Science Experiment – Birds

By AG Education 9 January 2018
Reading Time: < 1 Print this page
Track the birds in your backyard

About this experiment

There are lots of ways to identify the birds you see. Paying attention to individual differences between birds; like where it lives, its size, beak shape, colour or even the sound it makes can help determine what kind of bird it is. Ornithologists (a scientist who studies birds) use these same tools to help them identify different birds as well! With a bit of research, you can track the birds that visit your backyard or school yard.

Materials

  • A notebook
  • The internet or a book for research

Steps

  1. Set aside some time for your count. You might need a snack if you plan to watch for a couple of hours!
  2. Write down every bird you see. If you don’t know what type of bird it is, try and take some notes about what it looks like, how big it is, how it flies, the shape of it’s beak and the sound it makes. You can use this to research the bird.
  3. If you can’t identify the bird, it might be helpful to look up what types of birds live in your area. That might narrow it down a little.
  4. Keep tracking regularly to gain lots of information.

There are lots of questions you can investigate with this experiment. Do different types of weather attract different birds? What trees in your yard attract what types of birds? Do they come to feed, to socialise with other birds, to sing or to rest? Do they come in a flock, in a pair, or by themselves?

Do you want to keep learning? Find more experiments here!