Field Guides

This section of the digital exhibit intends to serve as an introductory field guide to a small number of common North American backyard birds, ranging from the elegant Barn Swallow to the clever Blue Jay to the modest House Wren. Each page listed below houses information families of birds and includes one to four species with simplified field data that can be understood by anyone, regardless of how much birding knowledge you may have.

Each bird entry is paired with a plate from John James Audubon’s Birds of America. For more information on the objects, simply click the image you are interested in. 

A comprehensive list of all species and objects included in the field guides with hyperlinks to the relevant species can be found in the Gallery.

Bird Guides by Family:

"Yellow-billed Magpie, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Clark's Nutcracker (Plate 362)". John James Audubon (1785-1851), c. 1827-1838. National Audubon Society. Birds not included in guide.