Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ birds — with size, habitat, diet, voice, behavior, and the field marks that tell them apart.
Great Grey Owl
The tallest owl in North America by length, a huge grey ghost of the northern forests famed for its enormous facial disc and vole-hunting by sound.
owl
Virginia Rail
A slender, secretive marsh bird with a long reddish downcurved bill, rusty breast, and gray cheeks.
wading-bird
Black-capped Chickadee
A small, energetic bird with a black cap and bib, white cheeks, and gray back, known for its cheerful "chick-a-dee-dee" call.
songbird
Cocoi Heron
South America's largest heron, a tall grey-and-white bird with a black cap that fills the same niche as the Grey Heron.
wading-bird
Cape Robin-Chat
A familiar southern African garden bird with an orange face and breast, grey belly, and a rich, melodious song.
songbird
Peregrine Falcon
The fastest animal on Earth, this powerful falcon stoops on other birds at speeds exceeding 300 km/h (200 mph).
raptor
Ostrich
The world's largest and heaviest living bird, a flightless African species built for speed on the open savanna.
other
Black Drongo
A glossy black, red-eyed bird with a deeply forked tail, famous for fearlessly mobbing crows and raptors.
songbird
Corn Crake
A secretive, chicken-like grassland bird best known for its rasping, far-carrying 'crex-crex' call given at night.
other
California Quail
California's state bird, a plump, sociable quail with a distinctive forward-drooping black head plume.
gamebird
Bush Stone-curlew
A large, cryptic ground bird with enormous yellow eyes and an eerie, wailing call heard mostly after dark.
shorebird
Purple Swamphen
A large, chicken-sized marsh bird cloaked in deep blue-purple plumage with a massive red bill and frontal shield.
wading-bird
Black Woodpecker
Europe's largest woodpecker, an all-black, crow-sized bird with a striking red crown and powerful excavating bill.
woodpecker
Bald Eagle
The United States' national bird, a massive fish-eating eagle known for its white head and tail and huge wingspan.
raptor
Lilac-breasted Roller
A dazzlingly multicolored African savanna bird famed for its acrobatic tumbling courtship flight display.
other
Merlin
A compact, fast-flying falcon that chases down small birds with relentless, low-level pursuit rather than a high stoop.
raptor
Hawfinch
Europe's largest finch, a stocky, shy woodland bird with an enormous, powerful bill built for cracking cherry stones.
songbird
Magpie-lark
A common black-and-white Australian bird, smaller than a magpie, known for its distinctive 'pee-wee' call and mud-bowl nest.
songbird
Common Wood Pigeon
Europe's largest and most common pigeon, a plump gray bird with a white neck patch and bold white wing bars visible in flight.
other
African Hoopoe
A distinctive cinnamon-colored African bird with a fan-shaped crest, boldly barred black-and-white wings, and a long curved bill.
other
Eurasian Skylark
A streaky brown ground bird famous for its prolonged, high-flying song delivered while hovering far overhead.
songbird
Chuck-will's-widow
The largest nightjar in North America, best known for its far-carrying, repetitive nighttime call that gives the bird its name.
other
White-throated Toucan
A large Amazonian rainforest bird famous for its massive orange-and-black bill, glossy black body, and bright white throat and chest patch.
other
Yellow-billed Stork
A striking African wading bird with mostly white and pale pink plumage, black flight feathers, and a long, curved yellow bill.
wading-bird