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 willow warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus ) is a very common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic, from Ireland east to the Anadyr River basin in eastern Siberia. It is strongly...
The African sacred ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus ) is a wading bird native to Africa and the Middle East. It is especially known for its role in the religion of the Ancient Egyptians, where it was linked to the god Thoth; despite this, the species...
The Ring-necked dove (Streptopelia capicola ) is a widespread and often abundant dove species from Africa. Its name is derived from the semi-collar of black feathers on the lower nape, a feature shared with a number of Streptopelia species. Like all...
The Hadada ibis (Bostrychia hagedash) is a long-legged wading bird native to Sub-Saharan Africa. It is named for its loud three to four-note calls uttered in flight especially in the mornings and evenings when they fly out or return to their roost...
The shikra (Accipiter badius) is a small bird of prey in the family Accipitridae widely distributed across its native range. These birds have a sharp two-note call and have the typical flap and glide flight. Their scientific name comes from Latin...
The laughing dove (Spilopelia senegalensis) is a pigeon widespread in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. It was introduced to Perth in 1889 and has become established around Western Australia. Birds that land on ships may be introduced to new...
The Jacobin cuckoo (Clamator jacobinus) is a medium-sized member of the cuckooof family. It is partially migratory and in India, it has been considered a harbinger of the monsoon rains due to the timing of its arrival. It has been associated with a...
The Eurasian hobby (Falco subbuteo) is a small falcon. It is a very bold and courageous bird and was used in falconry, trained to hawk birds like quails, larks, hoopoes, drongos, etc.
The Steppe eagle (Aquila nipalensis) is a large and impressive raptor. Its well-feathered legs illustrate it to be a member of the subfamily Aquilinae, also known as the "booted eagles". The Steppe eagle is in many ways a peculiar species of eagle....
The Amur falcon (Falco amurensis) is a small raptor of the falcon family. In addition to speed and strength, these birds are known to have keen eyesight for detecting prey from a distance or during flight. Amur falcons breed in south-eastern Siberia...
The Goliath heron (Ardea goliath is a very large wading bird of the heron family, Ardeidae. This is the world's largest living heron (the extinct Bennu heron was larger). The closest extant relatives of the Goliath are considered to be the...
The European bee-eater (Merops apiaster) is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family, Meropidae. As their name suggests, these brightly-colored birds predominantly eat flying insects, especially bees and wasps, which they catch on the wing from...
The Corn crake (Crex crex) is a medium-sized ground-dwelling bird that is found breeds in Europe and Asia and migrates to Africa to spend winter. Despite its elusive nature, the loud call has ensured the Corn crake has been noted in the literature...
The Common whitethroat (Curruca communis) is a widespread strongly migratory warbler that breeds throughout Europe and across much of temperate western Asia. In Europe, western and eastern populations of these small birds have contrasting molting...
The hamerkop (Scopus umbretta) is a medium-sized wading bird which closest relatives are thought to be the pelicans and the shoebill. The shape of its head with a long bill and crest at the back is reminiscent of a hammer, which has given this...
The Garden warbler (Sylvia borin) is a common and widespread small bird that breeds in most of Europe and in the Palearctic to western Siberia. Its rich melodic song is similar to that of the blackcap, its closest relative, which competes with it...
The Black-winged kite (Elanus caeruleus) is a long-winged raptor best known for its habit of hovering over open grasslands in the manner of the much smaller kestrels. Black-winged kites are well adapted to utilize periodic upsurges in rodent...
The Black stork (Ciconia nigra) is a large elegant wading bird that is widespread but uncommon species throught its native range. Black storks are long-distance migrants traveling on average between 37 and 80 days. During their long migration, they...
African jacanas (Actophilornis africanus) are wading birds from sub-Saharan Africa. They are identifiable by long toes and long claws that allow them to walk on floating vegetation in shallow lakes. The part of the scientific name of this species...
Black-winged stilts (Himantopus himantopus) are very long-legged wading birds. They are found in both warm and hot climates, feed on small aquatic creatures, and nest on the ground surface in small colonies.
The Western yellow wagtail (Motacilla flava) is a small songbird that can be found in Europe, Asia, and Africa. Its common name comes from characteristic tail-pumping behavior and the part of its scientific name 'flava' means 'golden-yellow' from...
