This is a list of the bird species recorded in the archipelago of
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
, which consists of the main island of Puerto Rico, two island municipalities off the east coast (
Vieques
Vieques (; ), officially Isla de Vieques, is an island and municipality of Puerto Rico, in the northeastern Caribbean, part of an island grouping sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands. Vieques is part of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, ...
and
Culebra), three uninhabited islands off the west coast (
Mona,
Monito and
Desecheo) and more than 125 smaller
cays and islands.
The avifauna of Puerto Rico included a total of 385 species as of July 2022, according to ''Bird Checklists of the World''.
Of them, 201 are
accidental, two have been
extirpated
Local extinction, also known as extirpation, refers to a species (or other taxon) of plant or animal that ceases to exist in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinct ...
, and one is believed to be
extinct. Seventeen species are
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
. Non-native species are common; 43 listed here were
introduced by humans. Individuals of many other species (mostly parrots, finches, and waxbills) are flying free, presumably after escaping or being released from captivity.
For example, a 2018 study on introduced
Psittacidae
The family Psittacidae or holotropical parrots is one of three families of true parrots. It comprises the roughly 10 species of subfamily Psittacinae (the Old World or Afrotropical parrots) and 157 of subfamily Arinae (the New World or Neotropi ...
on the island found at least 46 species present, of which 24% are only found in the pet trade (captivity), 48% have been observed in the wild (but are not known to be breeding), and 28% are established (naturalized) and know to have bred or are currently breeding. Around 120 species breed in Puerto Rico while the majority of the others overwinter in the archipelago.
This list is presented in the
taxonomic sequence
Taxonomic sequence (also known as systematic, phyletic or taxonomic order) is a sequence followed in listing of taxa which aids ease of use and roughly reflects the evolutionary relationships among the taxa. Taxonomic sequences can exist for taxa ...
of the ''Check-list of North and Middle American Birds'', 7th edition through the 63rd Supplement, published by the
American Ornithological Society
The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its m ...
(AOS).
Common and scientific names are also those of the ''Check-list'', except that the common names of families are from the
Clements taxonomy because the AOS list does not include them.
The following tags have been used to highlight several categories of occurrence:
* (A) Accidental - a species that rarely or accidentally occurs in Puerto Rico
* (E) Endemic - a species endemic to Puerto Rico
* (Ex) Extirpated - a species that no longer occurs in Puerto Rico although populations exist elsewhere
* (I) Introduced - a species introduced to Puerto Rico as a consequence, direct or indirect, of human actions
Ducks, geese, and waterfowl
Order:
AnseriformesFamily:
Anatidae
The Anatidae are the biological family of water birds that includes ducks, geese, and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents except Antarctica. These birds are adapted for swimming, floating ...
The Anatidae include the
duck
Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form ...
s and most duck-like waterfowl, such as
geese
A goose ( : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera '' Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (the black geese). Some other birds, mostly related to the she ...
and
swans. These birds are adapted to an aquatic existence with webbed feet, bills which are flattened to a greater or lesser extent, and feathers that are excellent at shedding water due to special oils.
*
Black-bellied whistling-duck
The black-bellied whistling duck (''Dendrocygna autumnalis''), formerly called the black-bellied tree duck, is a whistling duck that breeds from the southernmost United States, Mexico, and tropical Central to south-central South America. In the ...
, ''Dendrocygna autumnalis'' (A)
*
West Indian whistling-duck
The West Indian whistling duck (''Dendrocygna arborea'') is a whistling duck that breeds in the Caribbean. Alternative names are black-billed whistling duck and Cuban whistling duck.
Distribution
The West Indian whistling duck is widely scatter ...
, ''Dendrocygna arborea''
*
Fulvous whistling-duck
The fulvous whistling duck or fulvous tree duck (''Dendrocygna bicolor'') is a species of whistling duck that breeds across the world's tropical regions in much of Mexico and South America, the West Indies, the southern United States, sub-Sahar ...
, ''Dendrocygna bicolor'' (A)
*
White-faced whistling-duck, ''Dendrocygna bicolor'' (Ex)
*
Snow goose
The snow goose (''Anser caerulescens'') is a species of goose native to North America. Both white and dark morphs exist, the latter often known as blue goose. Its name derives from the typically white plumage. The species was previously placed ...
, ''Anser caerulescens'' (A)
*
Brant, ''Branta bernicla'' (A)
*
Canada goose, ''Branta canadensis'' (A)
*
Tundra swan
The tundra swan (''Cygnus columbianus'') is a small swan of the Holarctic. The two taxa within it are usually regarded as conspecific, but are also sometimes split into two species: Bewick's swan (''Cygnus bewickii'') of the Palaearctic and th ...
, ''Cygnus columbianus'' (A)
*
Wood duck
The wood duck or Carolina duck (''Aix sponsa'') is a species of perching duck found in North America. The drake wood duck is one of the most colorful North American waterfowl.
Description
The wood duck is a medium-sized perching duck. A ty ...
, ''Aix sponsa'' (A)
*
Garganey
The garganey (''Spatula querquedula'') is a small dabbling duck. It breeds in much of Europe and across the Palearctic, but is strictly migratory, with the entire population moving to southern Africa, India (in particular Santragachi), Banglades ...
''Spatula querquedula'' (A)
*
Blue-winged teal
The blue-winged teal (''Spatula discors'') is a species of bird in the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. One of the smaller members of the dabbling duck group, it occurs in North America, where it breeds from southern Alaska to Nova Scoti ...
, ''Spatula discors''
*
Cinnamon teal
The cinnamon teal (''Spatula cyanoptera'') is a species of duck found in western North and South America. It is a small dabbling duck, with bright reddish plumage on the male and duller brown plumage on the female. It lives in marshes and ponds ...
, ''Spatula cyanoptera'' (A)
*
Northern shoveler
The northern shoveler (; ''Spatula clypeata''), known simply in Britain as the shoveler, is a common and widespread duck. It breeds in northern areas of Europe and across the Palearctic and across most of North America, wintering in southern E ...
, ''Spatula clypeata'' (A)
*
Gadwall, ''Mareca strepera'' (A)
*
Eurasian wigeon
The Eurasian wigeon or European wigeon (''Mareca penelope''), also known as the widgeon or the wigeon, is one of three species of wigeon in the dabbling duck genus ''Mareca''. It is common and widespread within its Palearctic range.
Taxonomy
Th ...
, ''Mareca penelope'' (A)
*
American wigeon
The American wigeon (''Mareca americana''), also known as the baldpate, is a species of dabbling duck found in North America. Formerly assigned to ''Anas'', this species is classified with the other wigeons in the dabbling duck genus '' Mareca'' ...
, ''Mareca americana'' (A)
*
Mallard, ''Anas platyrhynchos'' (A)
*
American black duck
The American black duck (''Anas rubripes'') is a large dabbling duck in the family Anatidae. It was described by William Brewster in 1902. It is the heaviest species in the genus ''Anas'', weighing on average and measuring in length with an ...
, ''Anas rubripes'' (A)
*
White-cheeked pintail, ''Anas bahamensis''
*
Northern pintail
The pintail or northern pintail (''Anas acuta'') is a duck species with wide geographic distribution that breeds in the northern areas of Europe and across the Palearctic and North America. It is migratory and winters south of its breeding ...
, ''Anas acuta'' (A)
*
Green-winged teal
The green-winged teal (''Anas carolinensis'') is a common and widespread duck that breeds in the northern areas of North America except on the Aleutian Islands. It was considered conspecific with the Eurasian teal (''A. crecca'') for some time, ...
, ''Anas crecca'' (A)
*
Canvasback
The canvasback (''Aythya valisineria'') is a species of diving duck, the largest found in North America.
Taxonomy
Scottish-American naturalist Alexander Wilson described the canvasback in 1814. The genus name is derived from Greek ''aithuia'', ...
, ''Aythya valisineria'' (A)
*
Ring-necked duck
The ring-necked duck (''Aythya collaris'') is a diving duck from North America commonly found in freshwater ponds and lakes. The scientific name is derived from Greek , an unidentified seabird mentioned by authors including Hesychius and Arist ...
, ''Aythya collaris'' (A)
*
Tufted duck
The tufted duck or tufted pochard (''Aythya fuligula'') is a small diving duck with a population of close to one million birds, found in northern Eurasia. The scientific name is derived from Ancient Greek '' aithuia'', an unidentified seabird ment ...
, ''Aythya fuligula'' (A)
*
Lesser scaup
The lesser scaup (''Aythya affinis'') is a small North American diving duck that migrates south as far as Central America in winter. It is colloquially known as the little bluebill or broadbill because of its distinctive blue bill. The origin of ...
, ''Aythya affinis'' (A)
*
Bufflehead, ''Bucephala albeola'' (A)
*
Hooded merganser
The hooded merganser (''Lophodytes cucullatus'') is a species of merganser. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Lophodytes''. The genus name derives from the Greek language: ''lophos'' meaning 'crest', and ''dutes'' meaning 'diver'. The ...
, ''Lophodytes cucullatus'' (A)
*
Red-breasted merganser
The red-breasted merganser (''Mergus serrator'') is a diving duck, one of the sawbills. The genus name is a Latin word used by Pliny and other Roman authors to refer to an unspecified waterbird, and ''serrator'' is a sawyer from Latin ''serra' ...
