Bird Identification

Acorn Ecology Certificate

Course Self-Study Tutorial

Getting Started

• First try and get to know the birds in your garden and in your local area this will

give you a good basic knowledge and practice at identifying the commoner

birds.

• The most important thing to remember when trying to identify a bird is to

spend as long as you can looking at it or listening to it. Try and remember the

details before reaching for your bird guide, this will also help you remember the

same species next time you see it.

• Take a note book and pen. Note down details of birds and species you see, it

is good practice to keep records and is a valuable learning tool.

• Be prepared! This course will give you some guidance on how to learn to

identify birds, not on specific species ID, this is something you can learn in your

own time at your own pace.

Make an investment:

• A good bird guide is essential.

• A pair of binoculars with a range of

between 8 – 10 and magnification of

between 30 – 50 (remember that higher

magnification is not necessarily better, use

what you feel comfortable with).

( and a telescope is good for water birds.)

Getting Started

Getting started/Hints on

Birdwatching

Hints on bird watching:

• Best time of year for different types – habitats e.g estuaries in winter,

woodland in spring.

• Best places – reserves, estuaries, woodlands

•What to wear – dark, non-rustling clothes

•How to behave – walk slowly, keep your distance, no sudden

movements

•Go with an expert – bird walks, classes, events

•Join BTO/RSPB – immerse yourself in birds, training, events

We will go through a few key things that will help you learn to identify birds:

• Habitat / location

• Size & shape

• Plumage

• Calls & songs

• Behaviour

Identifying birds

Where is it?

Look at the habitat and find out about species that you could

potentially see there and familiarise yourself with them.

Woodland Heathland

Reedbed Coast

Where is it?

• Look at distribution maps considering where you are and the season.

• All good books will have a guide on how to use distribution maps.

• Remember that some birds may be seen outside of their normal distribution

and season, but it may be worth considering if it is another similar species.

• Also look at the rarity of a species; if it is a ‘vagrant’ this means it is an

accidental visitor and you are not likely to see it. Always start by assuming it’s a

common species.

Size and shape

Waders Geese Passerines Herons Woodpeckers

Owls Raptors Divers Grebes

Ducks Thrushes Corvids Swallows

Families have distinctive shapes

Legs and feet

Legs and feet are other distinctive features.

Avocet – Blue legs

Peregrine – Baggy trousers

Oystercatcher – Red legs

Yellow-legged Gulls - ….!

Redshank – Red “shanks”

Legs and feet

Feet ... Anatomy of a bird’s leg.

Beaks

Features such as the beak,

each adapted for different diets

are also a distinctive feature.

Beaks

There are some very

distinctive beaks,

and some can be

used as a very easy

identification feature.

Curlew Little Egret Shoveller

Crossbill Puffin

Wing shape

Wing shape is an adaptation to the lifestyle of the

species and in many cases it is very distinctive.

Wing shape in flight

Swift

Golden Eagle

Manx Shearwater

Marsh Harrier

Honey Buzzard

When you can identify the different

shapes and sizes of different families

you can begin to look at the plumage

in more detail, above are some

descriptive words.

Summer plumage dunlin

Winter plumage dunlin

Plumage

Plumage

Features such as the supercilium and

the orbital ring may be key in

identifying a bird.

Sardinian

warbler; note

bold orbital ring Aquatic warbler;

note prominent

supercilium

Willow warbler Wood warbler Chiffchaff

Willow warbler Wood warbler Chiffchaff

Song Some birds can’t be told apart by their plumage, and plumage may vary between

individuals, but the songs are often very distinctive and a key ID feature

Song • It is a good idea to familiarise yourself with bird songs and calls and you will

find by doing this you will see more birds.

• You can listen to bird songs online at www.rspb.org.uk and there are a number

of bird song CDs available as well as an iPhone App.

•Put your CD onto an MP3 player and take it out in the field with you (make sure

the tracks are labelled with the bird’s name).

•When listening to a bird song CD you may want to put a track on repeat and

read the description of the bird song from your book. For example if the book

describes the song as “chattering and warbling” listening to it will help you

understand what this means and you will get to know the different descriptive

words.

• When you are watching a bird, see if it calls or sings, if it does, try and

remember what it sounds like.

•Don’t be too daunted! It sounds hard but you will be surprised by how many you

probably already recognise.

Behaviour

Dipper; bobs up and

down on rocks in rivers

Pochard; dives and blows

bubbles underwater

Gannet; dives out of the

air head first into the

water

Green woodpecker; flies with

heavy undulations

Treecreeper; does what it

says on the tin!

Kestrel; hovers before

diving for its prey

Some birds are recognisable from their behaviour alone…

Behaviour 2 Here are some more behaviour

examples…

Skylark – singing in flight

Peregrine Falcon - stooping Starling – mass flocking

Pipit – skulking and wags tail Wagtail – wags it tail

Merganser – dives, tail submerged

Summary

• It is important to LOOK and LISTEN when identifying birds. When

you are looking at a bird you are not familiar with take note of its key

identification features; size, shape, plumage, legs, feet, beak, song

or call and its behaviour. The more time you spend looking, the

faster you will get to know each species.

• Preparation is key, if you find yourself without your bird book then a

note book and pen is a good substitute, now you know what you’re

looking for.

• Bird watching can be very rewarding so keep and open mind and

try to enjoy yourself!

References

Books:

•Bird Guide – Collins

•Bird songs and calls of Britain and

Northern Europe – Collins

Web sites:

•www.rspb.org.uk

•www.bto.org

•www.birdsofbritain.co.uk