Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ birds — with size, habitat, diet, voice, behavior, and the field marks that tell them apart.
Eurasian Pygmy Owl
Europe's smallest owl, a sparrow-sized predator of northern coniferous forest that hunts by day as often as by night.
owl
Emperor Penguin
The tallest and heaviest of all penguin species, famous for breeding through the brutal Antarctic winter on open sea ice.
seabird
Fork-tailed Sunbird
A tiny, iridescent sunbird of southern China and Vietnam, named for the male's elongated, forked tail streamers.
songbird
Chinese Bulbul
A widespread East Asian bulbul with an olive-green body, a black-and-white patterned head, and a distinctive white patch behind the eye.
songbird
Burrowing Owl
A small, long-legged owl that nests underground in abandoned burrows and is often seen standing bolt upright by day.
owl
Capped Heron
A pale, elegant heron with a black cap, blue facial skin, and creamy-buff plumage found around South American wetlands.
wading-bird
Black-backed Woodpecker
A fire-following specialist woodpecker with a solid black back that thrives in recently burned conifer forests.
woodpecker
Boat-tailed Grackle
A large, glossy coastal grackle with a distinctive keel-shaped tail and dramatic size difference between the sexes.
songbird
Chipping Sparrow
A small, slender sparrow with a bright rufous cap, black eye-line, and clean gray underparts, common in yards with conifers.
songbird
Cliff Swallow
A colonial swallow famous for building gourd-shaped mud nests in dense clusters under bridges, eaves, and cliffs.
songbird
Black-throated Sparrow
A striking desert sparrow with a bold black throat framed by crisp white eyebrow and whisker stripes.
songbird
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.
waterfowlEclectus Parrot
A large rainforest parrot famous for extreme sexual dimorphism, with males bright green and females vivid red and purple.
parrot
Boat-billed Heron
A bizarre, wide-eyed nocturnal heron of Latin American swamps, instantly recognizable by its enormous broad, boat-shaped bill.
wading-bird
Reddish Egret
An animated, shaggy-necked coastal egret famous for its erratic, staggering 'dancing' feeding style used to startle fish into range.
wading-bird
Townsend's Warbler
A boldly patterned warbler of Pacific Northwest conifer forests, with a black-and-yellow face pattern, dark cheek patch, and streaked yellow breast.
songbird
Verdin
A tiny, active desert songbird with a bright yellow head and a chestnut shoulder patch, famous for its bulky twig nests.
songbird
Zone-tailed Hawk
A blackish hawk that mimics the flight and silhouette of Turkey Vultures, letting it sneak up on unsuspecting prey.
raptor
Wrentit
A drab, long-tailed skulker of Pacific coastal chaparral, far more often heard than seen, with a distinctive bouncing-ball song.
songbird
Swallow-tailed Kite
An unmistakable black-and-white raptor with a deeply forked tail that glides effortlessly over southern swamps.
raptor
Zebra Finch
A tiny, boldly patterned Australian finch famous for its orange cheek patch, fine barring, and near-constant chattering calls.
songbird
Yellow-headed Blackbird
A striking marsh blackbird with a brilliant yellow head and breast on males, forming dense breeding colonies over open water.
songbird
Swainson's Warbler
A plain, secretive brown warbler of dense southeastern thickets, more often heard than seen thanks to its loud, ringing song.
songbird
Yellowhammer
A vividly yellow-headed bunting of farmland hedgerows, famous for its song often rendered as "a little bit of bread and no cheese."
songbird