Venture around your neighborhood to spot more birds and practice your identification skills. 

With your notepad and writing utensil in tow, take a walk around your neighborhood and record the different birds you spot on your walk. Do you recognize some of the birds? Where have you seen them before? Do you know the name of this bird? 

To help you keep track of your observations, set your notepad up into four columns to record the four basic categories of bird identification: size and shape, color pattern, behavior, and habitat. 

Once you're back from your walk, download the Merlin Bird ID app to help you identify the birds you spotted on your walk. Identifying birds with the Merlin Bird ID app is a huge game changer and it's easy to use! The Merlin Bird ID platform can also be accessed by visiting All About Birds here and click on "Get Instant ID Help".

Once you've identified your neighborhood birds, consider creating a list of the five to ten most spotted birds from this week. This will allow you to keep track of migrating species visiting your neighborhood. Notice how your "most spotted" list changes each week, month, and season. If your list doesn't change much over the weeks, that might mean you're spotting resident birds who can be spotted year-round in your area.

Use your "most spotted list" to focus on bird behavior. Patterns in bird behavior can provide you with insights into their mating, nesting, and overall life history. Learn more about the birds you're spotting by visiting the All About Birds online bird guide!

Identifying birds is a great way to become more familiar with your local environment. Contrary to belief, you don't need any fancy equipment to start noticing patterns. Just like a detective all you need to start identifying birds is your curiosity, a notepad, and writing utensil.

Begin by focusing on these four categories:

1. Shape and size
2. Color and color pattern
3. The way they act (behavior)
4. Where they are found (habitat)

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1. Size and shape: Birding can be much easier when you focus on the general size and shape of a bird. You don’t typically recognize friends approaching you by small details, such as eye color or hair style, but by their overall appearance. Applying this same technique to birding can help you quickly identify bird species. Consider comparing the size of a mystery bird in your yard to an identity you're familiar with. Is your mystery bird larger or smaller than a crow? Making these comparisons is key to identifying birds, so it is useful to establish size references to compare with new, unknown birds. Remember to make note of any distinguishing features for more accurate identification later. Your references will be important as you begin identifying a bird to its species.  ​All About Birds, Inside Birding: Size and Shape (VIDEO)
2. Color: ​Focusing on features that can be noticed at a moment’s glance is important to identifying species since birds can fly out of sight at any moment. Focus on the overall color pattern rather than honing in on one small detail to help with identifying a bird.  ​All About Birds, Inside Birding: Color Pattern (VIDEO)
3. Behavior: Recognizing behavioral clues is a key component of bird identification. Like size and shape, it's consistent to species. Posture, foraging and flight style can vary depending on the season so the more observations you can make throughout the year, the more you'll be able to confirm a species identity based on patterns. All About Birds, Inside Birding: Behavior (VIDEO)
4. Habitat: A bird’s habitat is an equally important signature of bird identity as size and shape. All About Birds, Inside Birding: Habitat (VIDEO)

Interested in birding by song? Check out How to Bird by Ear!

To learn more, check out All About Birds' Bird ID Skills series. ​

Use your five senses as you mindfully observe the birds in your yard.

• Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.
• Start your mindful birding experience by choosing a sit spot outside. You’ll return to this spot everyday for 15-20 minutes or as long as your schedule permits.
• While sitting in a comfortable position, follow the basic 4-7-8 breathing technique.
  • Breathe in for 4 seconds, hold the breath for 7 seconds, and exhale for 8 seconds.

• Begin your practice by following these exercises curated by Claire Thompson from an article published in Omega titled “A Mindful Birdwatching Exercise: Listening to Our Bird Neighbors”.
  • Watch mindfully. Pick a point to focus ahead. Notice what you see. While staring at that point, notice what you see in your peripheral vision. Turn your head, pick another point to focus on and re-engage your peripheral vision.
  • Listen mindfully. Notice sounds. Notice the silence between sounds. Listen to the furthest sound you can hear.
  • Touch mindfully. Notice what you can feel. Is the ground cold? What can you feel on your skin?
  • Participate. Notice how you’re feeling—what energy are you bringing to the place? Cultivate an attitude of belonging and participation, instead of merely being an observer.
• Reflection: How did you feel at the beginning of this practice? How did you feel after this practice? What did you see the birds doing while in your sit spot? What sounds we’re the birds making while in your sit spot? If you didn’t notice any birds, why might that be? What might you notice at different times of the day?