To use the ID wizard, you enter some features of a bird which you have taken note of. You can enter as many features as you like. The wizard then generates a shortlist of the common species it could be. The wizard is designed primarily for the main urban centres in South Africa, and does not cover birds likely to be encountered in the country areas away from towns.
The wizard enables you to capture key features of the bird you have seen. Many of the features can be difficult to notice, and it is best to only enter those features of which you are absolutely sure. For example, if you are not sure whether the bird is larger or smaller than a sparrow, rather leave out this feature, as an incorrect entry will result in a short-list, which does not contain the bird you actually saw. Additional guidelines on each character type are presented below.
There are five options for size:
Sparrow sized or smaller
Larger than sparrow, but smaller than dove
Dove sized or larger, but smaller than chicken
Chicken sized or larger
Did not notice
Size is a feature that is easy to misjudge, and it is useful to try and compare the bird you have seen with a familiar bird. Size options are in relation to common birds:
Sparrow (Cape Sparrow)
Dove (Laughing Dove)
Care should be taken with birds that are similar in size to a sparrow (Cape Sparrow) or Dove (Laughing Dove). If you are not very sure of the size of the bird you have seen, rather leave it out.
13 different bill shapes are provided, and these can be accessed directly in
a drop down box. Once again bill shapes can be difficult to judge, and one should
always look carefully at the bill of the bird. The bill shape is one of the
most important characteristics of a bird, as this often helps to place a bird
within a family.
Click here for the list of bill shapes.
A number of different colour options are provided. It is important to look carefully at the bill colour, as this is often an important characteristic of the bird. Some bills have two completely different colours, and these are described as "two-tone". However one observer may see a black and red "two-tone" bill as red - as this is the most obvious colour. The id wizard thus allows one different options in the colours you choose.
Most birds have more than one colour. A key thing to look at is the colour of the upperparts, and the colour of the underparts. Upperparts refer to the colour on the top of the head (above the bill), back of the neck (nape) back and wing colour when the bird is in a perched position. Look for the main colour on these areas. You do not have to specify colours for both upperparts and underparts for the wizard to work.
In addition to colours, several other options are also provided:
" Striped/streaked/barred. This refers to the presence of a substantial
area of regular lines, which are either complete (striped or barred) or incomplete
(streaked). Striped refers to lines which are vertical along the length of the
bird, while barred refers to lines which are across the length of the bird.
" Bands or Bars across chest. Many birds have one or more distinct bands
or bars across the chest area. These are bold, distinct and mot more than 3
bands (as opposed to barred patterns, where there are many more than 3 bands)
The leg colour is also very important in identifying some birds. Many birds have dull coloured legs (brown, olive or horn,) so this option is also provided. Leg colour does also vary, so if the wizard does not seem to produce a likely candidate for your bird, mark this field "did not notice".
The length of the tail is a vital part of the overall shape of a bird, and while the shape is difficult to define, the length of the tail is a good feature for some species. TO assist you, here is a brief description of the different types of tails.
Birds which have short tails, have tails which are shorter than the
length of the head, or appear tailless.
Medium tails are average tails - no longer than ½ of the body
length of the bird in question.
Long tails are longer than half the body length, but not longer than
the body.
Very long tails are as long as the body, or longer than the body. In
other words if a bird is measured from tip of tail to tip of beak, about 1 half
or more of the length of the total length is made up by the tail.
The habitat describes the type of environment that a particular bird species is found in. This is very important as many birds have very specific habitat requirements, and seldom stray from their chosen habitat. Being highly mobile, there is always the chance that a bird will be seen in a habitat that it does not normally live in.
Habitat types:
Bushveld/Open woodland - this is habitat consisting of scattered trees
with grass in between. It is otherwise known as savannah, and normally the crowns
of trees do not overlap, or where they overlap, there are still many gaps between
trees where grasses grow.
Forest/Forest Edge/Thick Bush - Forest is defined as trees with a canopy
that is more or less continuous, wheras "thick bush", also has little
or open ground cover, but may exist in relatively small patches, such as along
rivers, or in mountain kloofs. Many forest species may venture out of true forest
and be seen on the forest edge, which in some cities includes gardens.
Open Veld - open veld describes habitat with few trees, dominated by
grass.
In gardens - typical gardens include trees, lawns, and areas of shrubs
and cultivated plants. However, gardens will often attract birds from adjacent
habitat types. If your garden is at the edge of open veld for example, you may
expect to see open veld birds, and the same applies to forest or fynbos.
Urban areas - this habitat is made up of a huge variety of specific
features - from golf courses, to rubbish dumps.
Farmland - is also very varied, but is usually made up of pasture, or
country used as pasture, cultivated lands etc. This is often very similar to
open veld. If farmland conists of relatively undisturbed natural habitat (i.e. grassland or bushveld), rather use that description.
Karoo/Semi Desert - this is dry habitat found extensively in the Northern
Cape and parts of western and eastern cape province, as well as elsewhere. Characterised
by extensive bare ground for most of the year, with small shrubs or sparse grasses.
Rocky or Mountainous areas - this habitat varies from small rock outcrops
to large mountain escarpements.
Fynbos/Proteas - this habitat type is restricted to the western cape
area, and consists of a huge variety of shrub-like and reed-like plants.
Seashore - rocky and sandy seashore habitats.
At or near Water - this habitat type includes estuaries, dams, rivers
and lakes. Many birds which are not waterbirds are often associated with water,
and this is a useful fact in identifying them.
This field allows one to record something about what the bird was doing. As a guideline you should only use this field if you were able to watch a bird for some time, or see it regularly.
On/in the water - This refers to birds that are actually seen swimming
in water, or wading in shallow water.
At water's edge - refers to birds which are seen outside of the water,
but near the water itself. This includes birds which perch close by and may
enter the water briefly, such as Kingfishers and Fish Eagles. Birds which inhabit
waterside vegetation, such as reeds or trees overhanging are not included in
this category.
On the ground - refers to birds which are usually on the ground - including
on lawns or on bare ground in the veld.
In a tree/bush - birds which spent much time in trees and bushes - most
of these birds may also venture onto the ground at some point, or might perch
on a tree, but are usually active inside trees.
On open perch - refer to birds which spend a lot of time sitting on
an open perch such as a tree, fence post, or telephone wires.
Perched on a rock - refer to birds which inhabit rocky habitats and
often perch on rocks or cliffs.
Spends much time flying - refers to birds which habitually spend a great
deal of time on the wing. Examples of birds which spend much time flying are swifts and swallows.
On reeds/grass stems - are birds which favour either long grass or reedbeds,
and are usually seen on or close to this habitat.
Sitting on a building - birds which are urbanised, may often be seen
sitting on a building. While almost any bird may be seen sitting on a building
for short periods, this refers to birds which seem to favour buildings as a
habitat.
This online guide is primarily aimed at identifying birds in the major urban centres. You should only use this field if you are actually in the urban areas of greater Durban, East London or Port Elizabeth, Johannesburg/Pretoria, Cape Town, Bloemfontein or Kimberley. If you are outside these centres, do not use this application.