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Backyard bird word search

Sixteen birds you might see from a kitchen window in much of the United States, from the bluebird and goldfinch to the towhee, phoebe, flicker and mourning dove.

Words run in all eight directions, including backwards and up, on a 12 by 12 grid in big print. The leftover letters spell a proverb that fits.

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Prints on US letter paper: the puzzle page, then the answer key on its own page (2 pages in all). In the print window, choose your printer, or Save as PDF to keep a copy.

Solving tips

Look for the rare letters first: a Z, Q, J, X or K is easy to spot in big print. Then circle the long words, which cross more of the grid. Every letter belongs to a word or to the hidden saying, so the uncircled letters left at the end are the saying, in order.

In this grid, 11 words read across, 2 words down and 3 words diagonally, and 8 of them read backward (right to left or bottom to top), so check both ends of a likely letter. The longest is Mourning dove and the shortest is Wren, which hides best: look for it last.

About the words

The Christmas Bird Count, a winter census of birds, began in 1900 when ornithologist Frank Chapman proposed it as an alternative to a holiday hunt. It is run by the National Audubon Society, and volunteers now count birds across the Americas each December and January.

Bluebird: The eastern bluebird has a bright blue back and a rusty orange chest. It nests in tree cavities and birdhouses, and it is the state bird of Missouri and New York.
Catbird: The gray catbird is slate gray with a black cap. It earned its name from a cry that sounds like a cat’s mew, and it also mimics other birds.
Flicker: The northern flicker is a woodpecker that often forages on the ground, probing for ants. It shows a white patch on its rump and a flash of yellow or red under the wings.
Goldfinch: In summer, male American goldfinches turn bright lemon yellow with black caps. The species is the state bird of Iowa, New Jersey and Washington, and loves thistle and sunflower seeds.
Grackle: The common grackle looks black from far away, but in sunlight its feathers shine with purple, bronze and green. It has a pale yellow eye and a long, keel-shaped tail.
Hummingbird: The ruby-throated hummingbird is the only hummingbird that regularly nests in the eastern United States. It can hover and even fly backward, and its wings beat too quickly to see.
Mockingbird: The northern mockingbird copies the songs of other birds and even some sounds like car alarms. Its scientific name means “many-tongued mimic.” Five states have named it their state bird.
Mourning dove: The mourning dove is a soft brown bird whose gentle, sorrowful cooing gives it its name. It often feeds on seed that has fallen to the ground.
Oriole: The male Baltimore oriole is bright orange and black. It was named for the colors in Lord Baltimore’s coat of arms, and it is Maryland’s state bird and a baseball team’s name.
Phoebe: The eastern phoebe is named for its call, which sounds like “fee-bee.” It wags its tail constantly and often nests under porch roofs and bridges.
Starling: The European starling arrived in North America in 1890 and 1891, when about 100 were released in New York’s Central Park. Their descendants now live across the continent.
Swallow: The barn swallow has a deeply forked tail and a glossy blue back. It builds a cup-shaped nest of mud, often on a barn beam, and spends winters in Central and South America.
Titmouse: The tufted titmouse is a small gray bird with a pointed crest and big dark eyes. It darts to a feeder, grabs a seed and flies off to eat it elsewhere.
Towhee: The eastern towhee is a large sparrow with a black hood, rusty sides and a white belly. Its song is often described as “drink your tea.”
Warbler: Warblers are small, active, mostly insect-eating songbirds. Many are brightly colored and pass through backyards in spring and fall as they migrate.
Wren: The Carolina wren is a small, rusty brown bird with a white eyebrow stripe and a surprisingly loud song. It is the state bird of South Carolina.

The hidden saying (no peeking until you have found every word): The proverb means that those who start early get the best chance. It appears in John Ray’s 1670 collection of English proverbs, in the form “The early bird catcheth the worm.”

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Backyard bird word search