Birds are one of the most
visible groups of wildlife. For many years, birds have provided
enjoyment for Audubon and other bird groups, campers, hikers,
hunters, anglers, backyard birders, and many others. Birds come
in many shapes, sizes, and colors, and announce their presence
with a variety of calls, songs, drummings and displays. Because
of their visibility, birds lend themselves well to those interested
in monitoring wildlife. For NatureMapping, they provide an easy
group to begin NatureMapping monitoring projects in your community.
Here is some basic information to keep in mind when observing
birds and as you plan monitoring projects that involve birds.
With practice, this information will become a natural part of
watching birds.
Bird Identification
Body Size:
First, ask yourself if the bird in question is sparrow-sized (6
inches - these measurements are body length from head to tip of
tail), robin-sized (10 inches), crow-sized (20 inches), or is
it smaller or larger? Some birds are as small as warblers (4 inches)
and as large as eagles and swans (30 to 40 inches). Getting a
general idea of size will help narrow down your choices, and make
it easier once you begin looking at other details of a bird's
appearance. For a very useful guide to bird size, visit the Cornell
Lab of Ornithology's Size
page on the All
About Birds web site.
Silhouette:
Often, a bird's features are hidden by low light levels
or the bird is backlit by a bright, overcast sky or the glare
of the sun. In these cases, it helps to recognize some basic silhouettes,
or shapes, of common birds. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology's All
About Birds web site provides a very nice silhouettes
page. Also, you may purchase a handy set of wildlife silhouettes
that include some of our common birds, which you can tape up on
your walls and practice anytime. These are very nice for use in
the classroom. Click here to get
ordering information.
Plumage:
The next thing you should focus on is plumage, or feathers. Plumage
varies greatly from species to species. When looking at birds,
one should focus on key color patterns and shapes of the plumage.
These patterns and shapes are called field marks. Some
birds have solid colors, while others have stripes on their wings
(wing bars), stripes on their face (chin stripes), stripes across
their eyes (eye stripes and lines), or stripes on the top of their
head (crown lines and stripes). Some birds also have marks on
their tails (terminal bands, etc.), their breast (breast streaks
and spots), or around their eyes (eye rings). Keep in mind that
plumage can change color and pattern with the seasons, so some
of these marks may not be visible all year.
Plumage may also affect the shape of a bird. Does the bird have
a crest (like the cardinal) or "ear" tufts (like the
great-horned owl)? Bird tails can be short and stubby, long and
narrow, or wide and rounded. There are five basic types of bird
tails: Deeply forked, square-tipped, notched, rounded, and pointed.
Finally, bird wings can vary in shape from rounded to pointed,
wide to narrow and short to long. Wing shape can be very important,
especially when observing raptors (falcons, hawks, kites, eagles,
and owls). For details of these field marks and others, visit
the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Field
Marks page on the All
About Birds web site.
Need practice?
Download these pages to practice learning the the anatomical features
of the bird:
Parts
of a Bird
Bird Tails
Head Plumage
Want
to quiz yourself?
Download the following to see how well you know birds:
Parts
of a Bird Quiz
Head Features
Quiz
Beaks:
The beak is another important feature of birds that helps identify
them. The beak tells you a lot about what a bird eats. The short
and pointy beaks of a ring-necked pheasant or mourning dove tell
you that they eat grains and insects off the ground (ground-pecking
birds). Warblers, flycatchers, and vireos also have short, pointy
beaks ideal for catching insects. The sharp, curved beak of a
red-tailed hawk is ideal for tearing flesh, feathers, and fur
from their prey. Thick, short, cone-shaped beaks of cardinals
and other finches tell you they eat large seeds. Long and pointed
or slender beaks of herons and sandpipers are for spearing food
(herons), or probing the sand and silt (sandpipers). The wide,
flat beak of ducks and other waterfowl are ideal for feeding in
various aquatic habitats. Of course, there are variations on these
general categories. To download a page of these basic beak types,
click on Beak
Types.
Legs and Feet:
While you don't often see a bird's feet and legs in the field,
these physical features can be helpful as you work on your identification
skills. Bird legs and feet vary greatly. Legs can be very long,
very short, or hardly noticeable at all. Long-legged birds, such
as herons, sandpipers, and storks, wade in water. Short-legged
birds, such as humming birds, sparrows, and warblers, perch.
