This is Bird Note.

Any hobby or special interest has its own jargon. You'll pick up on the silly slang that

birders use as you go, like calling the yellow-rumped warbler Butterbutt. Still, learning a few basics of bird vocab is

useful when you're starting out. It'll help you ask better questions when you're confused.

And there's a good place to look for those vocab terms. The opening pages of a bird field guide.

Most of the book is made up of species descriptions, but the first

few sections have general info about what to call the different parts of a bird, basics on bird behavior,

and birding tips. So it's a quick and helpful read before a trip to find birds. For now,

here are a few vocab words to get you started. The feathers on top of a bird's

head are called the crown. Bird vocalizations come in two general types, songs used to attract

mates and calls with other meanings such as alarm or just, hey, I'm over here.

The bright white lines found on many songbirds' wings are called wing bars.

Like any language, the more you immerse yourself, the faster you'll learn.

For Bird Note, I'm Joni's Franklin.