The Red-throated Pipit (Anthus cervinus) is a small passerine bird which breeds in the far north of Europe and Asia, with a foothold in northern Alaska. It is a long-distance migrant moving in winter to Africa, south and east Asia and west coast USA. It is a vagrant to western Europe. This is a small […]

The Black Kite (Milvus migrans) is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors. Black Kites can be distinguished from Red Kites by the slightly smaller size, less forked tail (visible in flight), and generally dark plumage without any rufous. The sexes are alike. The upper plumage...

The Black-headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus) is a small gull which breeds in much of Europe and Asia, and also in coastal eastern Canada. The summer adult has a chocolate-brown head (not black, although does look black from a distance), pale grey body, black tips to the primary wing feathers, and red bill and legs. The […]

The Collared Flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis) is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family, one of the four species of Western Palearctic black-and-white flycatchers. It breeds in southeast Europe (isolated populations in the islands of Gotland and Oland in the Baltic Sea, Sweden) and southwest Asia and is migratory, wintering...

The Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres) is a small wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus Arenaria. It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plover family Charadriidae. It is a highly migratory bird, breeding in northern parts of Eurasia and North America and […]

The Spotted Redshank (Tringa erythropus) is a wader (shorebird) in the large bird family Scolopacidae. It breeds across northern Scandinavia and northern Asia and migrates south to the Mediterranean, the southern British Isles, France, tropical Africa, and tropical Asia for the winter. It is an occasional vagrant to Australia and North America....

The Common Reed Bunting, Emberiza schoeniclus, is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae. It breeds across Europe and much of temperate and northern Asia. Most birds migrate south in winter, but those in the milder south and west of the range […]

The Long-legged Buzzard (Buteo rufinus) is a bird of prey. It is similar in appearance to the Rough-legged Buzzard (Buteo lagopus), but it is larger and more robust. This is one of the largest species of Buteo. Length can range from 50 to 66 cm (20 to 26 in) and wingspan from 115 to 160 cm (45 to 63 in). Females, at an average mass of 1.3 kg...

The Tawny Owl or Brown Owl (Strix aluco) is a stocky, medium-sized owl commonly found in woodlands across much of Eurasia. Its underparts are pale with dark streaks, and the upperparts are either brown or grey. Several of the eleven recognised subspecies have both variants. The nest is typically in a tree hole where it […]

The Eurasian Treecreeper or Common Treecreeper (Certhia familiaris) is a small passerine bird also known in the British Isles, where it is the only living member of its genus, simply as Treecreeper. It is similar to other treecreepers, and has a curved bill, patterned brown upperparts, whitish underparts, and long stiff tail feathers which help...

The Common Cuckoo (formerly European Cuckoo) is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals. The species’ binomial name is derived from the Latin cuculus (the cuckoo) and canorus (melodious; from canere, meaning to sing). The Common Cuckoo is 32–34 centimetres...

The Eurasian Bittern or Great Bittern (Botaurus stellaris) is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae. Bitterns are thickset herons with bright, pale, buffy-brown plumage covered with dark streaks and bars, similar in appearance to the American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosa. As its alternate name suggests, this species is the largest of the...

The Pale or Pallid Harrier (Circus macrourus) is a migratory bird of prey of the harrier family. It breeds in southern parts of eastern Europe and central Asia (such as Iran) and winters mainly in India and southeast Asia. This medium-sized raptor breeds on open plains, bogs and heathland. In winter it is a bird […]

The White Stork (Ciconia ciconia) is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on its wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average 100–115 cm (39–45 in) from beak tip to end of tail, with a 155–215 cm (61–85 in) […]

The European Honey Buzzard (Pernis apivorus), also known as the Pern or Common Pern, is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. The European Honey Buzzard is a summer migrant to most of Europe and western Asia, wintering in tropical Africa. It is seen in a wide range of habitats, but generally prefers woodland […]

The Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) is a small member of the wagtail family, Motacillidae. The species looks similar to the Yellow Wagtail but has the yellow on its underside restricted to the throat and vent. Breeding males have a black throat. The species is widely distributed, with several populations breeding in Europe and Asia and […]

The Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix) (sometimes called Hoodiecrow) is a Eurasian bird species in the crow genus. It is so similar in morphology and habits to the Carrion Crow (Corvus corone) that for many years they were considered by most authorities to be merely geographical races of one species. The fact that hybridization was observed […]

The Black-throated Loon (Gavia arctica) is a migratory aquatic bird found in the northern hemisphere. The species is known as an Arctic Loon in North America and the Black-throated Diver in Eurasia. Its current name is a compromise proposed by the International Ornithological Committee. Breeding adults are 58 to 77 cm (23 to 30 in) in length...

The Eurasian Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes), is a very small bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia. The scientific name is taken from the Greek word “troglodytes” (from “trogle” a hole, and “dyein” to creep), meaning “cave-dweller”, and refers to its habit of...

The Spanish Sparrow or Willow Sparrow (Passer hispaniolensis) is a passerine bird of the sparrow family Passeridae. It is found in the Mediterranean region and southwest and central Asia. It is very similar to the closely related House Sparrow, and the two species show their close relation in a “biological mix-up” of hybridisation...

The Ferruginous Duck, also Ferruginous Pochard (Aythya nyroca) is a medium-sized diving duck from Eurasia. The species is known colloquially by birders as “Fudge Duck”. Their breeding habitat is marshes and lakes with a metre or more water depth. These ducks breed in southern and eastern Europe and southern and western Asia. They...

This is an unusual bunting because the sexes appear similar in plumage, although the males are approximately 20% larger than females. This large bulky bunting is 16–19 cm long, has male and female plumages similar, and lacks the showy male colours, especially on the head, common in the genus Emberiza. Both sexes look something like larks,...

The Northern Wheatear or Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae. It is the most widespread member of the wheatear genus Oenanthe in Europe and Asia. The Northern Wheatear […]

The Black Tern (Chlidonias niger) is a small tern generally found in or near inland water in Europe and North America. As its name suggests, it has predominantly dark plumage. Adult are 25 cm (9.75 in) long, with a wing span 61 cm (24 in), and weigh 62 g (2.2 oz). They have short dark legs and a short, weak-looking […]