, ''Mergus serrator'' (A)
*
Masked duck
The masked duck (''Nomonyx dominicus'') is a tiny stiff-tailed duck ranging through the tropical Americas. They are found from Mexico to South America and also in the Caribbean. Primarily not migratory, masked ducks are reported as very uncommo ...
, ''Nomonyx dominicus''
*
Ruddy duck
The ruddy duck (''Oxyura jamaicensis'') is a duck from North America and one of the stiff-tailed ducks. The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek ''oxus'', "sharp", and ''oura'', "tail", and ''jamaicensis'' is "from Jamaica".
Taxonomy
The r ...
, ''Oxyura jamaicensis''
File:White.cheeked.pintail.750pix.jpg, White-cheeked pintail, a species which can be found on the salt flats of Vieques.
File:Anas discors0.jpg, Blue-winged teal, this non-breeding species may be found in both the north and south regions of the main island.
File:Oxyura jamaicensis FWS.jpg, Ruddy duck, this breeding species is typically found in Puerto Rico's northern coastal areas.
Guineafowl
Order:
Galliformes
Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are ofte ...
Family:
Numididae
Guineafowl (; sometimes called "pet speckled hens" or "original fowl") are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetically, they branched o ...
Guineafowl
Guineafowl (; sometimes called "pet speckled hens" or "original fowl") are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetically, they branched ...
s are a group of African seed-eating, ground-nesting birds resembling partridges, but with featherless heads and spangled gray plumage.
*
Helmeted guineafowl, ''Numida meleagris'' (I)
New World quail
Order:
Galliformes
Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are ofte ...
Family:
Odontophoridae
The New World quail are small birds only distantly related to the Old World quail, but named for their similar appearance and habits. The American species are in their own family, the Odontophoridae, whereas Old World quail are in the pheasant ...
The
New World quail
The New World quail are small birds only distantly related to the Old World quail, but named for their similar appearance and habits. The American species are in their own family, the Odontophoridae, whereas Old World quail are in the pheasant ...
s are small, plump terrestrial birds only distantly related to the quails of the Old World, but named for their similar appearance and habits.
*
Northern bobwhite
The northern bobwhite (''Colinus virginianus''), also known as the Virginia quail or (in its home range) bobwhite quail, is a ground-dwelling bird native to Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Cuba, with introduced populations elsewhere in th ...
, ''Colinus virginianus'' (I)
Pheasants, grouse, and allies
Order:
Galliformes
Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are ofte ...
Family:
Phasianidae
The Phasianidae are a family of terrestrial birds which consists of
quail
Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally placed in the order Galliformes. The collective noun for a group of quail is a flock, covey, or bevy.
Old World quail are placed in the family Phasianidae, and New ...
s,
partridge
A partridge is a medium-sized galliform bird in any of several genera, with a wide native distribution throughout parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. Several species have been introduced to the Americas. They are sometimes grouped in the Perd ...
s,
snowcock
The snowcocks or snowfowl are a group of bird species in the genus ''Tetraogallus'' of the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are ground-nesting birds that breed in the mountain ranges of southern Eurasia from the Caucasus to the Himalayas and we ...
s,
francolin
Francolins are birds in the tribe Gallini that traditionally have been placed in the genus ''Francolinus'', but now commonly are divided into multiple genera.
As previously defined, they were paraphyletic as the genus '' Pternistis'', which wa ...
s,
spurfowls,
tragopans,
monal
A monal is a bird of genus ''Lophophorus'' of the pheasant family, Phasianidae. Description
The males all have colorful, iridescent plumage. Their physique is rather plump. Their diet consists of plants such as roots and bulbs and insects. D ...
s,
pheasant
Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family Phasianidae in the order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera native range is restricted to Eurasia ...
s,
peafowl
Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are ref ...
s, and
jungle fowl
Junglefowl are the only four living species of bird from the genus ''Gallus'' in the bird order Galliformes, and occur in parts of South and Southeast Asia. They diverged from their common ancestor about 4–6 million years ago.
Although origin ...
s. In general, they are plump (although they vary in size) and have broad, relatively short wings.
*
Red junglefowl
The red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus'') is a tropical bird in the family Phasianidae. It ranges across much of Southeast Asia and parts of South Asia. It was formerly known as the Bankiva or Bankiva Fowl. It is the species that gave rise to the ...
, ''Gallus gallus'' (I)
Flamingos
Order:
Phoenicopteriformes
Phoenicopteriformes is a group of water birds which comprises flamingos and their extinct relatives. Flamingos (Phoenicopteriformes) and the closely related grebes ( Podicipedidae) are contained in the parent clade Mirandornithes.
Fossil re ...
Family:
Phoenicopteridae
Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbean ...
Flamingo
Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbea ...
s are gregarious wading birds, usually tall, found in both the Western and Eastern Hemispheres. Flamingos filter-feed on shellfish and algae. Their oddly shaped beaks are specially adapted to separate mud and silt from the food they consume and, uniquely, are used upside-down.
*
American flamingo
The American flamingo (''Phoenicopterus ruber'') is a large species of flamingo closely related to the greater flamingo and Chilean flamingo native to the Neotropics. It was formerly considered conspecific with the greater flamingo, but that tre ...
, ''Phoenicopterus ruber'' (A)
Grebes
Order:
PodicipediformesFamily:
Podicipedidae
Grebe
Grebes () are aquatic diving birds in the order Podicipediformes . Grebes are widely distributed freshwater birds, with some species also found in marine habitats during migration and winter. Some flightless species exist as well, most notably ...
s are small to medium-large freshwater diving birds. They have lobed toes and are excellent swimmers and divers. However, they have their feet placed far back on the body, making them quite ungainly on land.
*
Least grebe
The least grebe (''Tachybaptus dominicus''), an aquatic bird, is the smallest member of the grebe family. It occurs in the New World from the southwestern United States and Mexico to Argentina, and also on Trinidad and Tobago, the Bahamas and the ...
, ''Tachybaptus dominicus''
*
Pied-billed grebe
The pied-billed grebe (''Podilymbus podiceps'') is a species of the grebe family of water birds. Because the Atitlán grebe (''Podilymbus gigas'') has become extinct, the Pied-Billed Grebe is now the sole extant member of the genus ''Podilymbus'' ...
, ''Podilymbus podiceps''
Pigeons and doves
Order:
Columbiformes
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
Family:
Columbidae
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
Pigeon
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
s and
dove
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
s are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with a fleshy cere.
*
Rock pigeon
The rock dove, rock pigeon, or common pigeon ( also ; ''Columba livia'') is a member of the bird family Columbidae (doves and pigeons). In common usage, it is often simply referred to as the "pigeon".
The domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domes ...
, ''Columba livia'' (I)
*
Scaly-naped pigeon
The scaly-naped pigeon (''Patagioenas squamosa''), also known as the red-necked pigeon, is a bird belonging to the family Columbidae. The species occurs throughout the Caribbean.
Description
The scaly-naped pigeon is a large slate grey pige ...
, ''Patagioenas squamosa''
*
White-crowned pigeon
The white-crowned pigeon (''Patagioenas leucocephala'') is a fruit and seed-eating species of bird in the dove and pigeon family Columbidae. It is found primarily in the Caribbean.
John James Audubon painted these pigeons, including the waterco ...
, ''Patagioenas leucocephala''
*
Plain pigeon, ''Patagioenas inornata''
*
African collared-dove, ''Streptopelia roseogrisea'' (I)
*
Eurasian collared-dove
The Eurasian collared dove (''Streptopelia decaocto'') is a dove species native to Europe and Asia; it was introduced to Japan, North America and islands in the Caribbean. Because of its vast global range and increasing population trend, it ha ...
, ''Streptopelia decaocto'' (I)
*
Diamond dove, ''Geopelia cuneata'' (I)
*
Common ground dove
The common ground dove (''Columbina passerina'') is a small bird that inhabits the southern United States, parts of Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America. It is considered to be the smallest dove that inhabits the United State ...
, ''Columbina passerina''
*
Ruddy quail-dove
The ruddy quail-dove (''Geotrygon montana'') is a species of bird in the dove and pigeon family Columbidae. It breeds throughout the West Indies, Central America, and tropical South America. It has appeared as a vagrant in Florida and southern Te ...
, ''Geotrygon montana''
*
Key West quail-dove
The Key West quail-dove (''Geotrygon chrysia'') is a species of bird from the doves and pigeon family Columbidae. It is probably most closely related to the bridled quail-dove.Baptista, L.F., Trail, P.W., Horblit, H.M., Kirwan, G.M. & Boesman, P ...
, ''Geotrygon chrysia''
*
Bridled quail-dove
The bridled quail-dove (''Geotrygon mystacea'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found from Saint Lucia in the Lesser Antilles north and west to Puerto Rico.Boal, C. W. (2020). Bridled Quail-Dove (''Geotrygon mystacea''), ve ...
, ''Geotrygon mystacea'' (A)
*
White-winged dove
The white-winged dove (''Zenaida asiatica'') is a dove whose native range extends from the Southwestern United States through Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. They are large for doves, and can be distinguished from similar doves by th ...
, ''Zenaida asiatica''
*
Zenaida dove
The zenaida dove (''Zenaida aurita'') is a member of the bird family Columbidae, which includes doves and pigeons. It is the national bird of Anguilla, where it is locally referred to as "turtle dove".
Description
The Zenaida dove is approxima ...
