America, 1899. The end of the Wild West has begun. After a robbery gone wrong in the western town of Blackwater, Arthur Morgan and the Van Der Linde Gang are forced to flee. From there, imagine that a secret passion takes hold of Arthur. Driven by the desire to turn his back on a life of crime, he embarks on a pilgrimage across New Hanover in search of the most beautiful bird species. If this premise seems far-fetched, just wait until you see what else is in store. Welcome to Red Dead Redemption II, the greatest ornithological adventure in the world of video games to date. Birding the way Birds feature heavily in the world of video games. While the first bird to appear in Joust primarily served a mechanical function, avian fauna has since become an integral part of the gaming medium. Whether serving as environmental markers, enemies, bosses, allies, or even main characters, birds are present in almost every video game. Sometimes discreet, sometimes essential. While in the past, birdlife was mainly limited to archetypes (the crow, the owl, or the seagull), the evolution of video games has allowed for greater diversity in increasingly complex and organic worlds. Today, the question is not just whether to include a bird, but which bird to include. This diversification took off with the advent of increasingly open and tangible worlds. Birds thus lend credibility to the experience offered to us. It is based on reality, whether the fauna is real or not. The Mountain Crow of the latest Zelda games, for example, are a sign of bad luck, just as a part of the cultural history of the crow has materialized in our reality. For an other example, some species in the games are said to be “homochromic,” a term that means the animal is the same color as its environment in order to camouflage itself. But this diversification must also comply with all the rules imposed by a game, as was the case with the creation of Ustwo Games' “Alba: A Wildlife Adventure” For example, it would be inconceivable to have a migratory species that only visits the site from time to time, as this could frustrate the player. Certain rare birds are therefore confined to specific locations. What makes them rare is not the fact that they are not often seen, but rather that they are only seen at a specific point on the map at all times. Alba: A wildlife adventure is an independent game from Ustwo Games in which you play as Alba, a little girl who discovers the wildlife on her vacation island. There are many more examples, and they are much more diverse than you might think. We were surprised to see certain games mention the Araponga (Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy), the Black-naped Oriole (Ghost of Tsushima), and the Bird of Paradise (Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble). But enough chatter and introductions, today we're going to dive into what could be described as the ultimate ornithological experience: Red Dead Redemption II The bird that guides the player through the wind gusts in Ghost of Tsushima is none other than a Black-naped Oriole, easily identifiable by its colors. A Living World It's difficult to talk about ornithology without addressing ornithologists, to explain what it really is. It's an adrenaline rush. Sometimes a long wait that is viscerally rewarded. Sometimes a long wait that comes to nothing. An unexpected surprise. A moment you can't grasp. It's very difficult to capture all of this in a video game that follows rules and a certain sense of rhythm. Yet that's what Red Dead Redemption II manages to capture: that feeling of the unknown and the unexpected. Of course, all of this is simplified, but the numerous interactions and different behaviors bring a semblance of consistency to the entire fauna. For example, it is not uncommon to see certain species flying in formation in the game. This “V Shape" formation is one of the most characteristic examples of flight among birds, especially migratory birds. It allows them to reduce their energy. Birds of prey can be seen hunting snakes or mammals. All of this helps to bring the whole scene to life. And although only about sixty species of birds populate the map of Red Dead Redemption II, their omnipresence, their ranges, and, in some cases, their mythology, are enough to make observing them interesting. The birds in Red Dead Redemption II are known for being extremely well modeled. Here is a Canada goose in flight Red Dead Redemption II : a Birds tour So, what do we have in the Lemoyne and New Austin regions? First of all, not all of the birds in RDR2 are native to the United States. The game ventures into some exotic and Caribbean locations, notably the Guarma Peninsula. Its birdlife therefore includes Macaws and Red-footed Boobies. Scarlet macaws, Blue and Yellow macaws, and Buffon's Macaws are mainly native to Central and South America. While the first two species are doing rather well, Buffon's Macaw is critically endangered. The Booby is also not visible on the North American coastline, despite its enormous range across all of the world's oceans. The same observation can be made about the Roseate Spoonbill, which is only seen near Bayou Nwa in the game and tends to wash up on the shores of Florida and Texas in real life. However, most of its range is located between the Caribbean and Argentina. Red Macaw, Blue and Yellow Macaw, Buffon's Macaw, and Red-footed Booby (bottom) are four rather exotic species in the Red Dead Redemption II ecosystem that can only be found on the Guarma Peninsula, with its Central American accents.Pictures from : Dorian Anderson, Michael Todd, Jeff Hapeman et Robert Oberfelder For the rest, the vast majority of species are characteristic