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If you enjoy watching birds, more than likely you are going to want to learn how you can identify them. It can be exciting to find a bird you haven’t seen before, but it’s even more exciting to be able to identify them. It’s not always a simple thing to do, though. It can be frustrating if you don’t have the proper information to work with. A good field guide can be your friend in this regard. However, you’ll have to have some knowledge of your own even to be able to accurately use the field guide. So, if you are a beginner at bird watching, the following are a few tips that can help you more accurately identify birds.

What’s the Bird’s Size?

One of the most important factors in identifying a bird will be its size. Is it about the size of a large ostrich, maybe chicken size, about the size of a small sparrow, or perhaps the size of a robin? Would you characterize the bird as long or short, plump or skinny? The entire body should be taken into consideration, including the size of the beak, the size of the tail, and the size and shape of the wings as well.

What Color or Pattern Is the Bird?

The colors are another important thing to note when trying to identify birds. Look at the colors and try to match them with the size and shape. As you become more experienced, you’ll learn what colors certain types of birds usually are, which will help you identify them; sometimes you’ll even be able to do this by color alone! However, colors, too, can be tricky. The lighting may affect the color that the bird appears. Be sure to check the colors that are on each part of the body as well. Are the legs a certain color, the wings a specific color, or does it have any specific markings anywhere on the body? With a good pair of birding binoculars you can take your time to study the birds up close without scaring them away.

What’s Your Location?

Believe it or not, your location can actually help you identify birds as well. Take a look around and figure out where you are. Are you out on the water, deep inside a large forest, or are you perhaps doing some backyard birding? There are certain birds that live in specific habitats. If the bird’s in the water, wading or swimming, can it actually climb a tree, too? Does it fly, and if so, where and how? How does it move its tail? All of these things will help you when you want to identify the birds you watch.

Use Your Ears

Beginners at bird watching need to know to listen to birds too. Many species of bird can be identified by their songs. If you listen closely, you might even see some birds that you would never have seen otherwise. It’s not always helpful to listen when you identify a bird, but it’s another piece of information that can definitely help you.

Next time you go on a bird watching adventure, keep these tips in mind to help you in your efforts. They’ll help you identify the birds you see and have a more fun and rewarding experience out in the wild.