, ''Zenaida aurita''
*
Mourning dove
The mourning dove (''Zenaida macroura'') is a member of the dove family, Columbidae. The bird is also known as the American mourning dove, the rain dove, and colloquially as the turtle dove, and was once known as the Carolina pigeon and Caroli ...
, ''Zenaida macroura''
Cuckoos
Order:
Cuculiformes
Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes . The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separa ...
Family:
Cuculidae
Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes . The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separa ...
The family Cuculidae includes
cuckoo
Cuckoos are birds in the Cuculidae family, the sole taxon in the order Cuculiformes . The cuckoo family includes the common or European cuckoo, roadrunners, koels, malkohas, couas, coucals and anis. The coucals and anis are sometimes separ ...
s,
roadrunner
The roadrunners (genus ''Geococcyx''), also known as chaparral birds or chaparral cocks, are two species of fast-running ground cuckoos with long tails and crests. They are found in the southwestern and south-central United States and Mexico, us ...
s, and
anis. These birds are of variable size with slender bodies, long tails, and strong legs. The Old World cuckoos are
brood parasites.
*
Smooth-billed ani
The smooth-billed ani (''Crotophaga ani'') is a bird in the cuckoo family. It is a resident breeding species from southern Florida, the Caribbean, parts of Central America, south to western Ecuador, Brazil, northern Argentina and southern Chile. ...
, ''Crotophaga ani''
*
Yellow-billed cuckoo
The yellow-billed cuckoo (''Coccyzus americanus'') is a cuckoo. Common folk-names for this bird in the southern United States are rain crow and storm crow. These likely refer to the bird's habit of calling on hot days, often presaging rain or th ...
, ''Coccyzus americanus''
*
Mangrove cuckoo
The mangrove cuckoo (''Coccyzus minor'') is a species of cuckoo that is native to the Neotropics.
Taxonomy
The mangrove cuckoo was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition ...
, ''Coccyzus minor''
*
Black-billed cuckoo, ''Coccyzus erythropthalmus'' (A)
*
Puerto Rican lizard-cuckoo
The Puerto Rican lizard cuckoo (''Coccyzus vieilloti'') is a species of bird in the tribe Phaenicophaeini, subfamily Cuculinae of the cuckoo family Cuculidae. It is endemic to Puerto Rico.HBW and BirdLife International (2021) Handbook of the B ...
, ''Coccyzus vieilloti'' (E)
Nightjars and allies
Order:
Caprimulgiformes
Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds in the family Caprimulgidae and order Caprimulgiformes, characterised by long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They are sometimes called goatsuckers, due to the ancient folk tal ...
Family:
Caprimulgidae
Nightjar
Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds in the family Caprimulgidae and order Caprimulgiformes, characterised by long wings, short legs, and very short bills. They are sometimes called goatsuckers, due to the ancient folk tal ...
s are medium-sized nocturnal birds that usually nest on the ground. They have long wings, short legs, and very short bills. Most have small feet, of little use for walking, and long pointed wings. Their soft plumage is cryptically colored to resemble bark or leaves.
*
Common nighthawk
The common nighthawk (''Chordeiles minor'') is a medium-sized crepuscular or nocturnal bird of the Americas within the nightjar family, whose presence and identity are best revealed by its vocalization. Typically dark (gray, black and brown), di ...
, ''Chordeiles minor'' (A)
*
Antillean nighthawk
The Antillean nighthawk (''Chordeiles gundlachii'') is a nightjar native to the Caribbean and Florida Keys.
Its specific epithet, ''gundlachii'', is in honor of Cuban naturalist Juan Gundlach.
Description
The adults are dark with brown, grey an ...
, ''Chordeiles gundlachii''
*
Chuck-will's-widow, ''Antrostomus carolinensis'' (A)
*
Puerto Rican nightjar
The Puerto Rican nightjar or Puerto Rican Whip-poor-will (''Antrostomus noctitherus'') is a bird in the nightjar family found in the coastal dry scrub forests in localized areas of southwestern Puerto Rico. It was described in 1916 from bones fo ...
, ''Antrostomus noctitherus'' (E)
*
White-tailed nightjar, ''Hydropsalis cayennensis'' (A)
Potoos
Order:
NyctibiiformesFamily:
Nyctibiidae
Potoo
Potoos (family Nyctibiidae) are a group of birds related to the nightjars and frogmouths. They are sometimes called poor-me-ones, after their haunting calls. The family Nyctibiidae was formerly included with the nightjars in the order Caprim ...
s are a group of large
near passerine
Near passerines and higher land-bird assemblage are terms of traditional, pre-cladistic taxonomy that have often been given to tree-dwelling birds or those most often believed to be related to the true passerines (order Passeriformes) owing to mor ...
birds related to the nightjars and frogmouths. These are
nocturnal insectivores which lack the bristles around the mouth found in the true nightjars.
*
Northern potoo, ''Nyctibius jamaicensis'' (A)
Swifts
Order:
Apodiformes
Traditionally, the bird order Apodiformes contained three living families: the swifts (Apodidae), the treeswifts (Hemiprocnidae), and the hummingbirds (Trochilidae). In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this order is raised to a superorder Apodi ...
Family:
Apodidae
The swifts are a family, Apodidae, of highly aerial birds. They are superficially similar to swallows, but are not closely related to any passerine species. Swifts are placed in the order Apodiformes with hummingbirds. The treeswifts are closely ...
Swift
Swift or SWIFT most commonly refers to:
* SWIFT, an international organization facilitating transactions between banks
** SWIFT code
* Swift (programming language)
* Swift (bird), a family of birds
It may also refer to:
Organizations
* SWIFT, ...
s are small birds which spend the majority of their lives flying. These birds have very short legs and never settle voluntarily on the ground, perching instead only on vertical surfaces. Many swifts have long swept-back wings which resemble a crescent or boomerang.
*
Black swift, ''Cypseloides niger''
*
White-collared swift, ''Streptoprocne zonaris'' (A)
*
Chimney swift
The chimney swift (''Chaetura pelagica'') is a bird belonging to the swift family Apodidae. A member of the genus ''Chaetura'', it is closely related to both the Vaux's swift and the Chapman's swift; in the past, the three were sometimes consider ...
, ''Chaetura pelagica'' (A)
*
Common swift
The common swift (''Apus apus'') is a medium-sized bird, superficially similar to the barn swallow or house martin but somewhat larger, though not stemming from those passerine species, being in the order Apodiformes. The resemblances between t ...
, ''Apus apus'' (A)
*
Alpine swift, ''Apus melba'' (A)
*
Antillean palm-swift, ''Tachornis phoenicobia'' (A)
Hummingbirds
Order:
Apodiformes
Traditionally, the bird order Apodiformes contained three living families: the swifts (Apodidae), the treeswifts (Hemiprocnidae), and the hummingbirds (Trochilidae). In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this order is raised to a superorder Apodi ...
Family:
Trochilidae
Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics aro ...
Hummingbirds are small birds capable of hovering in mid-air due to the rapid flapping of their wings. They are the only birds that can fly backwards.
*
Puerto Rican mango, ''Anthracothorax aurulentus''
*
Green mango, ''Anthracothorax viridis'' (E)
*
Purple-throated carib
The purple-throated carib (''Eulampis jugularis'') is a species of hummingbird in the subfamily Polytminae. It is resident on most of the islands of the Lesser Antilles and has occurred as a vagrant both further north and south.HBW and BirdLif ...
, ''Eulampis jugularis'' (A)
*
Green-throated carib
The green-throated carib (''Eulampis holosericeus'') is a species of hummingbird in the subfamily Polytminae. It is found in Puerto Rico and most of the Lesser Antilles.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of the Birds of the World ...
, ''Eulampis holosericeus''
*
Ruby-throated hummingbird
The ruby-throated hummingbird (''Archilochus colubris'') is a species of hummingbird that generally spends the winter in Central America, Mexico, and Florida, and migrates to Canada and other parts of Eastern North America for the summer to bree ...
, ''Archilochus colubris'' (A)
*
Vervain hummingbird, ''Mellisuga minima'' (A)
*
Puerto Rican emerald, ''Riccordia maugaeus'' (E)
*
Antillean crested hummingbird
The Antillean crested hummingbird (''Orthorhyncus cristatus'') is a species of hummingbird in the family Trochilidae. Found across Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, north-east Puerto Ri ...
, ''Orthorhyncus cristatus''
Rails, gallinules, and coots
Order:
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like".
Traditionally, a number of wading and terrestrial bird families that did ...
Family:
Rallidae
The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small- to medium-sized, ground-living birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules. Many species are associated with wetlands, althou ...
Rallidae is a large family of small to medium-sized birds which includes the
rails
Rail or rails may refer to:
Rail transport
*Rail transport and related matters
*Rail (rail transport) or railway lines, the running surface of a railway
Arts and media Film
* ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini
* ''Rail'' ( ...
,
crakes,
coot
Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usually ...
s, and
gallinule
Moorhens—sometimes called marsh hens—are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family (Rallidae). Most species are placed in the genus ''Gallinula'', Latin for "little hen".
They are close relatives of coots. They are of ...
s. The most typical family members occupy dense vegetation in damp environments near lakes, swamps, or rivers. In general they are shy and secretive birds, making them difficult to observe. Most species have strong legs and long toes which are well adapted to soft uneven surfaces. They tend to have short, rounded wings and to be weak fliers.