of the American landscape, to the point of sometimes being emblematic. Obviously, it is impossible to talk about birds in the United States without mentioning the famous bald eagle found in the West Elizabeth and Ambarino regions. But other species featured in the game are actually emblems of American states. The Baltimore Oriole is the state bird of Maryland, the American Robin is the state bird of Michigan, and the Northern Cardinal is the most widely represented, with seven states making it their emblem, from North Carolina to Illinois. Other species common in the United States and featured in the game include the wintering Cedar Waxwing, the highly endangered California Condor, and the Red-tailed Hawk, which you are all familiar with at least by ear, since it is the bird that is always heard instead of the Bald Eagle's shouts in movies and TV shows (and in the Assassin's Creed series, it is the cry of this bird that is heard at synchronization points). We could also mention the Eurasian Tree Sparrow, native to the Old Continent, imported to the United States in the 1870s. The song of the American icon, the Bald Eagle, is often confused with that of the Red-tailed Hawk due to its portrayal in movies and television.Pictures from Mason Maron, Brian Sullivan We could also mention certain absentees who, given their status, could have been included in the game. This is the case with the Northern Mockingbird, five times state emblem, and the Roadrunner, an animal that could have been found in desert areas and which inspired the famous “Beep Beep” in half of the eponymous cartoon. And since Red Dead Redemption II gives pride of place to legendary animals (but unfortunately no mythical feathered creatures), why not build a legend around the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, a bird that was very common in the 19th century but disappeared following the depletion of its habitat, with the last confirmed sighting dating back to 1944? This is indeed a case of a “true sighting,” as many ornithologists now claim to have seen the bird again without any real evidence to back up their claims, which led to a split among American ornithologists starting in 2004. Thus, the Ivory-billed Woodpecker could have suffered the same fate as the Carolina Parakeet, which, due to its exploitation in the game, deserves a paragraph all to itself. The legendary Ivory-billed Woodpecker. So legendary that people invent evidence to make others believe it is still alive…(Yes, even ornithology is not immune to rumors…) The wonderful case of the Carolina Parakeet Those who have played the game and completed it at 100% know this. One mission involves eliminating a particular species: the Carolina Parakeet. This is the only species of Psittacidae (which includes parrots and macaws) in North America that became extinct around 1910 and then again in 1940. And I say “then” because in reality, the two subspecies of Parakeets, one western and one eastern, disappeared one after the other. The bird was hunted for its feathers, but also because it attacked crops when large flocks gathered in winter. In any case, the Carolina parakeet is the only species that can be deliberately driven to extinction in the game, as there are only a limited number of them. It is also one of the specters evoked (unintentionally, one assumes) by Red Dead Redemption II. The period covered by the game (and its storyline) depicts a world that is changing. The industrial revolution is now firmly established and brings with it a whole host of environmental changes. Cities are being built, railways are being laid, natural areas are being polluted, and it is with all these threats that the decline of wildlife begins. There are a total of 25 Carolina Parakeets in the game. Eliminate them all and the species will simply disappear As early as 1885, many ornithologists were warning about the systematic slaughter of birds for their plumage. Among them was a woman, Florence Bailey, who wrote the first modern ornithological guide in history: Birds through an Opera Glass, published in 1889. In this book, she also compares the condition of birds to that of women. Florence Bailey may even be present in the naturalist mode of Red Dead Online, reimagined under the name Harriet Davenport, but there is nothing to confirm this. However, these initiatives were not enough, and the disappearance of the Carolina parakeet became increasingly critical.While the creation of national parks by President Ulysses Grant in 1872 and the Lacey Act were a first step, the slaughter was not really curbed until 1918, when the United States and Canada jointly signed the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which prohibited all killing, importing, and exporting of (migratory) birds on site. This treaty gradually became international with joint signatures from countries such as Japan in 1972 and even the USSR (now Russia) in 1976. As a result, more than 1,100 species are now protected on American soil since the treaty was reformed in 2021, with this update abolishing criminal prosecution for accidental killing. Arthur and the Blue Jay Among the birds listed in the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) is the Blue Jay. It belongs to the Corvidae family (the same family as Crows and Magpies), a family that is much more colorful than is often thought. Just look at the Green Jay or the Sri-Lanka Magpie Jay to see for yourself. The Blue Jay is a very common bird in North America, found in wooded areas as well as parks and gardens. Jays are particularly known for their food caching behavior. For example, during 3 days, jays made 1,270 and 1,959 visits to 2 pin oak trees and removed 3,175 and 