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
Single guide for the following states and provinces:
Saskatchewan, Manitoba, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa.
Southeast Region
Alabama – Arkansas – Florida – Georgia – Louisiana – Mississippi – North Carolina – Oklahoma – South Carolina – Tennessee – Kentucky – Texas
Northeast Region
Single guide for the following states and provinces:
West Virginia, Virginia, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Delaware, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Vermont, Maine, Ontario, Quebec, Prince Edward, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia.
New York.
Far North Region
Single guide for the following states and provinces:
Alaska – Yukon – Northwest Territories – Nunavut.
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.