The Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) is a large cosmopolitan raptor in the family Falconidae. It is renowned for its speed during its characteristic hunting stoop (high-speed dive), making it the fastest bird in the world, as well as the fastest...
The osprey (Pandion haliaetus) is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. The osprey tolerates a wide variety of habitats, nesting in any location near a body of water providing an adequate food supply. It is found on all...
The mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. Mallards live in wetlands, eat water plants and small animals, and prefer to congregate in flocks of...
The Great tit (Parus major) is a widespread and common songbird throughout Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, and east across the Palearctic to the Amur River, south to parts of North Africa. It has adapted well to human changes in the...
The Barn owl (Tyto alba) is the most widely distributed species of owl in the world and one of the most widespread of all species of birds. It is found almost everywhere in the world except for the polar and desert regions, Asia north of the...
The Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus) is a brightly-colored bird that lives mainly on the ground. Its loud calls make it easy to detect, and in forest areas often indicates the presence of a predator such as a tiger. The bird is celebrated in Hindu...
The Common buzzard (Buteo buteo) is a medium-to-large bird of prey which has a large range. It is an opportunistic predator that can take a wide variety of prey, but it feeds mostly on small mammals. The Common buzzard appears to be the most common...
The Common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, Cuculiformes, which includes the roadrunners, the anis, and the coucals. It is a brood parasite, which means it lays eggs in the nests of other bird species, particularly...
The Red junglefowl (Gallus gallus) is a tropical bird in the family Phasianidae. It was formerly known as the Bankiva or Bankiva Fowl. It is the primary ancestor of the domestic chicken. Junglefowl are behaviourally different from domestic chickens;...
The Barn swallow (Hirundo rustica) is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. In fact, it has the largest natural distribution of any of the world's passerines, ranging over 251 million square kilometers globally. In Anglophone Europe...
The Rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameri) is one of the few parrot species that have successfully adapted to living in disturbed habitats. As a popular pet species, escaped birds have colonized a number of cities around the world, including...
The Common myna (Acridotheres tristis) is a tropical bird with a strong territorial instinct, which has adapted extremely well to urban environments. The range of the Common myna is increasing at such a rapid rate that in 2000 the IUCN Species...
The White-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla ) is one of the largest living birds of prey. It is sometimes considered the fourth largest eagle in the world and is on average the fourth heaviest eagle in the world. White-tailed eagles are considered...
The Red kite (Milvus milvus) is a medium-large bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards, and harriers.
The Asian koel (Eudynamys scolopaceus) is a large member of the cuckoo family and like many of its related cuckoo kin is a brood parasite that lays its eggs in the nests of crows and other hosts, who raise its young. The name koel is echoic in...
The Great egret (Ardea alba) is a large, widely distributed wading bird. Like all egrets, it is a member of the heron family, Ardeidae, and its close relatieves are pelicans. The Great egret is sometimes confused with the Great white heron of the...
The Common quail (Coturnix coturnix) is a small ground-nesting game bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae. With its characteristic call, this species of quail is more often heard than seen. It is widespread in Europe and North Africa, and should...
The Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) is a small bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. Though it is a predator which specializes in catching woodland birds, the Eurasian sparrowhawk can be found in any habitat and often hunts garden birds in...
The White stork (Ciconia ciconia) is a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. It eats a wide range of animal prey and takes most of its food from the ground. It does not pair for life but both members of the pair build a large stick nest, which...
The Grey heron (Ardea cinerea) is a large long-legged wading bird of the heron native to Europe and Asia and also parts of Africa. It lives in wetland areas and feeds on various aquatic creatures which it catches after standing stationary beside or...
The Common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) is a bird of prey species that belongs to the falcon family Falconidae. This species occurs over a large range and in Britain, where no other kestrel species commonly occurs, it is generally just called...
The Eurasian collared dove (Streptopelia decaocto) is a dove species native to Europe and Asia. During the 20th century, the Eurasian collared dove spectacularly expanded its range from the Middle East to right across Europe. Accidentally introduced...
The Greater flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) is the most widespread and largest species of the flamingo family. It was described by Peter Simon Pallas in 1811. The Greater flamingo was previously thought to be the same species as the American...
The Common kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) is a small kingfisher widely distributed across Eurasia and North Africa. It is amongst the most colorful birds but despite its extraordinary colors, sometimes the Common kingfisher is difficult to see when it...
The Black kite (Milvus migrans) is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors. It is thought to be the world's most abundant species of Accipitridae. Unlike others in the group, Black kites...
The Great hornbill (Buceros bicornis) is a large colorful bird found in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast. Due to its large size and color, it is important in many tribal cultures and rituals. The Government of Kerala declared it as the official...
The Cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis) is a cosmopolitan species of heron named for its association with cattle. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Bubulcus, although some authorities regard its two subspecies as full species, the Western cattle...
The Greylag goose (Anser anser) is a large goose in the waterfowl family Anatidae. Its distribution is widespread, with birds from the north of its range in Europe and Asia migrating southwards to spend the winter in warmer places. It is the...
The Sarus crane (Antigone antigone) is the world's tallest extant flying bird, standing at a height of up to 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in). This crane, when standing, is as tall as a man. In India, these birds are considered symbols of marital fidelity,...
The Common merganser is a large seaduck that lives in forested areas of Europe, Asia, and North America. These birds eat mainly fish and nest in holes in trees.
The Black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) is a medium-sized heron found throughout a large part of the world. These birds have a stocky appearance as if hunched over, the head tucked down into the shoulders, and they are usually seen...
The White-bellied sea eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) is a large diurnal bird of prey. Originally described by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788, it is closely related to Sanford's sea eagle of the Solomon Islands, and the two are considered...
The Great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds. Many fishermen see in the Great cormorant a competitor for fish. Because of this, it was hunted nearly to extinction in the past but luckily due to...
The House crow (Corvus splendens) is a common bird of the crow family that is of Asian origin but now found in many parts of the world, where they arrived assisted by shipping.
The Eurasian hoopoe (Upupa epops ) is the most widespread species of the genus Upupa. It is a distinctive cinnamon coloured bird with black and white wings, a tall erectile crest, a broad white band across a black tail, and a long narrow downcurved...
The red-vented bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer ) is a member of the bulbul family of passerines. It is a resident breeder across the Indian subcontinent, including Sri Lanka extending east to Burma and parts of Bhutan and Nepal. It has been introduced in...
The Great white pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus) that lives in the shallow swamps in Africa is one of the largest flying birds in the world. It has the abilities of multiple birds, such as long flights and swimming. Its unique characteristic is the...
The White wagtail (Motacilla alba) is a small insectivorous bird of the open country, often near habitation and water. It prefers bare areas for feeding, where it can see and pursue its prey. In urban areas, it has adapted to foraging on paved areas...
The Little egret (Egretta garzetta) is small elegant heron in the family Ardeidae. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on land, consuming a variety of small creatures. At one time common in Western Europe, the Little heron was hunted...
The red-whiskered bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus ), or crested bulbul, is a passerine bird native to Asia. It is a member of the bulbul family. It is a resident frugivore found mainly in tropical Asia. It has been introduced in many tropical areas of...
The Black-headed gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus) is a small and one of the most abundant gulls in much of Europe and Asia, and also in eastern Canada. It displays a variety of compelling behaviors and adaptations. Some of these include removing...
The Indian roller (Coracias benghalensis) is a colorful bird best known for its aerobatic displays of males during the breeding season. It is often seen perched along roadside trees and wires and is commonly seen in open grassland and scrub forest...