Feet can tell you a lot about how birds behave. A duck's webbed
feet are ideal for swimming, talons of raptors are ideal
for hunting prey (grasping), and the feet of woodpeckers
are perfect for climbing trees. While not found in Iowa,
one of the most interesting kinds of feet occur in Jacanas, a
marsh bird that has very long toes, which it uses to walk on floating
vegetation!
Behavior and Displays:
Birds exhibit a variety of interesting behaviors. For example,
the male American woodcock performs an impressive aerial flight,
soaring high and spiraling down, then dances on the ground, calling
“peent!” all in the name of attracting a mate! Eastern
Phoebes and American kestrels have a characteristic "tail
wag," pumping the tail up and down while perched.
Flight pattern can be a clue to the identity of a bird. There
are four basic flight patterns: flapping, hovering, gliding, and
soaring. Hawks, eagles, vultures, cranes and some other large
birds soar. When large groups of birds are soaring, it is called
"kettling." Ducks, geese, and others glide between flapping
and while preparing to land. Hummingbirds and even the American
kestrel hover. The American goldfinch has a distinguishing flight
pattern. They fly in a straight line and dip up and down as they
flap, as do some woodpeckers. Close observation of bird behaviors
can give you valuable clues to properly identify a species. Many
field guides note distinguishing behaviors. Pay close attention
to behavior next time you are determining the identity of a bird.
For more on flight, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Flight
Pattern page on the All
About Birds web site has good diagrams.
The Greater Prairie-Chicken
has a wonderful display. During the mating season, males display
together in a communal lek, where they raise ear-like feathers
above their heads, inflate orange sacs on the sides of their throats,
and stutter-step around while making a deep hooting moan. This
is well worth a drive to see this amazing mating data. A recovering
population exists at the Kellerton Grasslands Bird Conservation
Area in Ringgold County, near
Songs, Calls,
and Drumming:
Often, your best tool available for identifying some birds is
their song or call. Bird songs and calls are as varied as a bird's
appearance, and are especially helpful with very secretive birds.
Some are quite musical, while others are plain, mostly chips and
chirps. Some songs are familiar to us (American robin, northern
cardinal) while others are confusing and elusive (warblers, swallows).
Songs tend to be more musical in quality and are used mainly to
attract mates. Calls tend to be short, monotone, and often stacato.
Ruffed grouse create a drumming sound with their wings, while
woodpeckers drum with their beaks. Some field guides have compiled
cassette or CD sets, which contain the calls, songs, and drummings
of most of Iowa's bird species. Listening to these recordings
can greatly enhance your skills in bird observation and monitoring.
When to Observe Birds
Time of Day:
The timing of bird observation depends on which group of birds
you wish to monitor or observe. In general, diurnal, or daytime
birds are most active at dawn and dusk. They usually are more
vocal and very active in the shrub and tree canopy cover. You'll
have better opportunities to see a greater variety of daytime
birds at these times, but bird-watching can be done any time of
the day! It all depends on what you want to do.
A monitoring project may
be created for nocturnal birds, which are active at night. They
are best identified by sound. Iowa's most common owls (barred,
great-horned, and eastern screech owls) all can be heard at night.
In fact, these three owl species will call back to those who can
mimic their calls. Other nocturnal birds include the whip-poor-will
and common nighthawk.
Seasons:
Keep in mind that bird songs and calls vary from season to season.
For example, most birds are less vocal in winter. Spring nesters
and migrants in the middle of setting up territories, building
nests, and mating, rely on songs and calls to accomplish these
tasks. They are much more vocal. Next time you are bird watching,
pay attention to the amount of song and call activity in the spring
and summer (April - July), compared with winter (November –
February).
Seasonal conditions also affect when and where you will see certain
birds. For example, shore bird and waterfowl species are easier
to locate during spring migration, when wetlands, ponds, and lakes
are typically full of water.
Good Luck and Have Fun!!
The whole point of watching
birds should be because it is fun! Bird watching is a great way
to take in every part of the outdoors, from the weather and other
wildlife, to the wildflowers. Good birding!
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