*
Clapper rail
The clapper rail (''Rallus crepitans'') is a member of the rail family, Rallidae. The taxonomy for this species is confusing and still being determined. It is a large brown rail that is resident in wetlands along the Atlantic coasts of the easte ...
, ''Rallus crepitans''
*
Virginia rail, ''Rallus limicola'' (A)
*
Sora, ''Porzana carolina'' (A)
*
Common gallinule
The common gallinule (''Gallinula galeata'') is a bird in the family Rallidae. It was split from the common moorhen by the American Ornithologists' Union in July 2011. It lives around well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals, and other wetlands in t ...
, ''Gallinula galeata''
*
American coot
The American coot (''Fulica americana''), also known as a mud hen or pouldeau, is a bird of the family Rallidae. Though commonly mistaken for ducks, American coots are only distantly related to ducks, belonging to a separate order. Unlike the w ...
, ''Fulica americana''
*
Purple gallinule, ''Porphyrio martinicus''
*
Yellow-breasted crake
The yellow-breasted crake (''Laterallus flaviventer'') is a species of bird in subfamily Rallinae of family Rallidae, the rails, gallinules, and coots. It is found on several Caribbean islands and in most of Central America and South America.HB ...
, ''Hapalocrex flaviventer''
*
Black rail, ''Laterallus jamaicensis'' (A)
Limpkin
Order:
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like".
Traditionally, a number of wading and terrestrial bird families that did ...
Family:
Aramidae
Aramidae is a bird family in the order Gruiformes. The limpkin (''Aramus guarauna'') is the only living member of this family, although other species are known from the fossil record, such as '' Aramus paludigrus'' from the Middle Miocene and '' ...
The limpkin is an odd bird that looks like a large rail, but is skeletally closer to the
cranes.
*
Limpkin
The limpkin (''Aramus guarauna''), also called carrao, courlan, and crying bird, is a large wading bird related to rails and cranes, and the only extant species in the family Aramidae. It is found mostly in wetlands in warm parts of the America ...
, ''Aramus guarauna'' (Ex)
Stilts and avocets
Order:
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
Family:
Recurvirostridae
The Recurvirostridae are a family of birds in the wader suborder Charadrii. It contains two distinct groups of birds, the avocets (one genus) and the stilts (two genera).
Description
Avocets and stilts range in length from and in weight fro ...
Recurvirostridae is a family of large wading birds which includes the
avocet
The four species of avocets are a genus, ''Recurvirostra'', of waders in the same avian family as the stilts. The genus name comes from Latin , 'curved backwards' and , 'bill'. The common name is thought to derive from the Italian ( Ferrarese) ...
s and
stilts. The avocets have long legs and long up-curved bills. The stilts have extremely long legs and long, thin, straight bills.
*
Black-necked stilt, ''Himantopus mexicanus''
*
American avocet
The American avocet (''Recurvirostra americana'') is a large wader in the avocet and stilt family, Recurvirostridae, that is found in North America. It spends much of its time foraging in shallow water or on mud flats, often sweeping its bill ...
, ''Recurvirostra americana'' (A)
Oystercatchers
Order:
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
Family:
Haematopodidae
The
oystercatcher
The oystercatchers are a group of waders forming the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, ''Haematopus''. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia. The ...
s are large, obvious and noisy
plover
Plovers ( , ) are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae.
Description
There are about 66 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subf ...
-like birds, with strong bills used for smashing or prising open
molluscs.
*
American oystercatcher
The American oystercatcher (''Haematopus palliatus''), occasionally called the American pied oystercatcher, is a member of family Haematopodidae. Originally called the "sea pie", it was renamed in 1731 when naturalist Mark Catesby observed the ...
, ''Haematopus palliatus''
Plovers and lapwings
Order:
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
Family:
Charadriidae
The bird family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings, about 64 to 68 species in all.
Taxonomy
The family Charadriidae was introduced (as Charadriadæ) by the English zoologist William Elford Leach in a guide to the con ...
The family Charadriidae includes the
plover
Plovers ( , ) are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae.
Description
There are about 66 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subf ...
s,
dotterel
The Eurasian dotterel (''Charadrius morinellus''), also known in Europe as just dotterel, is a small wader in the plover family of birds.
The dotterel is a brown and black streaked bird with a broad white eye-stripe and an orange-red chest ban ...
s, and
lapwing
Lapwings (subfamily Vanellinae) are any of various ground-nesting birds (family Charadriidae) akin to plovers and dotterels. They range from in length, and are noted for their slow, irregular wingbeats in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. A gro ...
s. They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short thick necks, and long, usually pointed, wings. They are found in open country worldwide, mostly in habitats near water.
*
Northern lapwing, ''Vanellus vanellus'' (A)
*
Black-bellied plover
The grey plover or black-bellied plover (''Pluvialis squatarola'') is a large plover breeding in Arctic regions. It is a long-distance migrant, with a nearly worldwide coastal distribution when not breeding.
Taxonomy
The grey plover was forma ...
, ''Pluvialis squatarola''
*
American golden-plover, ''Pluvialis dominica'' (A)
*
Killdeer
The killdeer (''Charadrius vociferus'') is a large plover found in the Americas. It was described and given its current scientific name in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his ''Systema Naturae''. Three subspecies are described. Th ...
, ''Charadrius vociferus''
*
Semipalmated plover
The semipalmated plover (''Charadrius semipalmatus'') is a small plover. ''Charadrius'' is a Late Latin word for a yellowish bird mentioned in the fourth-century Vulgate. It derives from Ancient Greek ''kharadrios'' a bird found in ravines and ri ...
, ''Charadrius semipalmatus''
*
Piping plover, ''Charadrius melodus'' (A)
*
Wilson's plover
Wilson's plover (''Charadrius wilsonia'') is a small bird of the family Charadriidae.
It was named after the Scottish-American ornithologist Alexander Wilson by his friend George Ord in 1814.
Wilson's plover is a coastal wader which breeds o ...
, ''Charadrius wilsonia''
*
Snowy plover
The snowy plover (''Charadrius nivosus'') is a small wader in the plover bird family, typically about 5-7" in length. It breeds in the southern and western United States, the Caribbean, Ecuador, Peru, and Chile. Long considered to be a subspecie ...
, ''Charadrius nivosus''
Jacanas
Order:
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
Family:
Jacanidae
The
jacanas are a group of waders found worldwide within the tropical zone. They are identifiable by their huge feet and claws which enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat.
*
Northern jacana, ''Jacana spinosa'' (A)
Sandpipers and allies
Order:
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
Family:
Scolopacidae
Scolopacidae is a large diverse family of small to medium-sized shorebirds including the
sandpiper
Sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders. They include many species called sandpipers, as well as those called by names such as curlew and snipe. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil ...
s,
curlew
The curlews () are a group of nine species of birds in the genus ''Numenius'', characterised by their long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. The English name is imitative of the Eurasian curlew's call, but may have been in ...
s,
godwit
The godwits are a group of large, long-billed, long-legged and strongly migratory waders of the bird genus ''Limosa''. Their long bills allow them to probe deeply in the sand for aquatic worms and molluscs. In their winter range, they floc ...
s,
shanks,
tattlers,
woodcock
The woodcocks are a group of seven or eight very similar living species of wading birds in the genus ''Scolopax''. The genus name is Latin for a snipe or woodcock, and until around 1800 was used to refer to a variety of waders. The English name ...
s,
snipe
A snipe is any of about 26 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill, eyes placed high on the head, and cryptic/ camouflaging plumage. The ''Gallinago'' snipes have a ...
s,
dowitcher
The three dowitchers are medium-sized long-billed wading birds in the genus ''Limnodromus''. The English name "dowitchers" is from Iroquois, recorded in English by the 1830s. The OED's earliest example is from 1841, but full-text searching giv ...
s, and
phalaropes. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. Different lengths of legs and bills enable multiple species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food.
*
Upland sandpiper
The upland sandpiper (''Bartramia longicauda'') is a large sandpiper, closely related to the curlews. Older names are the upland plover and Bartram's sandpiper. In Louisiana, it is also colloquially known as the papabotte. It is the only member ...
, ''Bartramia longicauda'' (A)
*
Whimbrel, ''Numenius phaeopus'' (A)
*
Eskimo curlew
The Eskimo curlew (''Numenius borealis''), also known as northern curlew, is a species of curlew in the family Scolopacidae. It was one of the most numerous shorebirds in the tundra of western Arctic Canada and Alaska. Thousands of birds were th ...
, ''Numenius borealis'' (A) (possibly extinct)
*
Long-billed curlew, ''Numenius americanus'' (A)
*
Eurasian curlew, ''Numenius arquata'' (A)
*
Hudsonian godwit, ''Limosa haemastica'' (A)
*
Marbled godwit, ''Limosa fedoa'' (A)
*
Ruddy turnstone
The ruddy turnstone (''Arenaria interpres'') is a small cosmopolitan wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus ''Arenaria''.
It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plov ...
, ''Arenaria interpres''
*
Red knot
The red knot or just knot (''Calidris canutus'') is a medium-sized shorebird which breeds in tundra and the Arctic Cordillera in the far north of Canada, Europe, and Russia. It is a large member of the '' Calidris'' sandpipers, second only to the ...
