Birds are all around us. They’re huddling in the shrubs outside of our apartments, bopping around our backyards, foraging at nearby parks and lakes, and even occasionally hanging out in local parking lots. One of the great things about birds is that, because of their proximity and ability to adapt to human environments, they’re one of the easiest ways to engage with nature. Noticing birds—their colors, their shapes, the fact that one of them has been singing outside your window at 3 a.m. for two weeks—is the first step into a larger world. Maybe you never learn all their names, but by merely paying attention to birds, you'll start to develop a richer understanding of the natural world around you.
Step Outside or Look Out a Window
You don’t need to travel anywhere to encounter birds. Instead, take a look out a window or step outside your front door and pay attention to what you see and hear.
Close Your Eyes and Listen
Many times—most times, even—you’ll find birds first by hearing them. Raucous squawks from the trees or tiny insistent cheeps from a bush, those are your clues that birds are around!
Spot the Motion
Once you’ve narrowed down where your bird sounds are coming from, look at the general area and see if you can spot any motion. That’s how experienced birders do it: They look for movement first, then focus on that area to find the bird. You can frequently find small birds hanging out on the ground under bushes and shrubs.
Practice your observational skills. Notice what color the bird is, or how big it is, or what it’s doing when you find it. You never have to go any further than that in order to appreciate birds! But if you do want to learn how to identify birds or take up birding as a hobby, these observational skills are the foundation upon which everything else rests. Things to look for:
What color is it?
Blue, red, brown, green?
How big is it compared to a pigeon?
Bigger, smaller, about the same size?
Where did you find it?
In a tree, at the beach, in a lake, soaring overhead? Details like these and the above are clues that will help you solve your mystery bird.
Use the Audubon app to help you identify the bird! You can download it here. The app will ask you to answer a couple of simple questions about what you saw and then will help you ID that bird.If you need some help getting started, check out the helpful video included here.
We've also gathered together a bunch of the most common birds across North America, no matter where you live, and listed them below. Scroll through and see if your bird looks similar to any of them! Also be sure to check out our primer on 20 of the most common species people encounter on a daily basis.
Birds are everywhere. And there are many more different kinds of them, even near your home, than you might realize. This is your guide to 20 birds commonly found in cities and suburbs across North America.
Birds come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Enjoy the sheer diversity of our feathered friends in this photo gallery, which features entries from Audubon's annual photography awards. We promise that you'll never look at birds the same way again.
Have a growing interest in birds and the hobby of birding? You mind find the below resources helpful.
There are no requirements to be a birder or to go birding. Whether you decide to regularly observe birds around your home or actively seek them out, the hobby is whatever you make of it.
For more information and articles about birding, including tips for IDing species, visit our birding hub. You can also learn how to use binoculars and peruse some of our favorite models over at our Audubon Guide to Binoculars.
Want to just browse some awesome facts about birds? Visit our free online bird guide. And to learn more about the incredible feat that is bird migration, follow the paths of more than 450 species with our Bird Migration Explorer.
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