Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ birds — with size, habitat, diet, voice, behavior, and the field marks that tell them apart.
Sand Martin
A small brown-and-white swallow relative that nests colonially in burrows dug into sandy banks and cliffs.
songbird
Ovenbird
A plump, ground-walking warbler of mature forest interior, named for its domed, oven-shaped nest and famous for its loud 'teacher-teacher-teacher' song.
songbird
Red-shouldered Hawk
A colorful woodland buteo with rich rufous shoulders and underparts, closely tied to river bottoms and swampy forest.
raptor
Purple Finch
A stocky finch with a raspberry-red wash over the head, back, and breast in males, often confused with the House Finch.
songbird
Ornate Hawk-Eagle
A powerful, crested forest eagle with a striking black-and-rufous head pattern and boldly barred underparts, a top predator of the Neotropical canopy.
raptor
Olive Sparrow
A skulking, olive-green sparrow of South Texas thornscrub with a striped rufous-and-gray crown and a bouncing-ball trill song.
songbird
Red-legged Partridge
A boldly patterned partridge with a striped black-and-white throat patch, a red bill, and red legs, native to southwestern Europe.
gamebird
Pied Kingfisher
A striking black-and-white kingfisher famed for hovering over water before plunge-diving for fish, common across Africa and Asia.
other
Oriental Stork
A large East Asian stork closely related to the White Stork, distinguished by its black bill and endangered status due to wetland habitat loss.
wading-bird
Philippine Eagle
The national bird of the Philippines, this critically endangered eagle sports a shaggy, lion-like crest of brown feathers and ranks among the largest and rarest eagles on Earth.
raptor
Painted Stork
A colorful South and Southeast Asian stork with a white and pink body, black-barred wings, and a curved orange-yellow bill.
wading-bird
Rhinoceros Auklet
A dusky-brown North Pacific auk named for the pale horn-like projection on its bill that develops in breeding season.
seabird
Short-tailed Hawk
A compact tropical buteo, found in Florida in both dark and light color forms, that hunts songbirds from high overhead.
raptor
Nuttall's Woodpecker
A small black-and-white woodpecker nearly endemic to California, closely tied to oak woodland and streamside groves.
woodpecker
Palm Cockatoo
A huge, sooty-black cockatoo with a wispy crest, bare red cheek patches, and a massive bill used to crack hard nuts.
parrot
Pacific Wren
A tiny, dark, round-bodied wren of humid Pacific coast forests with a fast, buzzy, high-pitched song.
songbird
Red-breasted Nuthatch
A tiny, tin-horn-voiced nuthatch of conifer forests, with rusty-orange underparts and a bold black eye-stripe bordered by white.
songbird
Northern Parula
A small, compact, blue-gray and yellow warbler with a distinctive bicolored bill, closely tied to hanging Spanish moss or Usnea lichen for nesting.
songbird
Purple-throated Fruitcrow
A social, all-black cotinga whose males flash a glossy magenta-purple throat patch, usually seen moving through the forest canopy in small groups.
songbird
Squacco Heron
A small, buffy heron that looks surprisingly plain at rest but reveals striking white wings the instant it takes flight.
wading-bird
Southern Red-billed Hornbill
A slender black-and-white southern African hornbill distinguished by its long, slim, bright red bill.
other
Saddleback
A glossy black New Zealand forest bird with a bold chestnut "saddle" across its back and bright orange-red wattles, now surviving mainly on predator-free islands after near extinction on the mainland.
songbird
Steller's Sea Eagle
A massive coastal eagle of the Russian Far East with a huge yellow bill and bold white shoulder, thigh, and tail patches.
raptor
Rüppell's Vulture
A large, mottled griffon vulture of Africa's savannas famed for flying higher than any other bird on record.
raptor
Semipalmated Plover
A small, compact plover with a single black breast band and orange legs, common on beaches and mudflats throughout the Americas during migration.
shorebird
Rough-legged Hawk
A large arctic-breeding hawk with feathered legs, seen across open fields and marshes farther south in winter, known for its habit of hovering while hunting.
raptor
Peregrine Falcon
The fastest animal on Earth, this powerful falcon stoops on other birds at speeds exceeding 300 km/h (200 mph).
raptor
Saker Falcon
A large, powerful falcon of the Eurasian steppes known for hunting ground squirrels in open country.
raptor
Southern Red Bishop
A small African wetland bird whose breeding male turns a brilliant scarlet and black, nesting in dense reedbed colonies.
songbird
Oilbird
A unique nocturnal, cave-dwelling fruit-eater that navigates pitch-black caverns using echolocation clicks like a bat.
other
Spotted Dove
A slim, pale pinkish-brown dove easily recognized by the bold black neck patch finely spotted with white.
other
Pied Currawong
A large, mostly black songbird of eastern Australia with white wing and tail patches and a loud, ringing 'currawong' call.
songbird
Rufous Motmot
The largest motmot species, with rich rufous-orange underparts and head, a green back, and a long tail ending in bare-shafted racket tips.
other
Red-vented Bulbul
A dark-hooded, scaly-bodied bulbul with a bright red patch under the tail, a familiar and vocal garden bird across South Asia.
songbird
Penduline Tit
A tiny wetland songbird famed for weaving an elaborate, purse-shaped hanging nest, with a grey head and black eye-mask.
songbird
Red-browed Finch
An olive-grey finch with a bright red rump, bill, and eyebrow stripe, often seen in small flocks along forest edges.
songbird
Red-backed Shrike
A small predatory songbird known for impaling prey on thorns, with a chestnut back and a bold black highwayman's mask.
songbird
New Zealand Robin
A tame, upright New Zealand forest bird, dark grey-black above with a pale belly, well known for boldly following walkers and foraging on the forest floor within easy view.
songbird
Prothonotary Warbler
A brilliant golden-yellow warbler of southern swamps, unique among eastern warblers for nesting in tree cavities near or over water.
songbird
Purple-rumped Sunbird
A dazzling small sunbird of southern India and Sri Lanka with a maroon back and iridescent purple rump.
songbird
Purple Swamphen
A large, chicken-sized marsh bird cloaked in deep blue-purple plumage with a massive red bill and frontal shield.
wading-bird
Powerful Owl
Australia's largest owl, a massive nocturnal predator of eastern forests that feeds almost exclusively on possums and gliders.
owl
Red-tailed Hawk
North America's most familiar large hawk, often seen soaring over highways or perched on poles, named for the adult's brick-red tail.
raptor
Plum-headed Parakeet
A slender green parakeet whose male sports a striking plum-purple head bordered with a thin black-and-blue neck ring.
parrot
Sabine's Gull
A strikingly patterned Arctic gull with a bold tricolored wing and forked tail, spending most of the year far out at sea and undertaking one of the longest migrations of any gull.
seabird
Red Kite
A large, russet raptor with a deeply forked tail, effortless soaring flight, and a habit of scavenging carrion.
raptor
Olive-sided Flycatcher
A large, big-headed flycatcher known for its exuberant 'quick, THREE BEERS!' song, often perched high atop a dead conifer snag.
songbird
Secretarybird
A striking long-legged African raptor that hunts on foot across open grassland, famous for stomping venomous snakes to death.
raptor