Beginner’s Guide To Identifying Birds

If you enjoy watching birds, more than likely you are going to want to learn how you can identify them. While it can be exciting to be able to identify birds, it isn’t always a simple task; in fact, it can be downright frustrating much of the time. Of course having a good field guide is an excellent idea. However, you’ll have to have some knowledge of your own even to be able to accurately use the field guide. So, if you are a beginner at bird watching, the following are a few tips that can help you more accurately identify birds.

What’s the Bird’s Size?

One of the most important factors in identifying a bird will be its size. Is it the size of a robin? A chicken? Perhaps an ostrich? Size is important here, as is the ability to evaluate the body type of the bird you are watching. Would you characterize the bird as long or short, plump or skinny? Take the entire body into account, including the beak, tail and wings (both size and shape) when making this evaluation.

Note the Colors

Another tip that will help you to more accurately identify birds is to take note of the colors that are on the bird. As you learn which colors certain birds tend to be you’ll soon learn how to identify some birds by color alone. However, colors can trick you from time to time. The lighting may affect the color that the bird appears. Be sure to check the colors that are on each part of the body as well. Are the legs a certain color, the wings a specific color, or does it have any specific markings anywhere on the body?

What’s Your Location?

Knowing where you bird watch is also going to be a help when you identify birds. Where are you when you bird watch? Are you on the water, in your front yard, inside a large forest? Certain birds stay within one particular habitat. If the bird’s in the water, wading or swimming, can it actually climb a tree, too? Does it fly, and if so, where and how? How does it move its tail? All of these things will help you when you want to identify the birds you watch.

Use Your Ears

One of the most important things to keep in mind when you’re watching birds is that how they sound can help you figure out what they are, too. Every bird species has a unique song; if you listen, you may be able to identify the bird you’re watching just by what you can hear. If you listen closely, you might even see some birds that you would never have seen otherwise. It’s not always helpful to listen when you identify a bird, but it’s another piece of information that can definitely help you.

Next time you go on a bird watching adventure, keep these tips in mind to help you in your efforts. They’ll help you identify the birds you see, and this will make it a much more rewarding and fun experience for you, too.