, ''Calidris canutus'' (A)
*
Ruff, ''Calidris pugnax'' (A)
*
Stilt sandpiper
The stilt sandpiper (''Calidris himantopus'') is a small shorebird. The scientific name is from Ancient Greek. The genus name ''kalidris'' or ''skalidris'' is a term used by Aristotle for some grey-coloured waterside birds. The specific ''himanto ...
, ''Calidris himantopus''
*
Curlew sandpiper
The curlew sandpiper (''Calidris ferruginea'') is a small wader that breeds on the tundra of Arctic Siberia.
It is strongly migratory, wintering mainly in Africa, but also in south and southeast Asia and in Australia and New Zealand. It is a v ...
, ''Calidris ferruginea'' (A)
*
Sanderling
The sanderling (''Calidris alba'') is a small wading bird. The name derives from Old English ''sand-yrðling'', "sand-ploughman". The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''kalidris'' or ''skalidris'', a term used by Aristotle for some grey-colou ...
, ''Calidris alba''
*
Dunlin, ''Calidris alpina'' (A)
*
Baird's sandpiper, ''Calidris bairdii'' (A)
*
Least sandpiper
The least sandpiper (''Calidris minutilla'') is the smallest shorebird. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''kalidris'' or ''skalidris'', a term used by Aristotle for some grey-colored waterside birds. The specific ''minutilla'' is Medieval Lat ...
, ''Calidris minutilla''
*
White-rumped sandpiper, ''Calidris fuscicollis'' (A)
*
Buff-breasted sandpiper, ''Calidris subruficollis'' (A)
*
Pectoral sandpiper
The pectoral sandpiper (''Calidris melanotos'') is a small, migratory wader that breeds in North America and Asia, wintering in South America and Oceania. It eats small invertebrates. Its nest, a hole scraped in the ground and with a thick linin ...
, ''Calidris melanotos''
*
Semipalmated sandpiper
The semipalmated sandpiper (''Calidris pusilla'') is a very small shorebird. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''kalidris'' or ''skalidris'', a term used by Aristotle for some grey-coloured waterside birds. The specific ''pusilla'' is Lati ...
, ''Calidris pusilla''
*
Western sandpiper
The western sandpiper (''Calidris mauri'') is a small shorebird. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''kalidris'' or ''skalidris'', a term used by Aristotle for some grey-coloured waterside birds. The specific ''mauri'' commemorates Italian bota ...
, ''Calidris mauri''
*
Short-billed dowitcher
The short-billed dowitcher (''Limnodromus griseus''), like its congener the long-billed dowitcher, is a medium-sized, stocky, long-billed shorebird in the family Scolopacidae.
It is an inhabitant of North America, Central America, the Caribbea ...
, ''Limnodromus griseus''
*
Long-billed dowitcher
The long-billed dowitcher (''Limnodromus scolopaceus'') is a medium-sized shorebird with a relatively long bill belonging to the sandpiper family, Scolopacidae. In breeding plumage, adults are characterized by a beautiful rufous head and underpar ...
, ''Limnodromus scolopaceus'' (A)
*
Wilson's snipe
Wilson's snipe (''Gallinago delicata'') is a small, stocky shorebird. The genus name ''gallinago'' is New Latin for a woodcock or snipe from Latin ''gallina'', "hen" and the suffix ''-ago'', "resembling". The specific ''delicata'' is Latin for "d ...
, ''Gallinago delicata'' (A)
*
Spotted sandpiper, ''Actitis macularius''
*
Solitary sandpiper, ''Tringa solitaria ''
*
Lesser yellowlegs
The lesser yellowlegs (''Tringa flavipes'') is a medium-sized shorebird. It breeds in the boreal forest region of North America.
Taxonomy
The lesser yellowlegs was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in ...
, ''Tringa flavipes''
*
Willet
The willet (''Tringa semipalmata'') is a large shorebird in the family Scolopacidae. It is a relatively large and robust sandpiper, and is the largest of the species called "shanks" in the genus ''Tringa''. Its closest relative is the lesser yel ...
, ''Tringa semipalmata''
*
Spotted redshank
The spotted redshank (''Tringa erythropus'') is a wader (shorebird) in the large bird family Scolopacidae. The genus name ''Tringa'' is the New Latin name given to the green sandpiper by Aldrovandus in 1599 based on Ancient Greek ''trungas'', a ...
, ''Tringa erythropus'' (A)
*
Common greenshank
The common greenshank (''Tringa nebularia'') is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae, the typical waders. The genus name ''Tringa'' is the New Latin name given to the green sandpiper by Aldrovandus in 1599 based on Ancient Greek ''trungas'' ...
, ''Tringa nebularia'' (A)
*
Greater yellowlegs
The greater yellowlegs (''Tringa melanoleuca'') is a large shorebird in the family Scolopacidae. It breeds in central Canada and southern Alaska and winters in southern North America, Central America, the West Indies and South America.
Taxonomy
...
, ''Tringa melanoleuca''
*
Wilson's phalarope
Wilson's phalarope (''Phalaropus tricolor'') is a small wader. This bird, the largest of the phalaropes, breeds in the prairies of North America in western Canada and the western United States. It is migratory, wintering in inland salt lakes ...
, ''Phalaropus tricolor'' (A)
*
Red-necked phalarope
The red-necked phalarope (''Phalaropus lobatus''), also known as the northern phalarope and hyperborean phalarope, is a small wader. This phalarope breeds in the Arctic regions of North America and Eurasia. It is migratory, and, unusually for a ...
, ''Phalaropus lobatus'' (A)
*
Red phalarope, ''Phalaropus fulicarius'' (A)
File:GreaterYellowlegs23.jpg, Greater yellowlegs, a common occurrence, except in summer, at the island of Culebra.
File:Ruddy turnstone.jpg, Ruddy turnstone, a non-breeding species commonly found near coastal waters.
File:Calidris-alba-001.jpg, Sanderling, a non-breeding species commonly found near bodies of water.
Skuas and jaegers
Order:
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
Family:
Stercorariidae
The family Stercorariidae are, in general, medium to large birds, typically with gray or brown plumage, often with white markings on the wings. They nest on the ground in temperate and arctic regions and are long-distance migrants.
*
Great skua, ''Stercorarius skua'' (A)
*
South polar skua
The south polar skua (''Stercorarius maccormicki'') is a large seabird in the skua family, Stercorariidae. An older name for the bird is MacCormick's skua, after explorer and naval surgeon Robert McCormick, who first collected the type specimen. ...
, ''Stercorarius maccormicki'' (A)
*
Pomarine jaeger, ''Stercorarius pomarinus'' (A)
*
Parasitic jaeger, ''Stercorarius parasiticus'' (A)
*
Long-tailed jaeger
The long-tailed skua or long-tailed jaeger (''Stercorarius longicaudus'') is a seabird in the skua family Stercorariidae.
Etymology
The word "jaeger" is derived from the German word ''Jäger'', meaning "hunter". The English word "skua" comes fr ...
, ''Stercorarius longicaudus'' (A)
Gulls, terns, and skimmers
Order:
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes (, from ''Charadrius'', the type genus of family Charadriidae) is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 390 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most charadriiform birds live near water an ...
Family:
Laridae
Laridae is a family of seabirds in the order Charadriiformes that includes the gulls, terns, skimmers and kittiwakes. It includes around 100 species arranged into 22 genera. They are an adaptable group of mostly aerial birds found worldwide. ...
Laridae is a family of medium to large seabirds and includes
gull
Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century ...
s,
kittiwake
The kittiwakes (genus ''Rissa'') are two closely related seabird species in the gull family Laridae, the black-legged kittiwake (''Rissa tridactyla'') and the red-legged kittiwake (''Rissa brevirostris''). The epithets "black-legged" and "red-l ...
s,
tern
Terns are seabirds in the family Laridae that have a worldwide distribution and are normally found near the sea, rivers, or wetlands. Terns are treated as a subgroup of the family Laridae which includes gulls and skimmers and consists of e ...
s, and
skimmers. They are typically gray or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They have longish bills and webbed feet. Terns are a group of generally medium to large seabirds typically with gray or white plumage, often with black markings on the head. Most terns hunt fish by diving but some pick insects off the surface of fresh water. Terns are generally long-lived birds, with several species known to live in excess of 30 years. Skimmers are a small family of tropical tern-like birds. They have an elongated lower mandible which they use to feed flying low over the water surface and skimming the water for small fish.
*
Black-legged kittiwake, ''Rissa tridactyla'' (A)
*
Sabine's gull
Sabine's gull ( ) (''Xema sabini'') also known as the fork-tailed gull or xeme, is a small gull. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Xema''. It breeds in colonies on coasts and tundra, laying two or three spotted olive-brown eggs in a gr ...
, ''Xema sabini'' (A)
*
Bonaparte's gull
Bonaparte's gull (''Chroicocephalus philadelphia'') is a member of the gull family Laridae found mainly in northern North America. At in length, it is one of the smallest species of gull. Its plumage is mainly white with grey upperparts. During ...
, ''Chroicocephalus philadelphia'' (A)
*
Black-headed gull
The black-headed gull (''Chroicocephalus ridibundus'') is a small gull that breeds in much of the Palearctic including Europe and also in coastal eastern Canada. Most of the population is migratory and winters further south, but some birds r ...
