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.
Plain Pigeon
A large, plainly colored Caribbean pigeon that reveals a white wing patch in flight, a species of conservation concern on several islands.
dove pigeon
Little Spotted Kiwi
The smallest kiwi species, this flightless bird has pale grayish, finely mottled plumage and now survives only on predator-free islands and fenced sanctuaries in New Zealand. Its long, sensitive bill helps it find invertebrate prey at night.
other
Smew
The Smew is a small, striking Eurasian merganser whose male appears almost entirely white, marked with a bold black eye patch and delicate black lines along the back and flanks.
waterfowl
Diamond Dove
One of the smallest doves in the world, a soft gray-brown Australian desert species with tiny white-spotted wings and a bright red ring around the eye.
dove pigeon
Great Slaty Woodpecker
The largest living woodpecker species, a huge slate-grey bird of South and Southeast Asian forests that typically travels in noisy family parties.
woodpecker
Eurasian Spoonbill
A tall, all-white wading bird with a distinctive spoon-shaped bill, recognized by its clean white plumage and, in breeding season, a shaggy nape crest and pale yellow breast band.
wading bird
Hahn's Macaw
The smallest macaw species, mostly green with a small blue forehead patch and a red patch at the bend of the wing.
parrot
Pied Wagtail
The Pied Wagtail is a slender black-and-white songbird best known for its constantly pumping tail, with crisp black-and-white feathering that gives it a strongly contrasting, checkered appearance.
songbird
Green Pheasant
Japan's national bird, a close relative of the Common Pheasant with males showing overall iridescent green body plumage rather than the more typical coppery tones of related species.
gamebird
Bohemian Waxwing
A sleek, crested songbird best known for the bright red, wax-like tips on its wing feathers, which give the species its name.
songbird
Demoiselle Crane
The smallest of the world's cranes, a blue-grey bird with a black head and breast set off by long, drooping white ear-tuft plumes trailing behind the eyes.
wading bird
Barn Owl
An elegant, heart-faced owl whose golden, finely speckled upperparts and ghostly pale underside make its feathers instantly distinctive among owls.
owl
Passenger Pigeon
Once among the most numerous birds in North America, the Passenger Pigeon was a slender, fast-flying species with a long pointed tail and iridescent neck patch, driven to extinction by the early 1900s.
dove pigeon
Goldcrest
Europe's smallest bird, identifiable even from a single tiny feather by its vivid black-bordered crown stripe — orange in males, yellow in females — set against olive-green plumage.
songbird
Green Junglefowl
An Indonesian junglefowl covered in glossy, scale-patterned green-black feathers, with a rounded, multicolored comb unlike any other junglefowl species.
gamebird
Little Auk
The smallest auk of the North Atlantic, a dumpy, tightly packed little bird with a black-and-white pattern and a stubby bill, breeding in immense colonies in the high Arctic.
seabird
Southern Brown Kiwi
A flightless, nocturnal New Zealand bird covered in shaggy, hair-like brown plumage, with a long, flexible bill and nostrils at its tip used to sniff out prey in the soil. It is one of several closely related brown kiwi species found on the South Island and Stewart Island.
other
Golden-tailed Woodpecker
An African woodpecker with bold spotting on the underparts rather than barring, plus a golden tint to the tail feathers that gives the species its name.
woodpecker
Tree Swallow
A cavity-nesting swallow whose upperpart feathers shine in iridescent blue-green while the underparts remain pure white, giving a sharply two-toned appearance.
songbird
Great Rosefinch
One of the largest rosefinches, a high-altitude species with deep crimson-pink male plumage flecked with silvery-white spots.
songbird
Solitary Sandpiper
A dark, finely speckled sandpiper with a bold white eye-ring, often seen alone at small freshwater pools rather than in flocks.
shorebird
Great Spotted Kiwi
The largest of the kiwi species, this flightless New Zealand bird has grayish, hair-like plumage marked with light mottled banding that gives it a more patterned look than its brown relatives. It inhabits rugged mountain forest and subalpine grassland on the South Island.
other
Goliath Heron
The world's largest heron, an imposing bird with a massive bill and rich chestnut head and neck feathering.
wading bird
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