Brant: This small goose has dark brown upperparts and brown-barred, pale gray underparts. They may eat peanuts from a tray feeder and eat from a suet block. Food and feeder preference: Mourning Doves eat seeds almost exclusively. Larger than American Robin. Males with red (sometimes orange or rarely yellow) crown, chest, rump. Identification: This is a key species for comparing with an unknown bird. Feeds on insects, ticks, spiders, lizards, fruits, berries and seeds. Attract with suet feeder. Habitat, range & behavior: Thickets, especially near water. Tail is long and pointed. Thick-billed Murre: Medium-sized seabird with black upperparts, head and neck, and white underparts. As a general rule, are female birds of all species slightly different in colour to males do you know, or does this depend on the bird? May eat from thistle socks. Red-necked Grebe: This large grebe has dark gray upperparts and cap, white lower face and nape, white underparts with gray flanks, red-brown neck and dark brown eyes. Eats seeds, insects, caterpillars. Larger than goldfinches and chickadees. Gray wings, tail. Females are larger and more brightly colored than males. Bookmark this page to come back. Feeds on insects and seeds. Black cap that extends below eyes, down nape; pale gray upperparts that are darker at the wingtips; short, stout black bill and black legs, feet; long wings with very long outer primaries. 17 kinds with photos! Dark morph is red-brown with white flight feathers. Lower face and front of neck are white; black cap extends below eye. Brown Creeper: Small, tree-clinging bird with brown-streaked upperparts and white underparts. The male (shown in background) has a bronze-green back, bright red eyering, rump and underparts. Dark juvenile is darker overall; has gray throat and lacks white belly. The wings are dark with two white bars. White chin and throat. Greater Scaup: This large diving duck has a glossy green-black head, white sides and belly, black tail, neck and breast, barred gray flanks and back. Scissor-tailed Flycatcher: Medium flycatcher with pale gray upperparts and head, white underparts and throat, salmon-pink sides and flanks, and dark brown wings with white edges. May bully smaller birds. Purple Sandpiper: Medium sandpiper, upperparts are scaled gray-brown, crown is dark, and white underparts are streaked. Band-tailed Pigeon: Large dove, small, purple-gray head and broad neck with distinctive, thin white band on nape. Tail is black with white outer tail feathers. Round head on short neck. Shape: Stocky with large head and short stiff tail. Body is green-black overall with silver-gray feathers appearing speckled and grizzled on upper back and forewings. Color: Striped tan and brown above, pale gray below. Wings and tail are edged with olive-yellow. Flies in straight line or V formation. Food and feeder preference: Feed mostly on insects and spiders. Habitat, range & behavior: You'll find small flocks on wires, in short tree tops and in bushes. Its cawing call is familiar to most people. Legs and feet are pink. Crown is black and nape is pale green. Different ones in every location. Back of neck is black. For a birder who is just starting out, the colour of the bird will probably be the first piece of information that will be used in trying to put a name to a bird. Feeds primarily on pond weeds. Slightly smaller than domestic city pigeon. The female (shown in foreground) has green upperparts, yellow-green underparts and dark wings. Chickadees cannot chew as sparrows do, so they take one large sunflower seed at a time from your feeder and fly off to a branch to pound it open with their stout bills. Bullock's Oriole: Medium oriole, mostly bright orange with black crown, eye-line, throat stripe, back, and central tail. The eyes are yellow and the bill is blue-gray with a black tip. Northern Mockingbird (31%)13. Food and feeder preference: Primarily insects when available, often feeding on the ground. Least Tern: This small tern has slate-gray upperparts, white underparts; crown and nape are black, and the forehead is white. Legs and feet are pale gray. Western Wood-Pewee: Medium-sized flycatcher with dull olive-gray upperparts and pale olive-gray underparts. Harris's Sparrow: Large sparrow with dark-streaked, brown upperparts and white underparts with dark-streaked sides. Kick up leaves to search under for food. Shape: Medium build with a medium-long notched tail. Forages by scratching on the ground. Body complexly barred and streaked with red and white. Crawls over tree branches and head-first down tree trunks searching for insects. Bill is long and black. A common bird, but variable, and similar to many other streaked brown sparrows. It has a swift direct flight with rapid wing beats. Red nape, extending forward on crown on male. Bill: Short, heavy, conical, pink. About the same size as a Blue Jay or one of the Scrub-Jays. Yellow eye. House Finch (25%)18. Short, dark brown tail, legs are feathered to the toes. Black legs, webbed feet. The tail is dark brown and pointed in flight. It is found coast-to-coast throughout the year across most of the middle lower-48 states. Habitat, range & behavior: They prefer edge habitat with scattered trees and bushes, parks and residential areas. Bill: Straight and fairly slender, curved at the tip. White-throated Sparrow (40%)6. Hi everyone - I am wondering if you could help me as a 'beginner in all things birds'. You may attract mockingbirds to your feeder with grapes, raisins, apple slices. The crown, face and neck are buff with fine brown streaks. Not all birds can be found in backyards. This one is common in the southeastern United States. The upperwings are gray with black primaries and white secondaries. Surprisingly I have not managed to sight a sparrow in my garden yet for some reason - maybe I keep missing them? The following lists contain additional common birds you might see flying over your yard or in a nearby neighborhood. Full list of brown birds found in Australia. Bill is pink. Head and neck are bright rust-brown during summer.