Curious about the identification of birds visiting your backyard feeders? Look no further! I have curated a collection of state and province specific bird identification guides. Based on the FeederWatch database, I selected the 25 to 41 species that regularly visit backyard bird feeders in North America. I then prepared custom identification plates, including male, female, and juvenile plumages, highlighting relevant field marks.
Grouping of Identification Guides: Bird Regions
I followed the bird regions defined by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Project FeederWatch. These regions are based on geological features and habitat types, which influence bird distribution.
While the majority of states and provinces have their own dedicated guide, in some cases, smaller states with significant species overlap were combined into a single guide.
Links to State and Regional guides
Northwest Region
Alberta – British Columbia – Idaho – Montana – Oregon – Washington – Wyoming
Southwest Region
Arizona – California – Colorado – Nevada – New Mexico – Utah
Central Region
Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Minnesota,
North Dakota, Manitoba, Saskatchewan,
South Dakota, Iowa
Single guide for the following states and provinces:
Central Region.
Southeast Region
Alabama – Arkansas – Florida – Georgia – Louisiana – Mississippi – North Carolina – Oklahoma – South Carolina – Tennessee – Texas –Kentucky
Northeast Region
State-specific Guides
New York, Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maine, Vermont, New Brunswick Province, New Hampshire, Quebec Province, Ontario Province, Wisconsin, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Connecticut, Nova Scotia & Prince Edward Island, Delaware, Rhode Island, West Virginia, Newfoundland and Labrador.
Far North Region
State/Province -specific guides
Alaska, Yukon Province – Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Far North Regional Directory
Beyond Backyard Bird Identification
One of the most rewarding aspects of bird observation -birdwatching- is the ability to identify birds. While identification is important, being able to document the species and visit your feeders can helps researchers monitor bird populations and distributions, contributing to conservation efforts.
Additional Bird Guide information
To add value to the guides and enhance the backyard bird-feeding experience, each species account includes sound recordings of the species’ songs or calls, information about preferred food, feeder type, year-round presence, behavior at feeders, and the type of backyard favored by the species
Each bird entry also includes facts about nest type, breeding seasonality, breeding habits, and the approximate longevity or lifespan of the species.