Bird Study Merit Badge
Thirteen requirements. The long one is requirement 5: 20 wild species observed and identified, each in a field notebook, and requirement 7 then asks for five of those same 20 by song alone. Start early. Requirements 8, 9 and 13 are choices, and two routes in 8 need a club or a banding program.
Elective Merit Badges Animals Conservation Merit Badges Outdoors Requirements
The plan behind this
Start the field notebook first
Requirement 5 is to observe and identify 20 species of wild birds and make a separate field notebook entry for each: date and time, location and habitat, feeding habitat and two likely foods, and whether it is a migrant or a resident. Requirement 7 then asks you to identify five of those 20 by song or call alone, and to add the song and the bird's behavior to their entries.
Twenty species take weeks of looking, not an afternoon, and the birds you can find change with the seasons. Migration seasons bring the most variety. Start the notebook as soon as you start the badge.
What needs equipment or other people
| requirement | what it needs |
|---|---|
| 3 | binoculars, a spotting scope or a monocular |
| 4 | a bird field guide with range maps |
| 8(a) or 8(c), if chosen | a local club or knowledgeable group, or a bird banding program with an approved agency, researcher, observatory or certified individual |
| 9 | materials to build a feeder, birdbath, sanctuary or nest box; or just paper for the habitat plan |
The three choices
Requirement 8, ONE of three: a field trip with a club or knowledgeable birders; finding the nearest Christmas Bird Count and its recent results; or taking part in bird banding. The Christmas Bird Count route can be done from a library or the internet at any time of year. The other two run on somebody else's calendar.
Requirement 9, ONE of five: build a feeder, a birdbath, a backyard sanctuary or a nest box (from plans your counselor approves), or describe and draw a plan for a backyard habitat. Whichever you choose, also describe the birds you hope to attract and the maintenance it needs.
Requirement 13, ONE of two: research a career that uses bird study, or how you might pursue it as a hobby.
What this page is
The Bird Study merit badge, drawn so the 20-species notebook comes first and the song identification is drawn as depending on it, with the three choices as questions. It is not a copy of the requirements: each step is a short label with a link to the official requirements, which are what actually governs and which change from year to year. The free official pamphlet is the fuller guide.
Sources for this page
- Bird Study Merit Badge Requirements, Merit Badge Hub, last modified 2025-12-31 · The requirements themselves, and the free official pamphlet linked from them.
- Guide to Advancement, 2025, Section 7.0.0.3 · The process every merit badge is earned through, which this page does not repeat.
- Guide to Advancement, 2025, Section 7.0.4.3 · Which version of a changed requirement applies to a Scout who has already started.
- Guide to Advancement, 2025, Section 4.0.0.1 · Why the requirements are not in the Guide to Advancement and are expected to change annually.
Last checked against its sources on .