Bird Watcher's Digest: Home Bird Watcher's Digest Magazine The Backyard Birds Newsletter The Bird Watcher's Digest App Bird Watcher's Digest Nature Shop

Bird Identification

BWD Bird Identification Guide

Welcome to our bird identification section. Every day, thousands of birders identify mystery birds with our online guide. Our profiles also feature the songs and calls of profiled birds. Click on the hyperlinks below to select the bird you wish to learn more about. This section features sound files (in mp3 format) containing the songs and calls of the birds listed.

Loons & Grebes
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Loons & Grebes
common loon
eared grebe
horned grebe
western grebe
Pelicans, Cormorants
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Pelicans, Cormorants
American white pelican
brown pelican
anhinga
double-crested cormorant
Wading Birds
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Wading Birds
great blue heron
green heron
cattle egret
great egret
snowy egret
white ibis
roseate spoonbill
sandhill crane
whooping crane
common moorhen
American coot
Swans, Geese & Ducks
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Swans, Geese & Ducks
blue-winged teal
cinnamon teal
green-winged teal
Canada goose
snow goose
greater scaup
lesser scaup
mallard
northern pintail
ring-necked duck
wood duck
northern shoveler
Diurnal (Daytime) Raptors
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Diurnal (Daytime) Raptors
American kestrel
bald eagle
Cooper's hawk
red-tailed hawk
turkey vulture
osprey
peregrine falcon
merlin
Upland Game Birds
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Upland Game Birds
California quail
wild turkey
lesser prairie-chicken
ring-necked pheasant
Shorebirds
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Shorebirds
American woodcock
killdeer
piping plover
semipalmated plover
snowy plover
Wilson's plover
greater/lesser yellowlegs
ruddy turnstone
sanderling
willet
Gulls, Terns & Skimmers
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Gulls, Terns & Skimmers
black skimmer
common tern
Caspian tern
Forster's tern
laughing gull
ring-billed gull
great black-backed gull
herring gull
Alcids (puffins, guillemots, etc.)
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Alcids (puffins, guillemots, etc.)
Atlantic puffin
Pigeons & Doves
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Pigeons & Doves
Eurasian collar-dove
mourning dove
rock dove
white-winged dove
Cuckoos & Roadrunners
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Cuckoos & Roadrunners
black-billed cuckoo
mangrove cuckoo
yellow-billed cuckoo
greater roadrunner
Owls
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Owls
barn owl
eastern screech owl
great horned owl
snowy owl
long-eared owl
short-eared owl
barred owl
spotted owl
Goatsuckers & Swifts
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Goatsuckers & Swifts
common nighthawk
chimney swift
Hummingbirds
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Hummingbirds
Allen's hummingbird
Anna's hummingbird
black-chinned hummingbird
broad-tailed hummingbird
buff-bellied hummingbird
calliope hummingbird
costas hummingbird
ruby-throated hummingbird
rufous hummingbird
Trogons & Kingfishers
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Trogons & Kingfishers
belted kingfisher
Woodpeckers & Sapsuckers
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Woodpeckers & Sapsuckers
black-backed woodpecker
red-bellied woodpecker
downy woodpecker
hairy woodpecker
pileated woodpecker
red-headed woodpecker
northern flicker
Flycatchers, Kingbirds, Phoebes, etc.
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Flycatchers
scissor-tailed flycatcher
eastern phoebe
eastern kingbird
Shrikes & Vireos
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Shrikes & Vireos
blue-headed vireo
Philadelphia vireo
red-eyed vireo
warbling vireo
white-eyed vireo
yellow-throated vireo
Jays, Crows & Allies
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Jays, Crows & Allies
Black-billed magpie
common raven
American crow
blue jay
fish crow
Swallows & Martins
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Swallows & Martins
tree swallow
violet green swallow
barn swallow
purple martin
Chickadees & Allies
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Chickadees & Allies
black-capped chickadee
carolina chickadee
tufted titmouse
Nuthatches & Creepers
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Nuthatches & Creepers
red-breasted nuthatch
white-breasted nuthatch
Wrens
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Wrens
house wren
winter wren
carolina wren
Thrushes & Allies
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Thrushes & Allies
golden-crowned kinglet
ruby-crowned kinglet
blue-gray gnatcatcher
eastern bluebird
western bluebird
mountain bluebird
American robin
hermit thrush
wood thrush
Mimics
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Mimics
northern mockingbird
Starlings
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Starlings
european starling
Waxwings
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Waxwings
Bohemian waxwing
cedar waxwing
Wood Warblers
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Wood Warblers
American redstart
blackburnian warbler
black-throated gray warbler
hooded warbler
kirtland's warbler
yellow warbler
yellow-rumped warbler
common yellowthroat
ovenbird
Tanagers, Cardinals & Allies
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Tanagers, Cardinals & Allies
blue grosbeak
rose-breasted grosbeak
indigo bunting
lazuli bunting
painted bunting
northern cardinal
scarlet tanager
summer tanager
Sparrows & Allies
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Sparrows & Allies
white-throated sparrow
white-crowned sparrow
song sparrow
fox sparrow
house sparrow
dark-eyed junco
eastern towhee
Blackbirds, Orioles, & Allies
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Blackbirds, Orioles, & Allies
brown-headed cowbird
common grackle
eastern meadowlark
Brewer's blackbird
red-winged blackbird
rusty blackbird
yellow-headed blackbird
Baltimore oriole (female)
orchard oriole (female)
Finches & Allies
Return to Top
Bird Identification Guide: Finches & Allies
red crossbill
purple finch
house finch
Cassin's finch
pine siskin
evening grosbeak
American goldfinch
common redpoll

