Grab a pair of binoculars — any old pair — and head out to the back yard or a nearby park. These birds are common in the San Fernando Valley. If you’re not yet a birder and want to see why so many people enjoy this pastime, start looking closer at the “easy” birds that are all around. Once you start to notice how different they are from one another and how many special marks, stripes, colors and quirks they display, you’ll begin to appreciate that birds are an easy and fun way to connect with wildlife that doesn’t involve paying for an African safari.
(FOUR-LETTER CODES ARE “ALPHA” CODES USED BY BIRDERS/ORNITHOLOGISTS FOR BREVITY’S SAKE).
NOTE THAT DURING NON-BREEDING SEASON, MANY OF THE MOST VISIBLE CHARACTERISTICS THAT DIFFERENTIATE MALE BIRDS OF SIMILAR SIZE/SHAPE CAN BE MUTED OR ABSENT.
Click or tap on all photos to enlarge!
House Sparrow (HOSP)
Length: 5.5″ to 6.5″ Weight: 1.4 oz
Male — David Barton 
Female — David Barton
House Finch (HOFI)
Length: 6″ Weight: 1 oz.
Female 
Non-breeding male 
Breeding Male
California Towhee (CALT)
Length: 9″ Weight: 2 oz
Randy Ehler 
Rose Liebowitz 
Jim Houghton
Jays (CASJ & STJA)
CASJ Length 11″ Weight 2.8 oz STJA Length 11.5″ Weight 4.5 oz
California Scrubjay – Randy Ehler 
California Scrubjay – Alex Viduetsky 
Steller’s Jay — Gary Park
Hummingbirds
Length 3.5″ to 4″ Weight 0.1 oz (!!)
Male Allen’s — Pat Bates 
Female Allen’s — Dave Barton 
Male Anna’s — Robert McMorran 
Female Anna’s — Matthew Feld 
Male Rufous — Scott Logan 
Female Rufous — Dave Barton 
Male Costa’s — Dick Daniels 
Male Black-Chinned — David Barton 
Female Black-Chinned — Scott Logan
Goldfinches
Length 4.5″ to 5″ Weight 0.3 – 0.5 oz
Male Lesser Goldfinch — David Barton 
Female Lesser Goldfinch — David Barton 
Male American Goldfinch 
Female American — David M. Gascogne 
Winter American Goldfinch 
Winter LEGOS on Nyjer feeder
Spotted Towhee (SPTO)
Length 7″ to 7.5″ Weight 1.4 oz
Spotted Towhee — David Barton 
Spotted Towhee — Randy Ehler 
Juvenile SPTO — Richard Medvitz
Wrens (HOWR, CANW and BEWR)
Length 4.5″ to 5.25″ Weight 0.4 to 0.5 oz
House Wren — Andy Witchget 
Canyon Wren — Pat Bates 
Bewick’s Wren — Dave Barton
(Northern) Mockingbird (NOMO)
Length 10″ Weight 2 oz
Pat Bates 
Pat Bates 
Randy Ehler
Bushtit (BUSH)
Length 4.5″ Weight 0.2 oz
Alex Viduetsky 
James Kenney 
Jhonell Centeno
Doves (MODO & EUCD)
Length 12″ Weight 4 oz to 6 oz
Mourning Dove – David Barton 
Mourning Doves – Gary Park 
Eurasian Collared-Dove — Gary Park
Pigeons (ROPI and BTPI)
ROPI Length: 12.5 in. Weight: 9 oz
BTPI Length: 15 in. Weight: 13 oz
Rock Pigeon — Randy Ehler 
Band-tailed Pigeon — David Barton
Song Sparrow (SOSP)
Length 6″ to 7.5″ Weight 0.7 oz
James Kenney 
David Barton 
Pat Bates
Black Phoebe (BLPH)
Length 6″ to 7″ Weight 0.7 oz
BLPH 
Randy Ehler 
Arnold Joe
American Robin (Redbreast) (AMRO)
Length 10″ Weight 1.7 oz
Randy Ehler 
Randy Ehler 
Alex Viduetsky
Woodpeckers
Length 7″ to 10.5″ Weight 1 oz to 2.5 oz
Male Nuttall’s 
Female NUWO — David Barton 
NUWO Pair — James Kenney 
Downy — Alex Viduetsky 
Hairy — David Barton 
Acorn — Ken Jenkins
Bluebirds (Western WEBL, Mountain MOBL)
Length 7″ to 7.75″ Weight 1 oz
Female WEBL — James Kenney 
Male WEBL — James Kenny 
Male MOBL — Anonymous
Oak Titmouse (OATI)
Length: 5.5 in. Weight: 0.55 oz.
