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British Birds

British Birds

 
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Garden Birds 01 - Most Common

This quiz contains the 10 birds most frequently seen in British gardens as established by "The Big Garden Birdwatch 2011" organized by the RSPB. There are 30 quizzes on British Bird Identification at the Education Quizzes website

1. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Lip Kee
  • Group: Sparrows
  • Binomial: Passer domesticus
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Passeridae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Once common throughout the UK but now in decline in many areas
  • The size of the black bib determines the bird's dominance within its community
  • It is normally found wherever there is a concentration of people

2. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Paul Lomax
  • Group: Starlings
  • Binomial: Sturnus vulgaris
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Sturnidae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species And Winter Visitor
  • The base of their bills are blue for boys and pink for girls!
  • In the autumn massive flocks congregate in what are known as "murmurations"

3. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Pete Birkinshaw
  • Group: Thrushes
  • Binomial: Turdus merula
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Turdidae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Mature males are glossy black but females and young are a lighter reddish-brown
  • Albinism leads to the contradictory terminology of "White Blackbirds" but birds are seldom completely white

4. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Maximilian Dorsch
  • Group: Tits
  • Binomial: Parus caeruleus
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Paridae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Both sexes have similar colouring but the females are slightly paler
  • Smaller than the Great Tit and without the prominent black stripe down its front
  • It does not migrate

5. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of http://www.photo-natur.de/
  • Group: Finches
  • Binomial: Fringilla coelebs
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Fringillidae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Look for the distinctive white wing bars on both males and females
  • Females and young have more subdued colours
  • The most common finch found in the British Isles

6. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Tristan Ferne
  • Group: Pigeons and Doves
  • Binomial: Columba palumbus
  • Order: Columbiformes
  • Family: Columbidae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Birds have a prominent white area around their neck, eyes are bright yellow and legs and bills are pink
  • On the ground they "Waddle"!
  • In frosty weather huge flocks devour farmers crops

7. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Barney Livingston
  • Group: Tits
  • Binomial: Parus major
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Paridae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • The largest of the UK tits
  • There is a prominent black stripe down the whole of the front
  • Widely distributed in the UK but not found on the Northern and Western Isles of Scotland

8. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of MPF
  • Group: Finches
  • Binomial: Carduelis carduelis
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Fringillidae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Look for the bright red face and striking white, gold, black and brown on the rest of the body
  • A group of them are called a "Charm"
  • Put out Niger seed to attract them to your birdtable

9. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Jimfbleak
  • Group: Thrushes
  • Binomial: Erithacus rubecula
  • Order: Passeriformes
  • Family: Turdidae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Males and females are identical but youngsters are a speckled brown with no red feathers
  • Fiercely territorial
  • They have an excellent voice and sometimes sing at night to streetlights

10. What is this common garden bird?
 
Photograph courtesy of Horia Varlan
  • Group: Pigeons and Doves
  • Binomial: Streptopelia decaocto
  • Order: Columbiformes
  • Family: Columbidae
  • Status: Resident Breeding Species
  • Adults have a black and white collar around the back of the neck but this is missing in young birds
  • Very uncommon in the UK until the mid 1900's - now one of our most often seen birds

Quiz written by Andy Lawson

 

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