Home > Bird Care Advice > Bird Identifier Guide
Our bird identifier guide is here to help you find out which bird species have been visiting your garden. We’ve grouped them by colour and size, so have a scroll through and see if you can spot your garden guest!
Brown Featured Birds (Small)
Dunnock
Key Features:
Fact:
The Dunnock is sometimes called a ‘hedge sparrow’ because it likes hedges, but it isn’t a sparrow at all!
Chaffinch
Key Features:
Fact:
Our Chaffinch population doubles in winter, as more birds arrive from other European countries.
House Sparrow
Key Features:
Fact:
House Sparrows have a thick bill, ideal for eating large seeds. As its name suggests, this familiar bird is found around houses.
Wren
Key Features:
Fact:
For such a small bird, the Wren has a very loud voice. Listen out for its trilling song.
Red & Orange Featured Birds (Small)
Goldfinch
Key Features:
Fact:
A group of Goldfinches is called a ‘charm’ which is perfect for these colourful little birds.
Bullfinch
Key Features:
Fact:
British Bullfinches are rather lazy, rarely moving more than a few kilometres during their life.
Robin
Key Features:
Fact:
The Robin’s red breast is a badge of status. Young Robins don’t get theirs until they gain adult plumage.
Green & Blue Featured Birds (Small)
Siskin
Key Features:
Fact:
Siskins are much smaller than Greenfinches, and and appear in only 18% of garden.
Greenfinch
Key Features:
Fact:
Greenfinches were once woodland birds but they have learnt to visit gardens and are now one of our most familiar garden birds.
Great Tit
Key Features:
Fact:
If a Great Tit has a broad black stripe running down to its belly then it is a male. The females have a narrow stripe, which doesn’t reach the legs.
Blue Tit
Key Features:
Fact:
Blue tits can lay as many as 13 eggs. Imagine how hard it must be for the parents to feed that many chicks!
Grey & Black Featured Birds (Small)
Nuthatch
Key Features:
Fact:
The Nuthatch is the only bird that can walk down a tree trunk head-first. It uses its sharp bill to open tree seeds.
Coal Tit
Key Features:
Black cap, white cheeks, black and white back. Its underparts can appear green or pinkish.
Fact:
The Coal Tit is a shy garden visitor. The best way to identify one is by the white patch on the back of its head.
Long Tailed Tit
Key Features:
Fact:
At a staggering 9g, they weigh in at less than a £1 coin. You can find them travelling in big groups!
Medium Garden Birds
Blackbird
Key Features:
Fact:
Female Blackbirds are, in fact, brown! They do share the same yellow features, though.
Song Thrush
Key Features:
Fact:
The Song Thrush lives up to its name, having a tuneful song. It repeats each phrase two or three times over.
Great Spotted Woodpecker
Key Features:
Black and white plumage and red under tail. Males and females can be identified because males have a red marking on their nape whilst the females don’t have this.
Fact:
Did you know, sometimes a woodpecker can be heard drumming into a tree from 400m away?
Starling
Key Features:
Fact:
Starlings are among the most social of birds, and this is particularly noticeable in winter, when they feed in flocks and roost communally.
Large Garden Birds
Woodpigeon
Key Features:
Small, grey heads, white neck patches, a pink breast, and grey bodies.
Fact:
Woodpigeons are one of the few birds to produce ‘crop milk’ for their young. This ‘milk’ is more nutritious than cows’ milk.
Magpie
Key Features:
Petrol black and white plumage. They’re also very noisy!
Fact:
There are lots of folk stories about Magpies. Some people believe that you should say ‘hello Mr. Magpie’ when you see one to avoid bad luck.
Jackdaw
Key Features:
Striking dark silver feathers and a pale eye. No wonder they’re often mentioned in horror stories!
Fact:
Jackdaws are resourceful birds and make the most of any situation – including stealing fish from Puffins! They may also nest in chimneys.
We hope our bird identifier guide helped you distinguish you Blackbird from your Jackdaw, and your Chaffinch from your Dunnock! Learn more about birds and wildlife here.