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.
Northern Raven
The largest songbird in the world, with massive black flight feathers and a distinctive wedge-shaped tail, plus shaggy throat feathers unlike any other corvid.
corvid
Common Raven
One of the largest songbirds in the world, the Common Raven produces long, heavy, glossy-black feathers with a pronounced iridescent sheen and a distinctive wedge-shaped tail profile.
corvid
Chihuahuan Raven
A desert raven of the American Southwest, smaller than the Common Raven, with hidden white feather bases at the neck.
corvid
Forest Raven
A stocky, forest-associated raven of Tasmania and a limited part of the southeastern mainland, similar in appearance to the Australian Raven.
corvid
Australian Raven
A large, widespread Australian raven known for long, shaggy throat hackle feathers and a distinctive mournful, drawn-out call.
corvid
Fan-tailed Raven
A stocky, short-tailed raven of desert and rocky habitats, easily recognized in flight by its notably short, broad, fan-shaped tail.
corvid
Little Raven
The smallest of Australia's raven species, common across farmland and open woodland in the continent's southeast.
corvid
Thick-billed Raven
The largest raven species, endemic to the Ethiopian highlands, known for its massive, deep bill marked with a pale crescent patch.
corvid
White-necked Raven
A large African raven with a distinctive white patch on the nape, often found near cliffs and mountainous terrain.
corvid
Brown-necked Raven
A desert-adapted raven of North Africa and the Middle East, showing a subtle brownish tinge on the neck and back distinct from purer black ravens.
corvid
Northern Cardinal
The Northern Cardinal is a stocky, crested songbird whose males shed brilliant all-red feathers while females drop more subdued brown feathers tinged with red on the wings, tail and crest.
songbird
Northern Wheatear
The Northern Wheatear is an open-country songbird best known for its bold white rump and black-and-white tail pattern, flashed conspicuously in flight above blue-grey or buff-brown body plumage.
songbird
Northern Harrier
The Northern Harrier, sometimes called the Marsh Hawk, is a slim, long-winged raptor of open grassland and marsh, known for its low, tilting flight, a distinctive white rump patch in all plumages, and an owl-like facial disc that helps it hear prey in the grass.
raptor
Northern Shoveler
A dabbling duck best known for its oversized, spoon-shaped bill, with males showing a bold green head, white breast, and chestnut flanks over pale blue wing patches.
waterfowl
Northern Bobwhite
A small, well-known quail of eastern and central North America, named for its whistled call, with males showing a bold white throat and eyebrow stripe against a reddish-brown, barred body.
gamebird
Common Redpoll
A small, hardy northern finch with a red cap and black chin, known for irruptive winter movements into temperate regions at feeders.
songbird
Common Yellowthroat
A small, skulking warbler best known for the male's bold black facial mask bordered in white, paired with a bright yellow throat.
songbird
Common Gull
A neat, medium-sized gull of Europe and Asia known as Mew Gull in North American populations, the Common Gull shows pale gray back feathers, black wingtips with white spots, and a gentle, rounded head shape.
seabird
Common Kestrel
The Common Kestrel is a small falcon best known for its ability to hover in place while hunting, with long pointed wings and a distinctive tail that is blue-grey with a black band in males but barred rufous-brown in females.
raptor
Common Chiffchaff
A tiny, plain olive-brown warbler best known by its song, with dark legs and only faint facial markings — one of the least boldly patterned small European songbirds.
songbird
Baltimore Oriole
A vividly colored eastern songbird whose adult males show a striking contrast of flame-orange and black feathers, best known for weaving an elaborate hanging nest.
songbird
Northern Giant Petrel
An enormous, bulky tubenose with a massive pale bill, showing mottled brown plumage that lightens on the head and neck as birds mature.
seabird
Northern Long-eared Owl
The Northern Long-eared Owl is the North American form of the Long-eared Owl, a slender, cryptically patterned owl with long, closely-set ear tufts that roosts communally in dense conifers.
owl
Common Snipe
The Eurasian counterpart of Wilson's Snipe, sharing the same superb camouflage pattern and winnowing tail-feather display, distinguished mainly by subtle wing and tail feather details assessable in the hand.
shorebird