What is a clue that a bird is a woodpecker?

It clings to tree trunks and drums

How can you tell a swift from a swallow?

Swifts have sickle-shaped wings and rarely perch

What is the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch?

A yearly bird count in UK gardens

Bird Identification Quiz: 10 Questions That Test What You Know

Spotting the difference between a crow and a raven takes more than a glance, and this bird identification quiz shows you what experts look for. Learn the clues used in Audubon field guides and the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch, from size and shape to song, flight and habitat.

Start Bird Identification Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Raven
How can you tell a common raven from a crow in flight?
Jizz
What do birders call a bird's overall impression of size, shape and movement?
Robin
What color is the breast of a European robin?
Cardinal
Which North American bird is bright red with a crest?
Woodpecker
What is a clue that a bird is a woodpecker?
Swift
How can you tell a swift from a swallow?
Song
Which bird famously sings its own name?
Binoculars
What does 8x42 mean on binoculars?
Census
What is the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch?
Guide
Who painted The Birds of America in the 1800s?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: How can you tell a common raven from a crow in flight?
Answer: Ravens have wedge-shaped tails
Ravens also croak deeply and soar more.
Q2: What do birders call a bird's overall impression of size, shape and movement?
Answer: Jizz
It helps identify birds quickly.
Q3: What color is the breast of a European robin?
Answer: Orange-red
American robins are a different species.
Q4: Which North American bird is bright red with a crest?
Answer: Northern cardinal
Females are brown with red tints.
Q5: What is a clue that a bird is a woodpecker?
Answer: It clings to tree trunks and drums
Stiff tail feathers prop it up.
Q6: How can you tell a swift from a swallow?
Answer: Swifts have sickle-shaped wings and rarely perch
Swifts spend most of their lives in the air.
Q7: Which bird famously sings its own name?
Answer: Chiffchaff
Its song repeats chiff-chaff.
Q8: What does 8x42 mean on binoculars?
Answer: 8x magnification, 42 mm lenses
Bigger lenses let in more light.
Q9: What is the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch?
Answer: A yearly bird count in UK gardens
Hundreds of thousands of people take part.
Q10: Who painted The Birds of America in the 1800s?
Answer: John James Audubon
It shows birds life-size.

Bird Identification Quiz – How to Name That Bird

Bird identification starts with a few simple clues: size, shape, color, behavior, habitat and sound. Comparing a mystery bird with familiar ones, such as a sparrow, robin or pigeon, helps narrow down the options.

Experienced birders often recognize birds by their overall jizz, the way they move and fly, and by song alone. Field guides from John James Audubon to Roger Tory Peterson taught generations to spot key field marks like wing bars and eye rings.

Today apps can identify birds from photos or sounds, and citizen science projects like the Big Garden Birdwatch and eBird gather millions of records. These counts help scientists track which species are thriving and which are in decline.

What This Quiz Teaches

Beginners and keen birders alike will enjoy these questions.

Which clues identify birds
How ravens differ from crows
What jizz means
How songs help
What bird counts do

Did You Know?

Peterson pioneered arrows on field marks.
Merlin Bird ID can recognize songs.
Gulls take years to reach adult plumage.
Female birds are often duller.
eBird has over a billion records.