Richard Medvitz 
Richard Medvitz 
Gary Park
Dark-eyed Junco
Length: 6.25 in. Weight: 0.67 oz.
Gary Park 
James Kenney 
Juvenile DEJU — David Barton
Is it a Raven (CORA)…or a Crow (AMCR)?
Raven Length: 24 in. Weight 42-44 oz.
Crow Length 17.5 in. Weight 16 oz.
Common Raven 
American Crow
Local Warblers (OCWA & COYE)
Orange-crowned Warbler Length 5 in. Weight 0.3 oz.
Common Yellow-throat Length 5 in. Weight 0.4 oz.
Male Common Yellowthroat — David Barton 
Female COYE — Wikimedia 
Femaile OCWA — Tom Murray 
Male Orange-crowned Warbler — Gary Park
Hawks
Cooper’s Hawk (COHA) Length: 14-21 in. Weight: 12-16 oz.
Red-tailed Hawk (RTHA) Length: 19-25 in. Weight: 35-38 oz.
Red-shouldered Hawk (RSHA) Length: 17-24 in. Weight: 17-22 oz.
Juvenile COHA — Davide Barton 
Adult COHA — Gary Park 
Red-tailed Hawk — Pat Bates 
RTHA — James Kenney 
RSHA — Alex Viduetsky 
RSHA — Gary Park 
COHA (Left) and RTHA (Right) — Gary Park
Occasional, Uncommon But Not Rare
There are plenty of birds who aren’t usually seen in urban yards or parks. On the other hand, they do appear from time to time. Sometimes it’s because they are particularly shy and only come out of hiding to look for a mate, or because there simply aren’t many of them in our area. Some migratory individuals, because our SoCal weather is so balmy, decide to stick around all year one year, or move in permanently. Either way such birds are here and they’re rewarding to see and identify. (Remember, you can click on these images to enlarge them.)
Hermit Thrush — Gary Park 
Yellow Warbler — Gary Park
California Thrasher — Gary Park 
Male California Quail — Gary Park 
Female Cal. Quail — Gary Park
Wrentit — Gary Park 
Northern Flickers — Gary Park
White-Breasted Nuthatch — Gary Park 
Lawrence’s Goldfinch — Gary Park 
Black-headed Grosbeak — Gary Park
Lazuli Bunting — Gary Park 
Western Tanager — David Barton 
Western Meadowlark — Rose Liebowitz
Seasonal Visitors to Southern California
Birds move around. Some migrate over hard-to-believe distances, others shift between close-together mountains and valleys. Either way, driven by seasons, by the availability of food or absence of predators for breeding, birds move around. This page is not concerned with migratory birds who are seen passing through on their way to somewhere else; these are birds that will show up in your backyard or in the park because they’re here for the winter, or here for the spring and summer.
Hooded and Bullock’s Orioles (HOOR & BUOR)
HOOR Length: 7-8 in. Weight 0.8 oz.
BUOR Length: 7.5-8.5 in. Weight 1.3 oz.
Male HOOR — David Barton 
Female HOOR — David Barton 
Male BUOR — Alex Viduetsky 
Female BUOR — Gary Park
Yellow-rumped Warbler (YRWA)
Length 5.5 in. Weight 0.5 oz
Myrtle YRWA — Allen D. Wilson 
Audubon’s YRWA — Gary Park 
Audubon’s YRWA — Gary Park
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Length: 4.25 in. Weight: 0.22 oz.
Pat Bates 
Gary Park 
David Barton
White-crowned Sparrow
Length: 7 in. Weight: 1 oz.
Juvenile WCSP — Mark Elliott 
James Kenney 
Davod Barton
If you see something you don’t recognize in your yard or a park don’t hesitate to email San Fernando Valley Audubon at BirdIdentify@sfvaudubon.org — we’ll do our best to tell you what you’ve seen! Please provide general location, and a photo is pretty essential!