Bird Buddy has a new camera that can identify bees and butterflies

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(Image credit: Future)

The Bird Buddy smart bird feeder has become a popular gift item for bird lovers, as it not only captures photos and videos of birds, but can identify thousands of species, too.

Now, Bird Buddy's parent company is expanding its offerings beyond our feathered friends so that you can capture images of bees, butterflies, and other pollinators that come to your yard.

At CES 2025, Wonder launched the Petal, a small wireless solar-powered Wi-Fi outdoor camera that can take pictures and videos of insects buzzing about.

The Petal has a 4K, 12MP camera attached to a flexible "stem," so that you can place it pretty much anywhere in your yard. You can also get an optional solar "leaf," which will help keep the camera's battery charged. The Petal will come in two sizes, and can be outfitted with different lenses so you can get an up-close view of whatever comes in front of the camera.

The Petal's AI, which the company calls Nature Intelligence, can ID the critters flitting about, and you can interact with its chatbot on your phone to learn more about the species. And, in the event of an invasive species attacking your plants — say, a grasshopper munching on your leaves — the AI will send you an alert.

In the event you don't have a garden bed or planter box handy, the company is also launching what it calls Wonder Blocks, which are essentially modular plastic planters about the size of a small wastebasket. The Blocks can be outfitted with materials to attract different animals, such as a seed tray, a butterfly feeder, or a bee hotel.

Wonder said that both the Petal and the Wonder Base will be available this spring — just in time for the first buds of May — though pricing has not yet been set.

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The Wonder Petal is the second big expansion to the Bird Buddy lineup; the company launched a smart hummingbird feeder last year. Now that it's covered the birds, going after the bees seems the next logical step.

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Michael A. Prospero is the U.S. Editor-in-Chief for Tom’s Guide. He oversees all evergreen content and oversees the Homes, Smart Home, and Fitness/Wearables categories for the site. In his spare time, he also tests out the latest drones, electric scooters, and smart home gadgets, such as video doorbells. Before his tenure at Tom's Guide, he was the Reviews Editor for Laptop Magazine, a reporter at Fast Company, the Times of Trenton, and, many eons back, an intern at George magazine. He received his undergraduate degree from Boston College, where he worked on the campus newspaper The Heights, and then attended the Columbia University school of Journalism. When he’s not testing out the latest running watch, electric scooter, or skiing or training for a marathon, he’s probably using the latest sous vide machine, smoker, or pizza oven, to the delight — or chagrin — of his family.

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