

IOC

Guernsey

English (UK)

IOC

Guinea

French

IOC

Guinea-Bissau

Portuguese

IOC

Guyana

English (IOC)

IOC

Haiti

French

IOC

Heard Island and McDonald Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Holy See (Vatican City State)

Italian

IOC

Honduras

Spanish

IOC

Hong Kong

Chinese

IOC

Hungary

Hungarian

IOC

Iceland

Icelandic

IOC

India

English (IOC)

IOC

Indonesia

Indonesian

IOC

Iran, Islamic Republic of

English (IOC)

IOC

Iraq

English (IOC)

IOC

Ireland

English (IOC)

IOC

Isle of Man

English (UK)

IOC

Israel

English (IOC)

IOC

Italy

Italian

IOC

Jamaica

English (IOC)

IOC

Japan

Japanese

IOC

Jersey

English (UK)

IOC

Jordan

English (IOC)

IOC

Kazakhstan

Russian

IOC

Kenya

English (IOC)

IOC

Kiribati

English (IOC)

IOC

Korea, Democratic People's Republic of

English (IOC)

IOC

Korea, Republic of

English (IOC)

IOC

Kuwait

English (IOC)

IOC

Kyrgyzstan

Russian

IOC

Lao People's Democratic Republic

English (IOC)

IOC

Latvia

Latvian

IOC

Lebanon

English (IOC)

IOC

Lesotho

English (IOC)

IOC

Liberia

English (IOC)

IOC

Libya

English (IOC)

IOC

Liechtenstein

German

IOC

Lithuania

Lithuanian

IOC

Luxembourg

French

IOC

Macao

Chinese

IOC

Macedonia, The former Yugoslav Republic of

English (IOC)

IOC

Madagascar

French

IOC

Malawi

English (IOC)

IOC

Malaysia

English (IOC)

IOC

Maldives

English (IOC)

IOC

Mali

French

IOC

Malta

English (IOC)

IOC

Marshall Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Martinique

French

IOC

Mauritania

English (IOC)

IOC

Mauritius

English (IOC)

IOC

Mayotte

French

IOC

Mexico

Spanish

IOC

Micronesia, Federated States of

English (IOC)

IOC

Moldova, Republic of

English (IOC)

IOC

Monaco

French

IOC

Mongolia

English (IOC)

IOC

Montenegro

English (IOC)

IOC

Montserrat

English (IOC)

IOC

Morocco

French

IOC

Mozambique

Portuguese

IOC

Myanmar

English (IOC)

IOC

Namibia

English (IOC)

IOC

Nauru

English (IOC)

IOC

Nepal

English (IOC)

IOC

Netherlands

Dutch

IOC

New Caledonia

French

IOC

New Zealand

English (IOC)

IOC

Nicaragua

Spanish

IOC

Niger

French

IOC

Nigeria

English (IOC)

IOC

Niue

English (IOC)

IOC

Norfolk Island

English (IOC)

IOC

Northern Mariana Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Norway

Norwegian

IOC

Oman

English (IOC)

IOC

Pakistan

English (IOC)

IOC

Palau

English (IOC)

IOC

Palestine, State of

English (IOC)

IOC

Panama

Spanish

IOC

Papua New Guinea

English (IOC)

IOC

Paraguay

Spanish

IOC

Peru

Spanish

IOC

Philippines

English (IOC)

IOC

Pitcairn

English (IOC)

IOC

Poland

Polish

IOC

Portugal

Portuguese

IOC

Puerto Rico

Spanish

IOC

Qatar

English (IOC)

IOC

Réunion

French

IOC

Romania

Hungarian

IOC

Russian Federation

Russian

IOC

Rwanda

English (IOC)

IOC

Saint Barthélemy

English (IOC)

IOC

Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan Da Cunha

English (IOC)

IOC

Saint Kitts and Nevis

English (IOC)

IOC

Saint Lucia

English (IOC)

IOC

Saint Martin (French Part)

French

IOC

Saint Pierre and Miquelon

French

IOC

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

English (IOC)

IOC

Samoa

English (IOC)

IOC

San Marino

Italian

IOC

Sao Tome and Principe

Portuguese

IOC

Saudi Arabia

English (IOC)

IOC

Senegal

French

IOC

Serbia

English (IOC)

IOC

Seychelles

English (IOC)

IOC

Sierra Leone

English (IOC)

IOC

Singapore

English (IOC)

IOC

Sint Maarten (Dutch Part)

Dutch

IOC

Slovakia

Slovak

IOC

Slovenia

Slovenian

IOC

Solomon Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Somalia

English (IOC)

IOC

South Africa

English (South Africa)

IOC

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

South Sudan

English (IOC)

IOC

Spain

Spanish

IOC

Sri Lanka

English (IOC)

IOC

Sudan

English (IOC)

IOC

Suriname

Dutch

IOC

Svalbard and Jan Mayen

Norwegian

IOC

Swaziland

English (South Africa)

IOC

Sweden

Swedish

IOC

Switzerland

French

IOC

Syrian Arab Republic

English (IOC)

IOC

Taiwan, Province of China

Chinese

IOC

Tajikistan

English (IOC)

IOC

Tanzania, United Republic of

English (IOC)

IOC

Thailand

Thai

IOC

Timor-Leste

Portuguese

IOC

Togo

French

IOC

Tokelau

English (IOC)

IOC

Tonga

English (IOC)

IOC

Trinidad and Tobago

English (IOC)

IOC

Tunisia

French

IOC

Turkey

English (IOC)

IOC

Turkmenistan

Russian

IOC

Turks and Caicos Islands

English (IOC)

IOC

Tuvalu

English (IOC)

IOC

Uganda

English (IOC)

IOC

Ukraine

English (IOC)

IOC

United Arab Emirates

English (IOC)

IOC

United Kingdom

English (UK)

IOC

United States

English (US)

Clements

United States Minor Outlying Islands

English (US)

Clements

Uruguay

Spanish

IOC

Uzbekistan

Russian

IOC

Vanuatu

English (IOC)

IOC

Venezuela

Spanish

IOC

Viet Nam

English (IOC)

IOC

Virgin Islands, British

English (IOC)

IOC

Virgin Islands, U.S.

English (US)

Clements

Wallis and Futuna

French

IOC

Western Sahara

English (IOC)

IOC

Yemen

English (IOC)

IOC

Zambia

English (IOC)

IOC

Zimbabwe

English (South Africa)

IOC

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