Has anyone collected the survival benefits of learning about certain birds and their habits? Like following doves to water, certain birds to bee hives, etcetera?

Only what I learned in China: EVERY bird is edible!

Makes sense to learn the habits of local birds from this point of view...
-Blast

If you follow a seagull it will lead you to a fish and chips stand, but if you follow the pigeons they will lead you to a park bench.

Esp in the desert, but many/most other places, too, birds will head to water early in the morning, and around dusk. That might lead one to think that if they hear birds congregating, there might be water in a small seep or hidden natural tank. If you have water, it could also be a place to catch birds.

And other critters that might be taking a drink or trying to catch birds.

Don't birds do certain behaviors when you or other predators get near their nests / eggs that tend to give them away?

Note to new players: Blast is a scientist, poet, naturalist, explorer, and exemplary dad-in all ways admirable, the renaissance man of survival blogging. He has indicated, in prior posts, that his taste buds were blown off in the war, suggesting that his determination of edibility may be a little more...well... generous than most. No criticism intended, as eclectic taste is clearly a survival trait. I'm just sayin'...

I keep telling you June bugs are really yummy! Just try them once, roasted with maybe a touch of salt. And grasshoppers really do taste like steak. I would have guessed they'd taste like shrimp but they are definitely the beef of the insect world.

Really, only once have I encountered stuff I wouldn't eat again, though that was mainly due to where they were caught.

-Blast

June bugs cause gas, at least in my Siberian Husky.

Killdeer do the crippled flop around on the ground to lure you away from the nest.
A Killdeer nest is just a shallow scoop out in the gravel and the eggs are coloured to blend in with the stones.
The Killdeer flops like it has a broken wing but when you try to pick it up manages to stay just out of reach leading you away from the nest.

Most tree nesters just try to be quiet and hide out.
Crow, raven and eagle will attack you if you get too close.
Even Redwing Blackbirds try to dive bomb around your head if you get too close to their nest, but they nest in the reeds fairly low to the ground.
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Kingbirds like to sit on the top of bushes they have a nest in and sing. They nest fairly low in small bushes. When you see them singing they are likely right above their nest. They will either try ducking into the shrub and sit on the nest or attempt to divert you by flying to another bush and singing louder.

Ummm ... yes and no and maybe.

Most birds are okay to eat. But a lot depends on what the birds eat and how toxic their food is and how much they eat. Even common birds can eat berries that would sicken a human. If you don't clean the bird properly this could be a problem.

Vultures have been reported to take in so much of the bacteria that cause food poisoning that you can safely eat them only after they are well cooked. Hyena have similar attached lore.

Albatrosses have been reported to sometimes eat so much toxic jellyfish that it isn't stomach contents or bacteria that get you but rather the flesh itself may become poisonous. Some old stories claim they are irredeemably poisonous and should never be eaten. A few more recent reports say that cleaning, soaking in several changes of sea water, and cooking will allow them to be eaten safely. They also claimed the bird tasted terrible.

Way back in the day I was taught that 'If it walks, swims, slithers, or flies you can eat it'. That isn't wrong in the sense that of the thousands of species only a few are problematic. Of those dangerous few it may be just one part or another you need to avoid. Like the liver of the polar bear which has so much vitamin-A that it can kill. Or fugu, blow fish, which is delicious if you avoid the parts which contain a strong nerve toxin.

It comes down to local knowledge of the dangers and how food is prepared to avoid any danger. The bit about polar bear liver is nothing but an interesting factoid if your in the lower forty-eight. But it might save your life if your surviving in Alaska. In the end survival is a local affair.

Rules of thumb about all birds being edible are pretty safe. The odds are heavily on your side. But if you camp, sail or fly over an area try to get local knowledge on what to eat and specifically how to prepare local game. Properly prepared most every animal, even most of the toxic ones, can be eaten. But even properly prepared there may be exceptions.

of course there is the canoe country joke about cooking Loons.
a rock and Loon go into the pot and when the rock is ready so is the Loon..boiled Owl is another..