A Guide for Identifying Birds

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Areas of identification on a Bird.

As birders, and especially beginners, we know how easy it is to feel overwhelmed and frustrated when we are out enjoying nature and trying to identify the birds quickly. Many times, we only get to see parts of the bird flitting through the leaves. Maybe, we never get the chance to see it, but we can hear its lovely song rolling out of the thick brush right in front of us.

Frustrating?

Yes, but with a little patience, and some experience you can start identifying birds by studying the shape of its beaks, the wing bars, eye stripes,  what kind of habitat it is using, does it hop, or eventually you may be able to determine the species by merely listening to its singing.

 With a little practice, you will start feeling like Sherlock Holmes with your deductive skills! Let us hope you never stumble across a murder scene, though!

Below, I will go over some tips that I use to help identify birds.

Quick Note: Females and young or immature birds can be the most difficult birds to identify as their colors are usually subdued, and very neutral colored as opposed to the brightly colored males.

Wing Bars

Let’s start with wing bars. If we look at the birds in a bird book, we will notice a wide range of patterns on the birds’ wings. Studying the wing bars of a bird will be one step towards identifying it correctly. Often, we will need several clues to properly determine the species.    

Eye Markings

The eyes are another key area to study. Many birds have stripes around the eye, like a ring. Some birds will have stripes going above or below the eye, or both. Others wear masks, such as the common yellowthroat. Look for these identifying marks as well as their identifying colors.

Identifying Beaks

The color and shape of a beak can be useful if you have an idea of what type of bird you are looking at. For example, sparrows can be difficult birds to identify, and sometimes looking at the color of a beak can be the tiebreaker.  Seeing if it is all black, orange, or multi-colored can go a long way in helping to identify it.

Grosbeaks have big, sturdy beaks for cracking seeds. Hummingbirds have long, slim, curved beaks to help collect nectar in flowers. Hawks’ beaks are big and powerful, and the top is curved sharply down at the tip to help rip bits of flesh off its prey when eating.

Identifying the Shape

One of my favorite and quickest ways to identify a bird is by looking at its overall size and shape. This can quickly help to determine what family the bird is from: warbler, thrush, sparrow, etc.

This type of identification comes with a lot of practice. For a beginner, it can feel less useful because they may not have a good way to reference the size of a bird. But, once you take some time to study the different shapes of birds and start using the knowledge you have gained, this can be one of the first and quickest way to determine the species of a bird. This can be a huge time saver when identifying birds that you see flying by or when it might be difficult to see any bright markings.

The shape of a bird is a quick way of identifying which family it belongs to.

Identifying  Bird Songs

Learning to recognize a bird by its song is a satisfying experience.

This can be a challenging observation to use if you are more of a beginner birder, however, it is an exciting skill to learn the different bird songs. This will only come with experience, so don’t feel intimidated if you can’t recognize many bird songs.

Take the time to study the bird; do not rush it. Observe it singing if you can. It has been determined that by watching a bird singing, it helps us memorize the song and associate it with the bird.

The Bird’s Characteristics

Another great way to help ID a bird is to study its behavior, in particular the feeding patterns.

Is it feeding low to the ground? On the ground? In the treetop, or snatching insects out of the air?

Does it hop while on the ground, like the popular American Robin? Does it bob or pump its tail while perched, like the Eastern Phoebe?

Robins hop on the ground in search of worms.

Phoebes wag or pump their tails while perched.

All these observations are powerful clues to helping identify the mystery bird. Reading about these behaviors beforehand and keeping them in mind can help your birding be more enjoyable while also growing your bird life list.

The Bird’s Habitat

A great tool is to observe what kind of habitat your mystery bird is hanging out in. We have such a variety of birds that every habitat attracts some, even your backyard, whether it’s just an open grassy area or surrounded by shrubs, will host birds.

Treetops?

Water?

Open, bushy areas?

All of these play an important part in guiding you towards the identification of a bird.

Chances are if you see a bird in an area, it will be there at other times too. Learn to recognize what habitats birds prefer. By using this information, we can sometimes deduce which bird/s we may have a chance of seeing.

I hope some of these tips will help you on your journey to becoming a birding sensation, so that the next time you hear a bird singing, you can shout out what it is and have ordinary humans look at you with gaping mouths and possibly ask for your autograph… (I don’t think this actually happens.)

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Regardless, always remember, enjoy your time out there with the birds, and practice patience when studying birds. Take time to observe a bird, watch it feed, listen to its singing, and marvel at its beauty.