The booted eagle (Hieraaetus pennatus, also classified as Aquila pennata ) is a medium-sized mostly migratory bird of prey with a wide distribution in the Palearctic and southern Asia, wintering in the tropics of Africa and Asia, with a small,...
The spotted flycatcher (Muscicapa striata ) is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. It breeds in most of Europe and in the Palearctic to Siberia, and is migratory, wintering in Africa and south western Asia. It is declining in...
The European nightjar (Caprimulgus europaeus ), common goatsucker, Eurasian nightjar or just nightjar, is a crepuscular and nocturnal bird in the nightjar family that breeds across most of Europe and the Palearctic to Mongolia and Northwestern...
The Eurasian bittern or great bittern (Botaurus stellaris ) is a wading bird in the bittern subfamily (Botaurinae) of the heron family Ardeidae. There are two subspecies, the northern race (B. s. stellaris ) breeding in parts of Europe and across...
The tawny eagle (Aquila rapax ) is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Its heavily feathered legs illustrate it to be a member of the subfamily Aquilinae, also known as "booted eagles". Tawny eagles have an...
Verreaux's eagle (Aquila verreauxii ) is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the Indian black eagle (Ictinaetus malayensis ), which lives far to the east in...
The red-billed quelea (; Quelea quelea ), also known as the red-billed weaver or red-billed dioch, is a small—approximately 12 cm (4.7 in) long and weighing 15–26 g (0.53–0.92 oz)—migratory, sparrow-like bird of the weaver family, Ploceidae, native...
The purple heron (Ardea purpurea ) is a wide-ranging species of wading bird in the heron family, Ardeidae. The scientific name comes from Latin ardea "heron", and purpureus, "coloured purple". It breeds in Africa, central and southern Europe, and...
The spur-winged goose (Plectropterus gambensis ) is a large bird in the family Anatidae, related to the geese and the shelducks, but distinct from both of these in a number of anatomical features, and therefore treated in its own subfamily, the...
The Eurasian reed warbler, or just reed warbler (Acrocephalus scirpaceus ), is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It breeds across Europe into the temperate western Palaearctic. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa.
The white-necked raven (Corvus albicollis ) is somewhat smaller (50–54 cm in length) than the common raven or its nearest relative, the thick-billed raven C. crassirostris. It is native to eastern and southern Africa.
The alpine swift (Tachymarptis melba ) formerly Apus melba, is a species of swift found in Africa, southern Europe and Asia. They breed in mountains from southern Europe to the Himalaya. Like common swifts, they are migratory; the southern European...
Verreaux's eagle-owl (Bubo lacteus ), also commonly known as the milky eagle owl or giant eagle owl, is a member of the family Strigidae. This species is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa. A member of the genus Bubo, it is the largest African owl,...
The red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio ) is a carnivorous passerine bird and member of the shrike family Laniidae. Its breeding range stretches from Western Europe east to central Russia. It is migratory and winters in the eastern areas of tropical...
The African harrier-hawk, harrier hawk or gymnogene (Polyboroides typus ) is a bird of prey. It is about 60–66 centimetres (24–26 in) in length. It breeds in most of Africa south of the Sahara. The only other member of the genus is the allopatric...
The common sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos ) is a small Palearctic wader. This bird and its American sister species, the spotted sandpiper (A. macularia ), make up the genus Actitis. They are parapatric and replace each other geographically; stray...
The grey go-away-bird (Crinifer concolor ), also known as grey lourie, grey loerie, or kwêvoël, is a bold and common bird of the southern Afrotropics. They are present in arid to moist, open woodlands and thorn savanna, especially near surface...
The lesser kestrel (Falco naumanni ) is a small falcon. This species breeds from the Mediterranean across Afghanistan and Central Asia, to China and Mongolia. It is a summer migrant, wintering in Africa and Pakistan and sometimes even to India and...
The sedge warbler (Acrocephalus schoenobaenus ) is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It is a medium-sized warbler with a brown, streaked back and wings and a distinct pale supercilium. Sedge warblers are migratory, crossing the Sahara...
The pin-tailed whydah (Vidua macroura ) is a small songbird with a conspicuous pennant-like tail in breeding males. It is a resident breeding bird in most of Africa south of the Sahara Desert.