, ''Chroicocephalus ridibundus'' (A)
*
Little gull
The little gull (''Hydrocoloeus minutus'' or ''Larus minutus''), is a small gull that breeds in northern Europe and across the Palearctic. The genus name ''Hydrocoloeus'' is from Ancient Greek , "water", and , a sort of web-footed bird. The speci ...
, ''Hydrocoloeus minutus'' (A)
*
Laughing gull
The laughing gull (''Leucophaeus atricilla'') is a medium-sized gull of North and South America. Named for its laugh-like call, it is an opportunistic omnivore and scavenger. It breeds in large colonies mostly along the Atlantic coast of North Am ...
, ''Leucophaeus atricilla''
*
Franklin's gull, ''Leucophaeus pipixcan'' (A)
*
Ring-billed gull
The ring-billed gull (''Larus delawarensis'') is a medium-sized gull. The genus name is from Latin ''Larus'' which appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird. The specific ''delawarensis'' refers to the Delaware River.
Description ...
, ''Larus delawarensis''
*
Herring gull Herring gull is a common name for several birds in the genus '' Larus'', all formerly treated as a single species.
Three species are still combined in some taxonomies:
* American herring gull (''Larus smithsonianus'') - North America
* European ...
, ''Larus argentatus'' (A)
*
Yellow-legged gull
The yellow-legged gull (''Larus michahellis'') is a large gull found in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, which has only recently achieved wide recognition as a distinct species. It was formerly treated as a subspecies of either the Cas ...
, ''Larus michahellis'' (A)
*
Lesser black-backed gull
The lesser black-backed gull (''Larus fuscus'') is a large gull that breeds on the Atlantic coasts of Europe. It is migratory, wintering from the British Isles south to West Africa. It has increased dramatically in North America, most common alo ...
, ''Larus fuscus'' (A)
*
Great black-backed gull
The great black-backed gull (''Larus marinus'') is the largest member of the gull family. Described by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as "the king of the Atlantic waterfront", it is a very aggressive hunter, pirate, and scavenger. It breeds on t ...
, ''Larus marinus'' (A)
*
Brown noddy
The brown noddy or common noddy (''Anous stolidus'') is a seabird in the family Laridae. The largest of the noddies, it can be told from the closely related black noddy by its larger size and plumage, which is dark brown rather than black. The b ...
, ''Anous stolidus''
*
Black noddy
The black noddy or white-capped noddy (''Anous minutus'') is a seabird from the family Laridae. It is a medium-sized species of tern with black plumage and a white cap. It closely resembles the lesser noddy (''Anous tenuirostris'') with which it ...
, ''Anous minutus'' (A)
*
Sooty tern, ''Onychoprion fuscata''
*
Bridled tern, ''Onychoprion anaethetus''
*
Least tern
The least tern (''Sternula antillarum'') is a species of tern that breeds in North America and locally in northern South America. It is closely related to, and was formerly often considered conspecific with, the little tern of the Old World. Ot ...
, ''Sternula antillarum''
*
Gull-billed tern
The gull-billed tern (''Gelochelidon nilotica''), formerly ''Sterna nilotica'', is a tern in the family Laridae. It is widely distributed and breeds in scattered localities in Europe, Asia, northwest Africa, and the Americas. The Australian gull ...
, ''Gelochelidon nilotica''
*
Caspian tern
The Caspian tern (''Hydroprogne caspia'') is a species of tern, with a subcosmopolitan but scattered distribution. Despite its extensive range, it is monotypic of its genus, and has no accepted subspecies. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ' ...
, ''Hydroprogne caspia'' (A)
*
Black tern
The black tern (''Chlidonias niger'') is a small tern generally found in or near inland water in Europe, Western Asia and North America. As its name suggests, it has predominantly dark plumage. In some lights it can appear blue in the breeding se ...
, ''Chlidonias niger''
*
White-winged tern
The white-winged tern, or white-winged black tern (''Chlidonias leucopterus'' or ''Chlidonias leucoptera''), is a species of tern in the family Laridae. It is a small species generally found in or near bodies of fresh water across much of the wo ...
, ''Chlidonias leucopterus'' (A)
*
Roseate tern, ''Sterna dougallii''
*
Common tern
The common tern (''Sterna hirundo'') is a seabird in the family Laridae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, its four subspecies breeding in temperate and subarctic regions of Europe, Asia and North America. It is strongly migrator ...
, ''Sterna hirundo''
*
Arctic tern, ''Sterna paradisaea'' (A)
*
Forster's tern
Forster's tern (''Sterna forsteri'') is a tern in the family Laridae. The genus name ''Sterna'' is derived from Old English "stearn", "tern", and ''forsteri'' commemorates the naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster.
It breeds inland in North America ...
, ''Sterna forsteri'' (A)
*
Royal tern, ''Thalasseus maxima''
*
Sandwich tern
The Sandwich tern (''Thalasseus sandvicensis'') is a tern in the family Laridae. It is very closely related to the lesser crested tern (''T. bengalensis''), Chinese crested tern (''T. bernsteini''), Cabot's tern (''T. acuflavidus''), and elega ...
, ''Thalasseus sandvicensis''
*
Black skimmer, ''Rynchops niger'' (A)
Tropicbirds
Order:
Phaethontiformes
The Phaethontiformes are an order of birds. They contain one extant family, the tropicbirds (Phaethontidae), and one extinct family Prophaethontidae from the early Cenozoic. Several fossil genera have been described.
The tropicbirds were tradit ...
Family:
Phaethontidae
Tropicbirds are a family, Phaethontidae, of tropical pelagic seabirds. They are the sole living representatives of the order Phaethontiformes. For many years they were considered part of the Pelecaniformes, but genetics indicates they are most ...
Tropicbird
Tropicbirds are a family, Phaethontidae, of tropical pelagic seabirds. They are the sole living representatives of the order Phaethontiformes. For many years they were considered part of the Pelecaniformes, but genetics indicates they are most cl ...
s are slender white birds of tropical oceans with exceptionally long central tail feathers. Their long wings have black markings, as does the head.
*
White-tailed tropicbird
The white-tailed tropicbird (''Phaethon lepturus'') is a tropicbird. It is the smallest of three closely related seabirds of the tropical oceans and smallest member of the order Phaethontiformes. It is found in the tropical Atlantic, western P ...
, ''Phaethon lepturus''
*
Red-billed tropicbird
The red-billed tropicbird (''Phaethon aethereus'') is a tropicbird, one of three closely related species of seabird of tropical oceans. Superficially resembling a tern in appearance, it has mostly white plumage with some black markings on the wi ...
, ''Phaethon aethereus''
Southern storm-petrels
Order:
Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes is an order (biology), order of seabirds that comprises four family (biology), families: the albatrosses, the Procellariidae, petrels and shearwaters, and two families of storm petrels. Formerly called Tubinares and still call ...
Family:
Oceanitidae
The storm-petrels are the smallest seabirds, relatives of the
petrel
Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes.
Description
The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group (all except the albatross f ...
s, feeding on
plankton
Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in water (or air) that are unable to propel themselves against a current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankters. In the ocean, they provide a crucia ...
ic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes
bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most ...
-like. Until 2018, this family's species were included with the other storm-petrels in family Hydrobatidae.
*
Wilson's storm-petrel
Wilson's storm petrel (''Oceanites oceanicus''), also known as Wilson's petrel, is a small seabird of the austral storm petrel family Oceanitidae. It is one of the most abundant bird species in the world and has a circumpolar distribution mainly ...
, ''Oceanites oceanicus'' (A)
Northern storm-petrels
Order:
Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes is an order (biology), order of seabirds that comprises four family (biology), families: the albatrosses, the Procellariidae, petrels and shearwaters, and two families of storm petrels. Formerly called Tubinares and still call ...
Family:
Hydrobatidae
Northern storm petrels are seabirds in the genus ''Hydrobates'' in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. The family was once lumped with the similar austral storm petrels in the combined storm petrels, but have been split ...
Though the members of this family are similar in many respects to the southern storm-petrels, including their general appearance and habits, there are enough genetic differences to warrant their placement in a separate family.
*
Leach's storm-petrel, ''Hydrobates leucorhous'' (A)
Shearwaters and petrels
Order:
Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes is an order (biology), order of seabirds that comprises four family (biology), families: the albatrosses, the Procellariidae, petrels and shearwaters, and two families of storm petrels. Formerly called Tubinares and still call ...
Family:
Procellariidae
The family Procellariidae is a group of seabirds that comprises the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the diving petrels, the prions, and the shearwaters. This family is part of the bird order Procellariiformes (or tubenoses), which als ...
The Procellariids are the main group of medium-sized "true
petrel
Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes.
Description
The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group (all except the albatross f ...
s", characterized by united nostrils with medium septum and a long outer functional primary.
*
Trindade petrel, ''Pterodroma arminjoniana'' (A)
*
Black-capped petrel
The black-capped petrel (''Pterodroma hasitata''), also known as the diablotín, is a small seabird native to the West Indies in the genus '' Pterodroma''. It is a long-winged petrel with a grey-brown back and wings, with a white nape and rump. ...
, ''Pterodroma hasitata'' (A)
*
Cory's shearwater
Cory's shearwater (''Calonectris borealis'') is a large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. It breeds colonially of rocky islands in the eastern Atlantic. Outside the breeding season it ranges widely in the Atlantic. It was formerl ...
, ''Calonectris diomedea'' (A)
*
Great shearwater
The great shearwater (''Ardenna gravis'') is a large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. It breeds colonially on rocky islands in the south Atlantic. Outside the breeding season it ranges widely in the Atlantic.