Adspace 300x250

Popular Features on BWD

Explore: Optics Recommendations

Best 8x42 Binoculars Below $600

Want to move up to better binoculars but can't afford the high-end optics? Need a second pair for your significant other? Or maybe you're a world-class grandparent trying to get a child a life-changing present. This review is for you.

More From Bird Watcher's Digest

Nominate a Young Birder to Win FREE Optics!

Think how amazing it would have been to have had truly fine optics when we were learning our birds and first getting into birding! Leica and Bird Watcher's Digest are teaming up to give one young birder in North America that very opportunity by giving them a new Trinovid binocular.

Explore: Birding Hotspots

Featured Birding Hotspots: Louisiana

Despite its recent history, Louisiana's coastal zone remains one of the most ecologically dynamic places in the world.

North American Hotspots

  • Birding Nebraska: More Than Plains and Crains »
  • Birding Montana: A Bird Loop From Curlews to Loons »
  • Birding Texas: Hotspots In the Lone Star State »
  • Birding New York: Birding the Adirondacks »

    • International Hotspots

  • Honduras: Verdant and Mysterious »
  • Trinidad & Tobago: Introduction to the Neotropics »
  • Western Australia: Spring in the Land Down Under »
    • More in our travel section »

    Learn: Bird Feeding

    Bird Feeding Chart

    What Foods for What Birds?

    The experts at Bird Watcher's Digest have compiled an informative food and seed chart to help you attract the birds that you want to your feeders.

    Great Bird Feeding Resources

  • Feeding Hummingbirds: Flowers, feeders, and more »
  • Feeding Bluebirds: Tips and pitfalls »
  • Feeding Sparrows: Attracting, feeding, and ID tips »
  • The Squirrel War: Can you beat the furry menace? »
    • More in our bird feeding section »

    BWD Nature Shop

  • Books: Identifying and Feeding Birds - only $14.95 »
  • Booklets: Enjoying Bird Feeding More - only $4.99 »
  • Feeders: Thistle Sock Bird Feeder - only $5.00 »
    • More from our store »

    Solve: Frequently Asked Questions

    Accidental Hummingbird

    Common Bird Myths

    Is it true that a baby bird touched by a human will be abandoned by its parents? Can an owl spin its head completely around? Do goatsuckers really suck goat milk?

    Additional Features

  • Myths: Bird-watching myths explained »
  • Common Questions: How do I foil squirrels? »
  • Trivia: Do swans mate for life? »
  • Baffling Behavior: Pileated woodpeckers creating holes in siding »
    • More in our FAQ section »

    From Our Store

  • Books: Backyard Birding - only $14.95 »
  • Booklets: The Backyard Bird Watcher's Answer Guide - only $4.99 »
    • More from our store »

    Swans, Geese & Ducks

    Keep In Touch with BWD!

    SHOP LANDING - CONNECT

    What's Hot

    more tags

    BWD Website Ads and Offers

    Register to Win

    More On Our Website

    Advertisements on BWD

    Advertisements