# Bird identification

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 2, 2005, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803 "2005-07-02T04:22:45Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2005, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803/1 "2005-07-02T04:22:45Z")

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There are a lot of interesting birds in my neck of the woods, I live in NE Texas. Today I saw one that had a long split tail. The tail was so long it looked like it interfered with his/her ability to fly very far. I didn’t get a good look at the color, I was looking into the sun. So, that’s all I have, a bird about the size of a small blackbird, unknown coloring, but with a very long split tail. Any ideas?

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**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2005, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803/2 "2005-07-02T04:55:46Z")

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could it have been a [roadrunner?](http://www.50states.com/bird/roadrunn.htm)

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2005, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803/3 "2005-07-02T05:02:22Z")

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Almost certainly a [Scissor-tailed Flycatcher](http://www.birdsofoklahoma.net/images/STFC0681.jpg)

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**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2005, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803/4 "2005-07-02T05:32:49Z")

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> [@Colibri](#):
>
> Almost certainly a [Scissor-tailed Flycatcher](http://www.birdsofoklahoma.net/images/STFC0681.jpg)

Yep, that’s it. They sure have trouble flying very far with all that baggage. 🙂

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**Author:** ![Mesquite-oh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@Mesquite-oh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mesquite-oh)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2005, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803/5 "2005-07-02T08:28:52Z")

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I would recommend the identification guidebook “Birds of Texas” by  
Fred J. Alsop III published by DK Publishing. It makes identification a snap, even by a non birder.

It devotes a page to each bird. It shows a color picture of an adult with obvious identifying features pointed out, a smaller picture of a juvenile bird, pictures of birds that it is often mistaken for, a map of where the birds are usually found, a drawing of it’s usual flight pattern, what kinda of habitat you would usually see one, a silhouette drawing of the bird that shows the size in relation to the actual book for scale, as well as a bunch of info to help you id the bird.

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2005, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803/6 "2005-07-02T14:06:19Z")

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> [@ccwaterback](#):
>
> Yep, that’s it. They sure have trouble flying very far with all that baggage. 🙂

Actually, the long tail streamers make them very maneuverable for catching insects in flight. They are migratory, and some make it as far south as Panama, tail streamers and all.

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**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\
**Post date:** [July 2, 2005, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-identification/310803/7 "2005-07-02T15:19:02Z")

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> [@chriscya](#):
>
> I would recommend the identification guidebook “Birds of Texas” by  
> Fred J. Alsop III published by DK Publishing. It makes identification a snap, even by a non birder.

Cool. I have a book called “Birds of Texas” by Stan Tekiela that sounds similar to the book you mentioned. My book didn’t have the “split-tail” though.

Here’s an excellent bird site someone posted the other day:

[http://www.birds.cornell.edu/programs/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/](http://www.birds.cornell.edu/programs/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/)