Taxonomy
The great s ...
, ''Ardenna gravis'' (A)
*
Sooty shearwater
The sooty shearwater (''Ardenna grisea'') is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand, it is also known by its Māori name , and as muttonbird, like its relatives the wedge-tailed shearwater (''A. pacificus ...
, ''Ardenna griseus'' (A)
*
Manx shearwater, ''Puffinus puffinus'' (A)
*
Audubon's shearwater, ''Puffinus lherminieri''
*
Barolo shearwater, ''Puffinus baroli'' (A)
Storks
Order:
Ciconiiformes
Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long, stout bills. They belong to the family called Ciconiidae, and make up the order Ciconiiformes . Ciconiiformes previously included a number of other families, such as herons a ...
Family:
Ciconiidae
Storks are large, heavy, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long stout bills and wide wingspans. They lack the
powder down
The down of birds is a layer of fine feathers found under the tougher exterior feathers. Very young birds are clad only in down. Powder down is a specialized type of down found only in a few groups of birds. Down is a fine thermal insulator an ...
that other wading birds such as herons, spoonbills, and ibises use to clean off fish slime. Storks lack a pharynx and are mute.
*
Wood stork
The wood stork (''Mycteria americana'') is a large American wading bird in the family Ciconiidae (storks), the only member of the family to breed in North America. It was formerly called the "wood ibis", though it is not an ibis. It is found ...
, ''Mycteria americana'' (A)
Frigatebirds
Order:
Suliformes
The order Suliformes (, dubbed "Phalacrocoraciformes" by ''Christidis & Boles 2008'') is an order recognised by the International Ornithologist's Union. In regard to the recent evidence that the traditional Pelecaniformes is polyphyletic, it has ...
Family:
Fregatidae
Frigatebirds are a family of seabirds called Fregatidae which are found across all tropical and subtropical oceans. The five extant species are classified in a single genus, ''Fregata''. All have predominantly black plumage, long, deeply forked ...
Frigatebird
Frigatebirds are a family of seabirds called Fregatidae which are found across all tropical and subtropical oceans. The five extant species are classified in a single genus, ''Fregata''. All have predominantly black plumage, long, deeply forked ...
s are large seabirds usually found over tropical oceans. They are large, black, or black-and-white, with long wings and deeply forked tails. The males have colored inflatable throat pouches. They do not swim or walk and cannot take off from a flat surface. Having the largest wingspan-to-body-weight ratio of any bird, they are essentially aerial, able to stay aloft for more than a week.
*
Magnificent frigatebird
The magnificent frigatebird (''Fregata magnificens'') is a seabird of the frigatebird family Fregatidae. With a length of and wingspan of it is the largest species of frigatebird. It occurs over tropical and subtropical waters off America, bet ...
, ''Fregata magnificens''
Boobies and gannets
Order:
Suliformes
The order Suliformes (, dubbed "Phalacrocoraciformes" by ''Christidis & Boles 2008'') is an order recognised by the International Ornithologist's Union. In regard to the recent evidence that the traditional Pelecaniformes is polyphyletic, it has ...
Family:
Sulidae
The bird family Sulidae comprises the gannets and boobies. Collectively called sulids, they are medium-large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish and similar prey. The 10 species in this family are often considered congeneric in older ...
The sulids comprise the
gannet
Gannets are seabirds comprising the genus ''Morus'' in the family Sulidae, closely related to boobies.
Gannets are large white birds with yellowish heads; black-tipped wings; and long bills. Northern gannets are the largest seabirds in the ...
s and
boobies
A booby is a seabird in the genus ''Sula'', part of the family Sulidae. Boobies are closely related to the gannets (''Morus''), which were formerly included in ''Sula''.
Systematics and evolution
The genus ''Sula'' was introduced by the Fren ...
. Both groups are medium-large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish.
*
Masked booby
The masked booby (''Sula dactylatra''), also called the masked gannet or the blue-faced booby, is a large seabird of the booby and gannet family, Sulidae. First described by the French naturalist René-Primevère Lesson in 1831, the masked boo ...
, ''Sula dactylatra''
*
Brown booby, ''Sula leucogaster''
*
Red-footed booby, ''Sula sula''
*
Northern gannet
The northern gannet (''Morus bassanus'') is a seabird, the largest species of the gannet family, Sulidae. It is native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, breeding in Western Europe and Northeastern North America. It is the largest seabird in t ...
, ''Morus bassanus'' (A)
Cormorants and shags
Order:
Suliformes
The order Suliformes (, dubbed "Phalacrocoraciformes" by ''Christidis & Boles 2008'') is an order recognised by the International Ornithologist's Union. In regard to the recent evidence that the traditional Pelecaniformes is polyphyletic, it has ...
Family:
Phalacrocoracidae
Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven gen ...
Phalacrocoracidae is a family of medium to large coastal, fish-eating seabirds that includes cormorants and shags. Plumage coloration is varied with the majority having mainly dark plumage, some species being black-and-white, and a few being quite colorful.
*
Double-crested cormorant
The double-crested cormorant (''Nannopterum auritum'') is a member of the cormorant family of water birds. It is found near rivers and lakes, and in coastal areas, and is widely distributed across North America, from the Aleutian Islands in Al ...
, ''Nannopterum auritum'' (A)
*
Neotropic cormorant
The neotropic cormorant or olivaceous cormorant (''Nannopterum brasilianum'') is a medium-sized cormorant found throughout the American tropics and subtropics, from the middle Rio Grande and the Gulf and Californian coasts of the United States so ...
, ''Nannopterum brasilianum'' (A)
Pelicans
Order:
Pelecaniformes
The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide. As traditionally—but erroneously—defined, they encompass all birds that have feet with all four toes webbed. Hence, they were formerly also known by such n ...
Family:
Pelecanidae
The Pelecanidae is a family of pelecaniform birds within the Pelecani that contains two genera: the extinct ''Eopelecanus'' and the extant '' Pelecanus''. The family was monotypic until the description of ''Eopelecanus'' in 2021.
Pelecanids ha ...
Pelicans are very large water birds with a distinctive pouch under their beak Like other birds in the order Pelecaniformes, they have four webbed toes.
*
American white pelican, ''Pelecanus erythrorhynchos'' (A)
*
Brown pelican
The brown pelican (''Pelecanus occidentalis'') is a bird of the pelican family, Pelecanidae, one of three species found in the Americas and one of two that feed by diving into water. It is found on the Atlantic Coast from New Jersey to the mout ...
, ''Pelecanus occidentalis''
Herons, egrets, and bitterns
Order:
Pelecaniformes
The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide. As traditionally—but erroneously—defined, they encompass all birds that have feet with all four toes webbed. Hence, they were formerly also known by such n ...
Family:
Ardeidae
The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychu ...
The family Ardeidae contains the
bittern
Bitterns are birds belonging to the subfamily Botaurinae of the heron family Ardeidae. Bitterns tend to be shorter-necked and more secretive than other members of the family. They were called ''hæferblæte'' in Old English; the word "bittern ...
s,
herons, and
egret
Egrets ( ) are herons, generally long-legged wading birds, that have white or buff plumage, developing fine plumes (usually milky white) during the breeding season. Egrets are not a biologically distinct group from herons and have the same build ...
s. Herons and egrets are medium to large wading birds with long necks and legs. Bitterns tend to be shorter necked and more secretive. Members of Ardeidae fly with their necks retracted, unlike other long-necked birds such as storks, ibises, and spoonbills.
*
American bittern
The American bittern (''Botaurus lentiginosus'') is a species of wading bird in the heron family. It has a Nearctic distribution, breeding in Canada and the northern and central parts of the United States, and wintering in the U.S. Gulf Coast ...
, ''Botaurus lentiginosus'' (A)
*
Least bittern
The least bittern (''Ixobrychus exilis'') is a small heron, the smallest member of the family Ardeidae found in the Americas.
Taxonomy
The least bittern was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his r ...
, ''Ixobrychus exilis''
*
Great blue heron, ''Ardea herodias''
*
Great egret
The great egret (''Ardea alba''), also known as the common egret, large egret, or (in the Old World) great white egret or great white heron is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and ...
, ''Ardea alba''
*
Little egret, ''Egretta garzetta'' (A)
*
Western reef-heron, ''Egretta gularis'' (A)
*
Snowy egret, ''Egretta thula''
*
Little blue heron
The little blue heron (''Egretta caerulea'') is a small heron of the genus '' Egretta''. It is a small, darkly colored heron with a two-toned bill. Juveniles are entirely white, bearing resemblance to the snowy egret. During the breeding season ...
, ''Egretta caerulea''
*
Tricolored heron
The tricolored heron (''Egretta tricolor''), formerly known as the Louisiana heron, is a small species of heron native to coastal parts of the Americas; in the Atlantic region, it ranges from the northeastern United States, south along the coast ...
, ''Egretta tricolor''
*
Reddish egret, ''Egretta rufescens'' (A)
*
Cattle egret, ''Bubulcus ibis''
*
Green heron, ''Butorides virescens''
*
Striated heron
The striated heron (''Butorides striata'') also known as mangrove heron, little green heron or green-backed heron, is a small heron, about 44 cm tall. Striated herons are mostly sedentary and noted for some interesting behavioral traits. The ...
