Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ birds — with size, habitat, diet, voice, behavior, and the field marks that tell them apart.
Black-capped Vireo
A small vireo of Texas oak scrub with a glossy black cap, bold white spectacles, and a red eye, a conservation success story after habitat restoration and cowbird control.
songbird
Swallow-tailed Kite
An unmistakable black-and-white raptor with a deeply forked tail that glides effortlessly over southern swamps.
raptor
Reed Bunting
A slim bunting of reedbeds and wetlands, with breeding males sporting a bold black head and white collar.
songbird
Sand Martin
A small brown-and-white swallow relative that nests colonially in burrows dug into sandy banks and cliffs.
songbird
Mountain Chickadee
A gray-and-black chickadee of western mountain conifer forests, distinguished by a bold white eyebrow stripe.
songbird
Green-tailed Towhee
A shy, olive-green towhee with a rufous cap and white throat, the smallest and most colorful of the towhees.
songbird
Brahminy Kite
A striking chestnut-and-white kite of coastal wetlands across South and Southeast Asia and northern Australia.
raptor
Common Shelduck
A large, goose-like duck with bold white, black, and chestnut plumage and a bright red bill.
waterfowl
Surf Scoter
A black sea duck with a bold multicolored bill patch, males marked with white patches on the forehead and nape.
waterfowl
Varied Tit
A striking, boldly patterned tit with chestnut underparts, a black-and-white face, and a habit of caching seeds for later.
songbird
Nuttall's Woodpecker
A small black-and-white woodpecker nearly endemic to California, closely tied to oak woodland and streamside groves.
woodpecker
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker
A sparrow-sized woodpecker with a barred black-and-white back, elusive and easily overlooked high in the tree canopy.
woodpecker
Meadow Bunting
A warm chestnut-backed bunting with a bold black-and-white striped face and a rufous wash across the breast.
songbird
Diamond Dove
A tiny Australian dove named for the scattering of white, diamond-like spots across its grey wings.
other
Common Gallinule
The New World counterpart to the Common Moorhen, with the same red-and-yellow bill and a bold white flank stripe.
wading-bird
Adelie Penguin
A classic tuxedo-patterned penguin of Antarctica, easily told by the bold white ring encircling each eye.
seabird
Arctic Loon
The Eurasian counterpart of the Pacific Loon, with a pale grey head, black throat, and a bold white flank patch visible while swimming.
seabird
Squacco Heron
A small, buffy heron that looks surprisingly plain at rest but reveals striking white wings the instant it takes flight.
wading-bird
Pied Currawong
A large, mostly black songbird of eastern Australia with white wing and tail patches and a loud, ringing 'currawong' call.
songbird
Spotted Nutcracker
A stocky, chocolate-brown corvid densely spotted with white, specialized for harvesting and caching conifer seeds in mountain forests.
songbird
Straw-necked Ibis
A striking black-and-white Australian ibis famous for forming huge nomadic flocks that follow outbreaks of grasshoppers and locusts.
wading-bird
Montezuma Quail
A round, secretive southwestern quail with a bold black-and-white harlequin facial pattern that renders it nearly invisible in grass.
gamebird
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
Little Pied Cormorant
A small black-and-white Australasian cormorant with a short stubby yellow bill, common on both fresh and salt water.
seabird