Media Releases and Opportunities

Whether you're a backyard flock keeper, a farmer, a student of animal science or simply curious about animal communications, a new app is cracking open the door to complex chicken chatter and interpreting the meaning of their clucks, squawks and trills.

Researchers at Dalhousie University have developed a mobile app that offers a unique, research-informed experience that helps users explore and interpret chicken vocalizations. Grounded in the science of bioacoustics and animal behavior, Cluckify allows users to go beyond simply hearing birds to understanding them.

The app, which is available now on iOS and Android on Friday, includes a categorized library of vocalizations tied to social and behavioral cues; a spectrogram tool to explore pitch, rhythm and tone; and, an interactive quiz (“Guess the Cluck”) to test users' interpretation skills.

Dr. Suresh Neethirajan, an associate professor in Dal's Faculty of Computer Science, designed the app and is available to discuss how the tool is built to educate, not just entertain, and draws on animal welfare research, digital agriculture and precision livestock science.

                                                                            -30-

Media contact:

Alison Auld
Senior Research Reporter
Dalhousie University
Cell: 1-902-220-0491
Email: alison.auld@dal.ca