4,897 acorns, respectively (Steele et al. 2010). Although today the Blue Jay's reputation has improved (even if it's not perfect), during segregation in the southern states, the bird was considered a messenger of the devil. On Fridays, it was said that he brought wood to the devil and his family to fuel the flames of Hell. And it is because he travels between Heaven and Earth (in the biblical sense of the term) that he is not heard between noon and 3 p.m., as his journey is said to be very long. Busy on Fridays, it takes time off on Saturdays, when it can sing its most cheerful song (Martin, 1996). In reality, many myths emerged during this period about this bird, which was easily visible and recognizable by workers in the cotton fields, but due to the lack of written records to transcribe them, many of these myths have been lost. Blue Jay. More than just a bird in Red Dead Redemption II ? However, the Jay's Reputation is still somewhere between light and dark palettes of grey. And it was by chance in July 2022, almost four years after the release of Red Dead Redemption II, that a player made a remarkable discovery. Spoiler alert! During the construction of John Marston's house, which is part of one of the final chapters of the game, a Blue Jay can be seen on the wooden planks watching John and his companions hammering or straightening beams. This intriguing detail has led many players to identify it as a possible reincarnation of Arthur Morgan, the game's main character who disappears when the story ends. The Blue Jay is indeed Arthur's favorite bird and, whether intentional or not, it is one of the birds featured on cigarette packs in the game (see above). When building John Marston's house (and under certain conditions, it seems), a Blue Jay can be seen in most of the construction shots. Why? Is it Arthur? Is it intentional? These questions remain unanswered For some natives of Eastern Canada and North America, the Blue Jay is, on the contrary, a sign of good fortune. It represents change to come, offering advice and encouragement. The bird's spirituality evokes affirmation, determination, and loyalty to one's principles in order to fight for what is right. Still acting as a messenger, some elders believed that listening to it allowed them to know if certain people in a village were plotting against them. In a way, corvids are known in many mythologies to be messengers of the gods. While they are sometimes ineffective or even incompetent, as in Japanese mythology with the myth of Cikap-Kamuy (Ashkenazy, 2003), they are sometimes formidable, as in Norse mythology with Odin's two ravens, Huginn and Muginn, one possessing thought or spirit (historians still debate the question) and the other knowledge. These birds, inseparable from their god known as “The Master of Ravens,” fly across the nine realms every morning before returning at noon (or the next day, depending on the translation) to report their observations to their leader. This partly explains the few green corvids that Kratos must hunt in God of War 2018.When contacted, the team responsible for creating the wildlife in Red Dead Redemption II did not respond. The interpretation of the blue jay's presence is therefore wide open and proves the game's attention to detail, if further proof were needed. While the quest to find Odin's Ravens is a pain in God of War, it fits neatly into Norse mythology, where these elusive birds follow you everywhere. The little game's failures Even though the work, as we have just seen together, is quite exceptional, we would not be good ornithologists if we did not find some criticism to make about the game, as was the case with our colleague Nicholas Lund in 2019. In his article, he noted, for example, that the Little Egret was extremely rare in North America, with only one sighting of the bird recorded before 1980, known in the jargon as an “accidental observation.” Lund also brings up the subject of the California Quail, which is actually a Virginia Quail in the game. And here, it's a yellow card, as the two are so different. Was there a translation error when naming the birds? Should both types of quail have been included in the game, with the California Quail being removed at the last minute? Once again, the main parties involved, when contacted, did not wish to comment. Tanagers, small colorful passerines, are also not named, even though they include two identifiable species: the Scarlet Tanager and the Western Tanager. Interestingly, the two complete the distribution of the United States, as the former is more common in the East, while the latter is found more in the West. There are also a few errors in certain behaviors, such as small birds not folding their wings when they begin their descent (an error that is very common in video game modeling) or certain snake hunts that seem very difficult given the geology of the location. But overall, Red Dead Redemption II offers impeccable copy… which could perhaps open new doors. This is perhaps Red Dead Redemption II's most glaring mistake: confusing California Quail from Virginia Quail (left) with Virginia Quail from California Quail (right).Photos: Patrick Maurice and Brad Imhoff Masterminds Red Dead Redemption II sought to shine with its almost obsessive attention to detail. In the field of ornithology, it has certainly succeeded. Never before has a game come so close to reality in the field. And when, in July 2020, Red Dead Online introduced the role of the “naturalist,” it seemed like the next logical step. What's more, the quest begins with an argument between Harriett Davenport, a great defender of nature, and Gus Macmillian, a retired trapper. This is inevitably a reflection of the