Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ birds — with size, habitat, diet, voice, behavior, and the field marks that tell them apart.
Nankeen Kestrel
Australia's smallest falcon, a rufous-backed kestrel famous for hovering motionless in the air while scanning for prey.
raptor
Southern Cassowary
A large, flightless rainforest bird with glossy black plumage, a vivid blue-and-red neck, and a tall bony casque atop its head.
other
Australasian Gannet
A large white seabird with black wingtips and black central tail feathers that nests in dense colonies around Australia and New Zealand.
seabird
Rainbow Pitta
A jewel-toned, ground-dwelling rainforest bird of tropical northern Australia with a black head, emerald back, and scarlet belly.
songbird
Kookaburra
A group of large, terrestrial-hunting kingfishers native to Australia and New Guinea, best known for their loud, laugh-like calls.
other
Black-necked Stork
A tall, striking black-and-white stork with an iridescent black head and neck, found from South Asia to northern Australia, where it is sometimes locally called 'Jabiru.'
wading-bird
Superb Fairywren
A tiny, cooperatively breeding songbird whose breeding males flash brilliant iridescent blue against black, a familiar sight in southeastern Australian gardens.
songbird
Southern Boobook
Australia's smallest and most common owl, best known for its distinctive two-note 'boobook' or 'mopoke' call.
owl
Maned Duck
A common Australian duck, also called the Australian Wood Duck, known for its dark maned head and its habit of grazing on grass far from water.
waterfowl
White Tern
An entirely white, ethereal tern with large dark eyes that famously balances its single egg on a bare tree branch without building any nest at all.
seabird
Variegated Fairywren
A small, colorful fairywren whose breeding males combine blue, black, and a bright chestnut shoulder patch, found widely across mainland Australia's scrub and woodland.
songbird
White-faced Heron
The most common and widespread heron across Australia and New Zealand, easily told by its pale grey body and clean white face.
wading-bird
Little Blue Penguin
The world's smallest penguin, with slate-blue upperparts, found nesting in burrows along the coasts of southern Australia and New Zealand.
seabird
Purple-backed Fairywren
A close relative of the Variegated Fairywren adapted to Australia's arid interior, with breeding males showing purplish-blue tones and a small chestnut shoulder patch.
songbird
Red-backed Fairywren
The smallest fairywren, with breeding males a striking combination of jet black plumage and a vivid scarlet back patch.
songbird
Little Penguin
The world's smallest penguin species, with slate-blue upperparts and white underparts, that comes ashore only after dark to avoid predators.
seabird
Splendid Fairywren
A small songbird of Australia's dry interior whose breeding males turn an almost impossibly vivid all-over cobalt and violet blue.
songbird
Laughing Kookaburra
A large, stocky Australian kingfisher famous for its raucous, human-like laughing call.
other
Brahminy Kite
A striking chestnut-and-white kite of coastal wetlands across South and Southeast Asia and northern Australia.
raptor
Crimson Rosella
A deep crimson-red parrot with blue cheeks and wings, common in forested and suburban parts of eastern Australia.
parrot
Red-rumped Parrot
A common southeastern Australian grass parrot with bright green upperparts and a small red rump patch in males.
parrot
Galah
A common Australian cockatoo with a rose-pink face and underparts contrasting sharply with a pale grey back and crown.
parrot
Diamond Dove
A tiny Australian dove named for the scattering of white, diamond-like spots across its grey wings.
other
Cockatiel
A small, crested Australian parrot recognized by its expressive head crest and bright orange cheek patches.
parrot