Feather & Bird Encyclopedia
Search and identify feathers by species — with feather type, plumage, colours, size, habitat, and how to tell them apart in the field.
Little Bee-eater
A small, brightly colored bee-eater of African grasslands, lacking the long tail streamers of its larger relatives.
other
Arctic Tern
A slender, long-distance migrant famous for traveling between Arctic breeding grounds and Antarctic waters each year, distinguished from the similar Common Tern by an all-red bill and more uniformly translucent primaries.
seabird
Rufous-capped Warbler
The Rufous-capped Warbler is a lively, tail-cocking warbler of brushy scrub habitat, marked by a rufous crown and bold white facial markings.
songbird
Princess Parrot
The Princess Parrot is a slender, pastel-colored parrot of Australia's arid interior, notable for its soft pink throat and long, elegant tail.
parrot
Palm Warbler
A ground-foraging wood-warbler with a rufous cap in breeding plumage and constant tail-bobbing, breeding in northern bogs and wintering in the southeastern US.
songbird
Magnificent Frigatebird
A large, aerial seabird with long angular wings and a deeply forked tail, glossy black in males and marked with a white breast patch in females.
seabird
Little Wattlebird
The Little Wattlebird is a large, grey-brown honeyeater with a rufous wing patch and a long tail, best known for its harsh, coughing calls.
songbird
Lilac-breasted Roller
One of Africa's most colorful birds, with a lilac breast, turquoise belly, and long tail streamers, often perched conspicuously on bare branches.
other
Common Sandpiper
The Old World counterpart to the Spotted Sandpiper, this small brown-and-white shorebird constantly bobs its tail as it forages along freshwater edges.
shorebird
Black-throated Magpie-Jay
A close relative of the White-throated Magpie-Jay, distinguished by a bold black throat and breast band and an even longer, more elaborate tail.
corvid
Black Vulture
An all-black scavenger with a short, square tail and distinctive whitish patches near the wingtips, often seen circling in groups or gathered at carcasses.
raptor
Hairy Woodpecker
A larger look-alike of the Downy Woodpecker, distinguished by its longer bill and plain, unspotted white outer tail feathers.
woodpecker
Great Crested Flycatcher
A large woodland flycatcher with a bushy crest, gray throat, and bright yellow belly, showing rufous flashes in the wings and tail.
songbird
Eastern Kingbird
A bold, dark-backed flycatcher with clean white underparts and a distinctive white terminal band across an otherwise black tail.
songbird
Abyssinian Roller
A vividly blue roller of the African Sahel, similar to the Lilac-breasted Roller but with a plainer blue throat and longer tail streamers.
other
White-necked Jacobin
A striking tropical forest hummingbird whose male combines a deep blue-violet head with a bold white collar and mostly white underparts and tail.
hummingbird
Scarlet Tanager
A jewel of the eastern deciduous forest canopy, the breeding male Scarlet Tanager combines brilliant scarlet body plumage with jet-black wings and tail.
songbird
Indian Robin
A small, confiding songbird of dry open country in South Asia, glossy black or brown with a chestnut patch under the tail that flashes as it forages on the ground.
songbird
Hooded Crow
The grey-and-black counterpart of the Carrion Crow, easily identified by pale ash-grey body feathers contrasting sharply with a black head, wings, and tail.
corvid
Mistle Thrush
The largest and boldest-marked of the common European thrushes, with large, rounded blackish spots on cream underparts and white corners visible on the outer tail feathers.
songbird
Masked Booby
The largest booby species, with a clean white body set off by black flight feathers, a black tail, and a dark facial mask around the bill.
seabird
Gray Catbird
A slim, uniformly slate-gray songbird named for its cat-like mewing call, with a black cap and a hidden rufous patch beneath the tail.
songbird
Egyptian Vulture
The smallest and most lightly built Old World vulture, with creamy-white body feathers, black flight feathers, and a distinctive wedge-shaped tail.
raptor
Brown Thrasher
A large, rich rufous-brown songbird with heavily streaked underparts and a long tail, often heard singing elaborate phrases from a high perch.
songbird