Cardinal
Medium-sized finch-like songbird with long tail
Strongly conical, seed-eating bill
Crested head

Crow
Large size
Stout body, medium-length tail
Heavy, strong bill

Dabbling Duck
Typical duck shape, with heavy body
Short tail, held above water's surface
Horizontally flattened bill

Dove
Plump body, with short legs and neck
Small head
Pointed wings
Slight swelling at base of upper bill

Finch
Small to medium size
Conical, seed-eating bill
Notched tail

Grackle
Slender body, long tail
Strong, slightly curved bill

Jay
Mid-sized crow-relative with long tail
Some have crest on head

Kestrel
Small bird of prey
Typical streamlined falcon shape, with long pointed wings and long tail
Short raptorial (sharply hooked) bill, feet with sharp talons

Kingbird
Medium-sized perching bird with relatively large head
Broadly-flattened, typical flycatcher bill

Kingfisher
Large head, often with shaggy crest
Very short legs and tail
Long, strong, pointed bill

Meadowlark
Chunky body, short tail
Strong legs
Straight, strong, pointed bill

Mockingbird
Long, slender body, long legs and tail
Small, slender bill

Nuthatch
Small size, chunky body, short tail
Straight, slightly upturned bill
Strong legs and feet
Clings to tree trunks, usually head downwards

Plover
Small to medium-sized shorebird
Relatively large head, short neck
Short, rather thick bill, sometimes slightly swollen at tip
Ground dwelling

Quail
Chunky, rounded body, with short tail
Small head, very short neck
Ground dwelling

Screech-Owl
Small nocturnal bird of prey
Chunky body, large head
Feathered tufts on head resemble ears
Upright stance

Shrike
Medium-sized predatory songbird
Relatively large head
Perches horizontally
Bill with strong hook at tip

Starling
Chunky body, short tail
Strong legs and feet
Straight bill

Swallow
Small size
Very slender body, short legs, and long, pointed wings
Small bill with wide gape

Vireo
Small, tree-dwelling bird
Small, cylindrical bill (slight hook at tip, visible only at close range)
Perches horizontally, often leans forward while foraging

Warbler
Very small, tree-dwelling bird
Perches horizontally
Slender insect-eating bill

Woodpecker
Clings to tree trunks, head upwards
Uses tail as prop as it hitches its way up tree trunks
Strong but short legs and strong feet
Straight, strong bill for excavating wood

Wren
Very small size
Compact body, with relatively long legs
Thin, slightly curved bill
Holds tail upright
Skulking habit


Using Field Marks to Identify Birds
In order to describe a bird, ornithologists divide its body into topographical regions: beak (or bill), head, back, wings, tail, and legs. To help with identification, many of these regions are divided still further. This diagram of regions of the bird's body shows some of the commonly used descriptive terms.

Birds display a huge variety of patterns and colors, which they have evolved in part to recognize other members of their own species. Birders can use these features - known as field marks - to help distinguish species.

Pay particular attention to the field marks of the head and the field marks of the wing.

Field Marks of the Head When identifying an unknown bird, the following field marks of the head are particularly important: * Eyebrow stripe (or superciliary line, above the eye) * Eyeline (line through the eye) * Crown stripe (stripe in the midline of the head) * Eyering (ring of color around eye) * Throat patch * Color of the lore (area between base of beak and eye) * Whisker mark (also called mustache or malar stripe) * Color of upper and lower beak * Presence or absence of crest Beak shape and size are also important identifying characteristics.

Field Marks of the Wing In a few groups, notably warblers and vireos, the presence of wing markings gives positive identification even if the bird is in non-breeding plumage. In other groups, such as flycatchers and sparrows, the absence of any wing markings may be an important distinguishing characteristic. Note the presence or absence of the following: * Wingbars * Wing patches

Identifying Bird Groups by Posture

Striking a Pose
Posture clues can help place a bird in its correct group. Watch an American Robin, a common member of the thrush family, strut across a yard. Notice how it takes several steps, then adopts an alert, upright stance with its breast held forward. Other thrushes have similar postures, as do larks and shorebirds.

Vertical Posture
Certain bird groups have distinctive vertical posture when perched on a branch. Flycatchers, hawks, and owls typically sit in an upright pose with tails pointing straight down.

Horizontal Posture
Other birds perch horizontally on vegetation with tails pointing out at an angle, for instance vireos, shrikes, crows, and warblers.

Distinguishing Similar Birds
Distant perched crows and hawks may look alike, but paying attention to their different postures may help to tell them apart. The Red-tailed Hawk perches upright, whereas the similarly-sized American Crow perches horizontally.

Using Familiar Birds as Size Reference
Once you have assigned a bird to its correct group, size can be a clue to its actual species. Be aware, though, that size can be difficult to determine in the field, especially under poor lighting conditions or at a distance. Size comparisons are most useful when the unknown bird is seen side-by-side with a familiar species. In the absence of that, you can use the sizes of well-known birds, such as the House Sparrow, American Robin, and American Crow, as references when trying to identify an unfamiliar bird.

