Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ birds — with size, habitat, diet, voice, behavior, and the field marks that tell them apart.
Red-headed Weaver
A distinctive African weaver with a bright red head, throat, and bill on breeding males, set off against pale grey underparts and a mixed red-and-black back.
songbird
Ringneck Dove
A pale, gentle dove marked by a narrow black half-collar on its nape, long domesticated from wild African collared-dove stock and popular in aviculture.
other
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
Palm-nut Vulture
An unusual, mostly fruit-eating vulture with black-and-white plumage that lives near oil palms and waterways in West and Central Africa.
raptor
Red-faced Mousebird
The Red-faced Mousebird is a southern African species distinguished by its crimson face patch and sleek grey plumage, often seen scurrying through shrubs in small flocks.
other
Green Wood Hoopoe
A glossy, iridescent African bird with a long curved red bill and tail, known for its raucous cackling calls and tight-knit family groups.
other
Helmeted Guineafowl
A gregarious, ground-dwelling African gamebird instantly recognizable by its bare bluish head, red facial wattles, and bony helmet-like casque.
gamebird
Crowned Lapwing
The Crowned Lapwing is a common African grassland plover easily recognized by the black-and-white ring encircling its head and its loud, repetitive calls.
shorebird
Village Weaver
A widespread, noisy African weaver whose breeding males show a black hood, a mottled black-and-yellow back, and red eyes, best known for large, busy nesting colonies.
songbird
Rock Dove
The wild cliff-dwelling ancestor of all domestic and feral pigeons, native to Europe, North Africa, and Asia.
other
Southern Fiscal
A black-and-white shrike of southern Africa known for impaling prey on thorns and barbed wire as a food cache.
songbird
White-fronted Bee-eater
A colorful, colonially nesting African bee-eater with a white forehead, crimson throat patch, and green body, best known for its cooperative breeding system.
other
Greater Blue-eared Starling
A widespread African starling with glossy blue-green plumage and a violet-blue ear patch, often confused with the closely related Lesser Blue-eared Starling.
songbird
Wattled Crane
The tallest crane in Africa, easily told by the pair of long, fleshy white wattles hanging beneath its chin.
wading-bird
Western Plantain-eater
A large, grey-brown turaco relative of West African savanna, easily spotted by its heavy yellow-tipped bill and bold white wing patches in flight.
other
Intermediate Egret
A medium-sized white egret of Africa, Asia, and Australia whose size and proportions fall neatly between the larger Great Egret and smaller Little Egret.
wading-bird
Trumpeter Hornbill
A large black-and-white forest hornbill of eastern and southern Africa, named for its loud, wailing, trumpet-like calls.
other
Purple-crested Turaco
A glossy green forest bird of southeastern Africa with a rounded purple crest and crimson flight feathers that flash brilliantly in flight.
other
Lanner Falcon
A medium-large falcon of Africa and southern Eurasia recognized by its rusty crown and fast, agile flight in open country.
raptor
Superb Starling
A common, strikingly colorful East African starling with a metallic blue-green back, chestnut belly, and a bold white breast band, familiar around safari camps and towns.
songbird
Southern Masked Weaver
A common, widespread southern African weaver whose breeding males are bright yellow with a black face mask and red eyes, known for its intricately woven grass nests.
songbird
Southern Ground Hornbill
A large, mostly ground-dwelling African hornbill with black plumage, vivid red facial skin, and deep, booming dawn calls, walking savannas in tight-knit family groups.
other
Pied Kingfisher
A striking black-and-white kingfisher famed for hovering over water before plunge-diving for fish, common across Africa and Asia.
other
Carmine Bee-eater
A dazzling, migratory African bee-eater with vivid carmine-pink plumage, a turquoise crown and throat, and long tail streamers, often seen riding on the backs of large animals to catch flushed insects.
other