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.
Satyr Tragopan
A vivid crimson Himalayan pheasant whose male is covered in white-centered black-bordered spots and can inflate a strikingly patterned blue throat lappet during display.
gamebird
Great Argus
A pheasant of Southeast Asian rainforest famous for the male's extraordinarily elongated wing feathers, patterned with large eye-like spots and displayed in a dramatic fan during courtship.
gamebird
Hoatzin
An unusual, primitive-looking bird of Amazonian and Orinoco wetlands, with a spiky rufous crest, bright blue bare facial skin, and reddish eyes, known for chicks with clawed wings used to climb.
other
Himalayan Monal
A high-altitude Himalayan pheasant whose male gleams with iridescent green, purple, and bronze plumage, topped by an unusual crest of wire-like, spatula-tipped feathers.
gamebird
Great Kiskadee
A large, boldly patterned flycatcher named for its loud, ringing call, with a black-and-white striped head, sulfur-yellow underparts, and rufous edging on the wings and tail. It is a common and conspicuous bird from Texas to Argentina.
songbird
Eurasian Curlew
Europe and Asia's largest curlew, with a long downcurved bill and streaky grayish-brown plumage, best known for its evocative bubbling call across moorlands and mudflats.
shorebird
Nightingale
The Nightingale is a plain brown songbird celebrated for its powerful, richly varied nighttime song, far more often heard than seen in dense thickets across Europe.
songbird
Australian Raven
A large, widespread Australian raven known for long, shaggy throat hackle feathers and a distinctive mournful, drawn-out call.
corvid
Eurasian Scops Owl
The Eurasian Scops Owl is a small, migratory owl of southern Europe and parts of Asia, known for its cryptic bark-patterned plumage and a monotonous, far-carrying whistled call.
owl
Temminck's Tragopan
A vividly colored Asian pheasant with rich orange-red plumage dotted in pearly white spots, best known for the male's inflatable blue throat lappet used in courtship display.
gamebird
Greater Yellowlegs
A tall, alert shorebird with bright yellow legs and a heavy, slightly upturned bill, often the first to sound an alarm call at a wetland.
shorebird
Eurasian Bittern
A large, superbly camouflaged heron of Old World reedbeds, more often detected by its deep booming call than seen in its dense marsh habitat.
wading bird
Crested Argus
A secretive forest pheasant renowned for the male's extraordinarily long tail feathers, among the longest of any bird, patterned with rows of pale eyespots. A tall, erectile crest and bare blue facial skin round out its distinctive appearance.
gamebird
Whistling Heron
A pale, pastel-toned South American heron named for its whistled call, more often found striding through open grassland than wading in deep water.
wading bird
Rufous Treepie
A long-tailed corvid of the Indian subcontinent, warm rufous-orange with a black head and a pale wing patch, often heard before it is seen thanks to its loud, varied calls.
corvid
Sandhill Crane
A tall North American crane, gray overall but often stained rusty-brown from preening with iron-rich mud, famous for its massive migratory staging flocks and rolling bugle call.
wading bird
Hadada Ibis
A loud, common African ibis best known for its raucous dawn call and the iridescent bronze-green patch on its otherwise plain grey-brown wings.
wading bird
California Towhee
The California Towhee is a large, plain brown sparrow relative common in West Coast gardens and chaparral, best known for its rufous undertail and persistent chip calls.
songbird
Chimango Caracara
A common, uniformly brown caracara of southern South America's open country and cities, often seen scavenging in fields, parks, and roadsides.
raptor
Painted Bunting
Often called the most colorful songbird in North America, the male Painted Bunting shows a blue head, red underparts, and green back all on the same bird, while females are a uniform bright green.
songbird
Whistling Kite
A common, pale kite of Australia and New Guinea best known for its far-carrying whistled call, with buff-brown body feathers contrasting against darker flight feathers in flight.
raptor
Roadside Hawk
A small, common, and conspicuous hawk of the Neotropics, often seen perched along roadsides, identified by its gray-brown chest contrasting with a rufous-barred belly and narrowly banded tail.
raptor
House Wren
A plain grayish-brown wren common in yards and gardens across the Americas, identifiable by fine dark barring on its short, often-cocked tail feathers.
songbird
Spotted Eagle-Owl
A common, adaptable eagle-owl of African savanna and rocky country, mottled grayish-brown with bold dark spotting, often seen roosting near human settlements.
owl