Woodpeckers: A crow-sized woodpecker would be a Pileated, but one the size of a sparrow might be a Downy Woodpecker (or a Ladder-backed Woodpecker in the Southwest).

Confusing Coloration: A yellow-and-black finch smaller than a sparrow is probably an American Goldfinch. Evening Grosbeaks have similar colors and patterns, but are almost robin-sized.

In-between Sizes: Sometimes you need two reference birds for comparison. A Cedar Waxwing is bigger than a sparrow but smaller than a robin. A Blue Jay is larger than a robin but smaller than a crow.

Using Flight Patterns as Identification Clues
Most birds fly in a straight line, flapping in a constant rhythm, but certain bird groups have characteristic flight patterns that can help identify them. Birds of prey may be identified by the characteristic way they hold their wings when viewed flying toward you. Here are some useful identification tips:

Up-and-down Flight Pattern
Finches exhibit a steep, roller-coaster flight, whereas woodpeckers generally fly in a pattern of moderate rises and falls.

Flapping Versus Gliding
Flying accipiters such as Sharp-shinned Hawks, Cooper's Hawks, and Northern Goshawks typically make several wing flaps followed by a glide. Buteos, such as the Red-tailed Hawk, are usually seen soaring. Dashed lines indicate flapping, solid lines soaring.

Crow Versus Raven
Flight patterns can sometime distinguish similar species. The American Crow, for instance, flies with deliberate, flapping wingbeats. The similar Common Raven often alternates flapping with hawk-like soaring.

Head-on Flight Profiles
Head-on flight profiles may also give identity clues. Soaring Turkey Vultures may look like hawks, but they hold their wings in a shallow V-shape, whereas most hawks and eagles hold their wings out flat. Black Vultures also have a flatter, more hawk-like profile. Northern Harriers hold their wings in more of a V-shape, but their slow, flapping flight near the ground generally gives away their identity. Notice how the Bald Eagle's profile is even more flat than that of a typical hawk, such as the Red-tailed Hawk.

Using Habitat Clues to Aid Identification
In general, each species of bird occurs only within certain types of habitat. And each plant community - whether abandoned field, mixed deciduous/coniferous forest, desert, or freshwater marsh, for instance - contains its own predictable assortment of birds. Learn which birds to expect in each habitat. You may be able to identify an unfamiliar bird by eliminating from consideration species that usually live in other habitats. (Be aware, though, that during spring and fall migration birds often settle down when they get tired and hungry, regardless of habitat.)

Below are some common birds of common plant communities. As you'll see, bird groups such as sparrows, wrens, hawks, and warblers are common to each community, but the actual species differ depending on the habitat.

Abandoned Field
Agricultural fields no longer used for farming form an "old field" habitat as they slowly revert to forest. In the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic states, the original grasses are replaced with plants such as goldenrod, mullein, asters, and brambles (blackberry). Thickets of woody shrubs - such as honeysuckle and multiflora rose - develop, mixed with small trees such as red cedar, black locust and hawthorn. Birds found there include Field Sparrow, House Wren, Red-tailed Hawk, and Blue-winged Warbler.

Mixed Deciduous / Coniferous Forest
In a broad band stretching from the Great Lakes region eastward to New England and the Maritime Provinces of Canada, the southern deciduous woodlands and the coniferous forests of the north meet and intermingle. There broad-leafed trees such as oaks, hickories, beeches, and maples mix with conifers such as spruces, firs, and hemlocks. Birds that live there include Winter Wren, Northern Goshawk, White-throated Sparrow, and Black-throated Green Warbler.

Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert is a hot, dry region covering 120,000 square miles in southwestern Arizona and southeastern California, as well as most of Baja California and the western half of the state of Sonora, Mexico. Tall saguaro cactus and spiny cholla cactus are common, mixed with trees such as ironwoods and palo verdes, and shrubs such as saltbush, creosote bush, and mesquite. Black-throated Sparrow, Cactus Wren, Harris's Hawk, and Lucy's Warbler can be found there.

Freshwater Marsh
A freshwater marsh is a treeless wetland whose shallow water supports dense stands of mostly emergent plants (rooted in mud but with most of their foliage above water). Marshes are found throughout North America, often forming when ponds and shallow lakes fill in, although beavers may also play an important role in their formation. Typical vegetation includes cattails, bulrushes, sedges and reeds. In deeper pools submerged and floating aquatic plants occur, including water lilies, pondweed, arrowhead, duckweed, smartweed, bladderwort, pickerel-weed, water-shield, and sweet flag. Bands of shrubs such as alder and willow occur at drier marsh edges. Swamp Sparrow, Northern Harrier, Marsh Wren, and Common Yellowthroat are typical residents.

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