WHAT BIRD IS THIS?

By Ella Tyler and Jerry Walls

One of the best moments in my life as a back-yard birder was the day my friend Maureen O’ Reilly taught me how to identify an Inca dove. She said, “The underside of their wings is rufous,” and the bird held out its wing, as if to demonstrate.

Maureen has moved to California but she still comes back every spring to visit friends and birds – or maybe the friends are secondary.

Since she’s been gone, my best source for bird identification is Jerry Walls, now the naturalist at Lake Houston Park. I recently asked him what about a bird I should pay attention to. This is what he said:

“Identifying birds is somewhat of a subjective topic but as a guideline:

• What size is the bird relative to a sparrow, cardinal, blue jay, crow, eagle, etc.? Does it have long or short legs, tail?
• What color is the bird? Are there identifying physical characteristics such as wing bars, head crest, etc.?
• What is the shape of the beak/bill (wide/conical, thin, etc.)? Is the bill long or short? What color is the beak/bill?
• Where was the bird observed (near open water, a pond, wetland, forested area, open prairie, in the city, at a bird feeder, etc.)? Was it on the ground, on an exposed perch high up, soaring overhead, etc.?
• Any special movements such as tail wagging, “shivering” motion, bobbing its head, pecking on a tree, etc. What type of flight pattern (straight line, undulating, soaring, etc.)?
• When (what month) was the bird sighted? What time of day was the bird observed?”
• Did the bird call or sing? What did it sound like?

If you want to learn more, there are always a variety of bird watching activities in the area. See the calendar at or use the links on the website to check out websites for Houston Audubon, the Outdoor Nature Club, or one of our great parks.