Bird Bingo

Birding is a fun and safe way to explore outside, get active, and spend time as a family. Getting started can feel intimidating, but there are simple tools and fun activities to help you get to know your local birds. In this blog, we’ll introduce you to the Merlin Bird ID app and walk you through how to make your own bird bingo game with common local birds.

Intro to Merlin

Look for this icon in the app store.

Merlin is a free app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology that helps you discover your local birds and build your bird ID skills in the field. It provides an easy-to-use interface that identifies birds with five simple questions and allows you to browse common birds in your area. To learn more about and download the Merlin app download visit: https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/.

Teacher’s Tip! When you first download Merlin it needs to verify and email. If you’re working with students under 13 you can use a classroom or teacher email. Once it has been verified once, you will not need to verify again.

Steps for Bingo

Open the Merlin Bird ID app and click ‘Explore Birds.’ Use the icon in the upper-right hand corner and filter by ‘Likely Birds’. Next set your current date and location and choose the option ‘Most likely’. This will bring up a list of birds that are common in your area on that date in the order you are most likely to see them. This list of birds is created from years of citizen-science data from birders just like you!

Now that you have your list of local birds, you can make your bird bingo cards! Have your kids make a 3×3 grid on a blank piece of paper (see image below). Pick out nine birds from your Merlin list and have students draw the birds on their bingo cards, one in each box. Encourage them to be strategic about which birds they place where on their card. Don’t forget to note important field marks, or clues that will help you identify birds in the field. Bars on the wings, the color of the head, and even the shape of the beak can all be important field marks.

A great example of a bird bingo card!

Go Play Bingo!

It’s time to explore! Take your finished cards out into the schoolyard, your backyard, or a local park. How many birds on your card can you find? Who will get bingo first? For teachers instructing remotely, have your students go out into their yard or watch from their window and fill out their card as they see birds.

After playing bird bingo, be sure to debrief. Ask kids which birds were easiest or hardest to find, what were the birds doing when you saw them, and what clues did you use to be sure of your ID? You can encourage kids to use the Merlin app to learn more about the birds they saw and listen to their songs. Congratulate them on being awesome birders!

Birding can be as simple as getting to know a few local birds and bird bingo offers an easy and fun way to practice bird observation and identification skills. If your kids are curious about birds after playing bird bingo, explore more bird-related activities with our free Cooped Up Kids lessons.