tense situation at the time, between traditionalism and modernity in action. Harriett has been studying animals and their interactions for three years, and asks players to take part in her work by tracking down and bringing back evidence of the existence of legendary animals. This mode has allowed many people to fully participate in researching and encountering animals, sometimes creating memorable moments. The naturalist mode in Red Dead Redemption II extends the experience already available in the base game. It's a shame there are no birds to track. (The fact that they fly and are difficult to see are two logical reasons for their absence) And this is precisely the point that a 2021 study entitled “The Educational Value of Virtual Ecologies in Red Dead Redemption 2,” conducted by Edward Crowley, Matthew Silk, and Sarah Crowley in the British journal "People and Nature", will capitalize on. Their goal is simple: to find out whether Red Dead Redemption II players are better at identifying animals than those who have not played the game. 581 people took part in the test, which involved a quiz aimed at recognizing 15 species that are fairly common in the game (birds, but not only) using real-life photographs. The vast majority of the 581 participants (444) had experience with Red Dead Redemption II. The authors of the study then divided these players into four categories: those who had played the game, those who had played the naturalist mode without finishing the game, those who had finished the game, and those who had finished the game and played the naturalist mode. When studying the results, they noticed that people who had not played the game or who had played it without finishing it obtained a median score. On the other hand, those who had finished the game and/or played naturalist mode obtained a better score in the exercise. However, this skill deteriorated over time depending on whether or not players were able to replay the game. In addition to these results, the authors asked each player (regardless of their level of completion) if they had any comments about what they had learned from the game. It turns out that participants retained more information about the behaviors and interactions between different species because they were undoubtedly more emotionally involved. Players who had completed Red Dead Redemption II or played in naturalist mode scored higher on the quiz than non-players and those who had abandoned the game This study raises legitimate questions about the potential educational impact of certain experiences of this type. While the door has long been ajar on the history side, as in the Assassin's Creed series, the question now arises for naturalism in all its forms, as it stands at a crossroads. Indeed, its disciplines need to become increasingly inclusive and accessible or risk becoming extinct. While it is clear that video games will not be the solution to everything, they can, however, be a great gateway to learning. If you want to learn more about real applications, you can consult these articles. What about the long-awaited Grand Theft Auto VI? Even though it only lasted three seconds during the first trailer release for the most anticipated game of the decade, many ornithologists like Nicholas Lund wrote articles discussing the few images of the Everglades and trying to identify the species present. While we all agreed on the most visible species, the American Flamingo, the others are more difficult to identify. For example, while Lund sees juvenile Cranes in the photo below, others are more inclined to believe it is a Tricolored Heron, which can have very varied plumage in real life. But none of us can say for sure. So, we can be certain about the American Flamingo. However, even though it is represented throughout the Everglades National Park, it is actually… conspicuously absent. As we outlined earlier, the flamingo is also on the long list of species hunted at the end of the 19th century for its feathers. Combined with the degradation of its environment, it has thus virtually disappeared from the United States. However, the animal is far from extinct, as according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, there are 200,000 individuals living in the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. But some individuals still roam the state of Florida. In 2015, a wild individual caused panic at the Key West Naval Air Station. While capturing and keeping it at the Miami Zoo posed no problem, releasing it did. The reason: the state considered that since the bird had not been seen nesting in Florida since the late 19th century, it could no longer be considered endemic (i.e., native to the state). Ornithologists persisted and showed the authorities that flamingos were still passing through the region, thanks to GPS tracking of two Mexican individuals landing in Florida. In fact, it appears that around a thousand individuals temporarily land on the Florida coast. The state then reversed its decision and Conchy was released into the wild and tracked via GPS by ornithologists, who were surprised to find that Conchy actually stayed in Florida for two years. Over the past decade, the gradual restoration of Everglades National Park has encouraged the return of wading birds to the region and, in the medium term, will encourage the return of flamingos. The picture-postcard scene offered by the Grand Theft Auto VI trailer could therefore well become a reality and even more so since February 2026, when the Flamingo became the state bird of Florida after lengthy discussions. The birdlife in Grand Theft Auto VI seems more varied than ever. But also more fantastical… Will fantasy soon become reality?