Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ birds — with size, habitat, diet, voice, behavior, and the field marks that tell them apart.
Least Flycatcher
The smallest and most vocal of the eastern Empidonax flycatchers, easily located by its emphatic, repetitive 'che-BEK' call.
songbird
Greater Yellowlegs
A tall, elegant sandpiper with bright yellow legs and a loud, ringing alarm call that has earned it the nickname "telltale."
shorebird
Mute Swan
A large, all-white swan with an orange bill and black knob, famous for its graceful, S-curved neck and elegant presence on lakes and parks.
waterfowl
House Sparrow
A stocky, chunky-billed sparrow closely tied to human settlements, with males showing a gray crown, chestnut nape, and black bib.
songbird
Great Tit
The largest and most common European tit, with a glossy black head, white cheeks, and a bold black stripe down its yellow breast.
songbird
Great Grey Owl
The tallest owl in North America by length, a huge grey ghost of the northern forests famed for its enormous facial disc and vole-hunting by sound.
owl
Hadada Ibis
A loud, grey-brown African ibis famous for its raucous 'ha-ha-ha-hadada' call, often heard echoing over gardens and cities at dawn.
wading-bird
Grey Currawong
A large, grey-toned currawong of southern Australia's forests and woodlands, with a yellow eye and white wing and tail markings.
songbird
Gull-billed Tern
A stocky, gull-billed tern with a stout black bill, pale plumage, and an unusual habit of hawking insects over dry land far from water.
seabird
House Wren
A small, plain brown wren with fine dark barring on the wings and tail, known for its bubbly song and readiness to nest in birdhouses.
songbird
Lawrence's Goldfinch
A gray-and-yellow goldfinch with a black face, restricted to California and Baja California and famously unpredictable in its movements.
songbird
Lewin's Honeyeater
An olive-green rainforest honeyeater with a distinctive yellow crescent-shaped ear patch and a loud, rattling call.
songbird
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
A glossy black forest drongo with a spiky forehead crest and two extraordinary wire-like tail streamers ending in rackets.
songbird
Henslow's Sparrow
A secretive prairie sparrow with a large flat head, olive face, and one of the most unimpressive songs of any North American bird.
songbird
Inca Dove
A tiny, pale dove of the desert Southwest whose feathers appear scalloped like fish scales and whose flight flashes rusty wing patches.
other
Humboldt Penguin
A banded penguin of the cold Humboldt Current off Peru and Chile, recognized by a single black chest band and a patch of bare pink skin at the base of its bill.
seabird
Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker
The smallest woodpecker in Japan, a sparrow-sized bird finely barred in brown and white, with males showing a tiny red spot on the head.
woodpecker
Marico Sunbird
A robust southern African sunbird with a broad maroon breast band and jet-black belly, common in acacia savanna and dry woodland.
songbird
Eastern Rosella
A strikingly colorful Australian parrot with a bright red head and breast, white cheek patches, and a scalloped yellow-green back.
parrot
Downy Woodpecker
North America's smallest woodpecker, a friendly black-and-white bird with a small bill, common at backyard feeders across the continent.
woodpecker
Dunnock
An unassuming, streaky brown European songbird with a gray head and breast, often seen shuffling quietly beneath hedges and shrubs.
songbird
Golden-breasted Starling
A dazzling East African starling with a shimmering emerald-and-violet body, golden-yellow belly, and an extravagantly long tail.
songbird
Florida Scrub-Jay
A crestless blue-and-gray jay found nowhere in the world except Florida's rapidly shrinking scrub-oak habitat.
songbird
Gray Catbird
A slate-gray songbird with a neat black cap and a rusty patch under the tail, named for its distinctive cat-like mewing call.
songbird