Bird Buddy debuted back in 2020 with the goal of streamlining backyard birdwatching, as it integrated a camera into a bird feeder to let you watch your backyard visitors as they went about their business undisturbed. The Bird Buddy Smart Bird Bath looks to expand your birdwatching arsenal by adding a similarly camera-equipped watering hole that birds can visit for a dip and a sip.
Just like the outfit’s bird feeder, the bath gives you a backyard fixture that can encourage birds to visit and stick around for a bit, allowing you to spend time observing during candid moments. Want to watch birds wash off their filth on the water? This thing lets you do that. How about seeing them parch their thirst in the summer heat? Should work, too. Heck, you can probably see them bond, fight, and play out a feathered version of the soap opera that happens all the time in the animal kingdom.
The Bird Buddy Smart Bird Bath consists of a bowl you can fill with water and a decorative house-like figure on one section that houses the removable camera module. The bowl has no direct connection to your water line, so you’ll have to manually fill it up on the regular, although they do offer a pump and solar roof combo that you can use to keep the water in the bath moving. Why would you do that? Apparently, this makes it more attractive to birds, while also reducing algae growth, so your water can stay cleaner for a lot longer. The solar roof, by the way, can power not just the pump, but also trickle juice into your camera’s battery.
Speaking of the camera, it uses the same removable module found on the outfit’s bird feeders. That means, it can shoot HD video with a 120 degree field of view, complete with full audio via the built-in mic, allowing you to watch and listen to the action happening in the bath. It can also capture 5MP snaps.
The Bird Buddy Smart Bird Bath’s camera comes with AI tech that allows it to recognize when birds are actually in the frame, at which point it can send you an alert, in case you want to watch the ensuing action. Even better, its able to recognize over 700 species of birds (and counting), so it can give you information about the birds frolicking about in your backyard bath. The AI can even control camera focus and zoom, allowing it to zero in on a perspective it thinks you’ll find interesting.
Aside from the bird bath, the outfit is also selling a pole mounting system, in case you want a freestanding structure to set up the bird bath in your outdoor space. They’re also introducing a bird feeder specifically designed for hummingbirds, in case you want to attract more of those brightly-colored tiny birds to your property.
A Kickstarter campaign is currently running for the Bird Buddy Smart Bird Bath. You can reserve a unit for pledges starting at $184.