, ''Butorides striata'' (A)
*
Black-crowned night-heron, ''Nycticorax nycticorax''
*
Yellow-crowned night-heron
The yellow-crowned night heron (''Nyctanassa violacea''), is one of two species of night herons found in the Americas, the other one being the black-crowned night heron. It is known as the ''bihoreau violacé'' in French and the ''pedrete corona ...
, ''Nyctanassa violacea''
Ibises and spoonbills
Order:
Pelecaniformes
The Pelecaniformes are an order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide. As traditionally—but erroneously—defined, they encompass all birds that have feet with all four toes webbed. Hence, they were formerly also known by such n ...
Family:
Threskiornithidae
The family Threskiornithidae includes 36 species of large wading birds. The family has been traditionally classified into two subfamilies, the ibises and the spoonbills; however recent genetic studies have cast doubt on this arrangement, and ha ...
Threskiornithidae is a family of large terrestrial and wading birds which includes the
ibis
The ibises () (collective plural ibis; classical plurals ibides and ibes) are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. "Ibis" derives from the Latin and Ancient Greek word ...
es and
spoonbills. They have long, broad wings with 11 primary and about 20 secondary feathers. They are strong fliers and, rather surprisingly, given their size and weight, very capable soarers.
*
White ibis, ''Eudocimus albus'' (A)
*
Scarlet ibis
The scarlet ibis (''Eudocimus ruber'') is a species of ibis in the bird family Threskiornithidae. It inhabits tropical South America and part of the Caribbean. In form, it resembles most of the other twenty-seven extant species of ibis, but it ...
, ''Eudocimus ruber'' (A)
*
Glossy ibis
The glossy ibis (''Plegadis falcinellus'') is a water bird in the order Pelecaniformes and the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae. The scientific name derives from Ancient Greek ''plegados'' and Latin, ''falcis'', both meaning "sickle" a ...
, ''Plegadis falcinellus'' (A)
*
Roseate spoonbill
The roseate spoonbill (''Platalea ajaja'') is a gregarious wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family, Threskiornithidae. It is a resident breeder in both South and North America.
Taxonomy
The roseate spoonbill is sometimes placed in its own ...
, ''Platalea ajaja'' (A)
New World vultures
Order:
Cathartiformes
The order Cathartiformes of raptors or birds of prey includes the New World vultures and the now-extinct Teratornithidae. These raptors are classified by most taxonomic authorities in the order Accipitriformes (which includes the eagles and hawk ...
Family:
Cathartidae
The
New World vultures
The New World vulture or condor family, Cathartidae, contains seven extant species in five genera. It includes five extant vultures and two extant condors found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas. The "New World" vultures were widespread ...
are not closely related to
Old World vultures
Old World vultures are vultures that are found in the Old World, i.e. the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa, and which belong to the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, buzzards, kites, and hawks.
Old World vultures are not clo ...
, but superficially resemble them because of
convergent evolution
Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...
. Like the Old World vultures, they are scavengers. However, unlike Old World vultures, which find carcasses by sight, New World vultures have a good sense of smell with which they locate carcasses.
*
Black vulture
The black vulture (''Coragyps atratus''), also known as the American black vulture, Mexican vulture, zopilote, urubu, or gallinazo, is a bird in the New World vulture family whose range extends from the northeastern United States to Peru, Cen ...
, ''Coragyps atratus'' (A)
*
Turkey vulture
The turkey vulture (''Cathartes aura'') is the most widespread of the New World vultures. One of three species in the genus '' Cathartes'' of the family Cathartidae, the turkey vulture ranges from southern Canada to the southernmost tip of Sout ...
, ''Cathartes aura'' (I)
Osprey
Order:
Accipitriformes
The Accipitriformes (; from Latin ''accipiter''/''accipitri-'' "hawk", and New Latin ''-formes'' "having the form of") are an order of birds that includes most of the diurnal birds of prey, including hawks, eagles, vultures, and kites, but not f ...
Family:
Pandionidae
The family Pandionidae contains only one species, the osprey. The osprey is a medium-large
raptor which is a specialist fish-eater with a worldwide distribution.
*
Osprey
The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...
, ''Pandion haliaetus''
Hawks, eagles, and kites
Order:
Accipitriformes
The Accipitriformes (; from Latin ''accipiter''/''accipitri-'' "hawk", and New Latin ''-formes'' "having the form of") are an order of birds that includes most of the diurnal birds of prey, including hawks, eagles, vultures, and kites, but not f ...
Family:
Accipitridae
The Accipitridae is one of the three families within the order Accipitriformes, and is a family of small to large birds with strongly hooked bills and variable morphology based on diet. They feed on a range of prey items from insects to medium-s ...
Accipitridae is a family of birds of prey, which includes
hawks,
eagle
Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, j ...
s,
kites
A kite is a tethered heavier-than-air or lighter-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create lift and drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have a bridle and tail to guide the face ...
,
harriers, and
Old World vultures. These birds have very large powerful hooked beaks for tearing flesh from their prey, strong legs, powerful talons, and keen eyesight.
*
Swallow-tailed kite
The swallow-tailed kite (''Elanoides forficatus'') is a pernine raptor which breeds from the southeastern United States to eastern Peru and northern Argentina. It is the only species in the genus ''Elanoides''. Most North and Central American b ...
, ''Elanoides forficatus'' (A)
*
Northern harrier, ''Circus hudsonius'' (A)
*
Western marsh harrier
The western marsh harrier (''Circus aeruginosus'') is a large harrier, a bird of prey from temperate and subtropical western Eurasia and adjacent Africa. It is also known as the Eurasian marsh harrier. Formerly, a number of relatives were includ ...
, ''Circus aeruginosus'' (A)
*
Sharp-shinned hawk
The sharp-shinned hawk (''Accipiter striatus'') is a small hawk, with males being the smallest hawks in the United States and Canada, but with the species averaging larger than some Neotropical species, such as the tiny hawk. The taxonomy is fa ...
, ''Accipiter striatus ''
*
Bald eagle, ''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'' (A)
*
Mississippi kite, ''Ictinia mississippiensis'' (A)
*
Common black hawk, ''Buteogallus anthracinus''
*
Ridgway's hawk
Ridgway's hawk (''Buteo ridgwayi'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae endemic to the island of Hispaniola (both Haiti and the Dominican Republic) in the Caribbean. It is classified as Critically Endangered because of habitat destructi ...
, ''Buteo ridgwayi'' (A)
*
Broad-winged hawk
The broad-winged hawk (''Buteo platypterus'') is a medium-sized hawk of the genus ''Buteo''. During the summer, some subspecies are distributed over eastern North America, as far west as British Columbia and Texas; they then migrate south to win ...
, ''Buteo platypterus''
*
Red-tailed hawk
The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members wit ...
, ''Buteo jamaicensis''
Barn-owls
Order:
StrigiformesFamily:
Tytonidae
Barn-owls (family Tytonidae) are one of the two families of owls, the other being the true owls or typical owls, Strigidae. They are medium to large owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long, strong legs wit ...
Barn-owl
Barn-owls (family Tytonidae) are one of the two families of owls, the other being the true owls or typical owls, Strigidae. They are medium to large owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long, strong legs with p ...
s are medium to large owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long strong legs with powerful talons.
*
Barn owl, ''Tyto alba'' (A)
Owls
Order:
StrigiformesFamily:
Strigidae
The true owls or typical owls (family Strigidae) are one of the two generally accepted families of owls, the other being the barn owls (Tytonidae). This large family comprises 230 living or recently extinct species in 24 genera. The typical owl ...
The
typical owls are small to large solitary nocturnal birds of prey. They have large forward-facing eyes and ears, a hawk-like beak, and a conspicuous circle of feathers around each eye called a facial disk.
*
Puerto Rican owl, ''Gymnasio nudipes''
*
Short-eared owl, ''Asio flammeus''
Todies
Order:
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colourful birds including the kingfishers, the bee-eaters, the rollers, the motmots, and the todies. They generally have syndactyly, with three forward-pointing toes (and toes 3 & 4 fused at their base) ...
Family:
Todidae
Todies
The todies are a family, Todidae, of tiny Caribbean birds in the order Coraciiformes, which also includes the kingfishers, bee-eaters and rollers. The family has one living genus, '' Todus'', and one genus known from the fossil record, '' Palaeot ...
are a group of small near passerine forest species endemic to the Caribbean. These birds have colorful plumage and resemble kingfishers, but have flattened bills with serrated edges. They eat small prey such as insects and lizards.
*
Puerto Rican tody, ''Todus mexicanus'' (E)
Kingfishers
Order:
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colourful birds including the kingfishers, the bee-eaters, the rollers, the motmots, and the todies. They generally have syndactyly, with three forward-pointing toes (and toes 3 & 4 fused at their base) ...
Family:
Alcedinidae
Kingfisher
Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...
s are medium-sized birds with large heads, long pointed bills, short legs, and stubby tails.
*
Ringed kingfisher, ''Megaceryle torquatus'' (A)
*
Belted kingfisher, ''Megaceryle alcyon''
Woodpeckers
Order:
Piciformes
Nine families of largely arboreal birds make up the order Piciformes , the best-known of them being the Picidae, which includes the woodpeckers and close relatives. The Piciformes contain about 71 living genera with a little over 450 species, of ...
Family:
Picidae
Woodpecker
Woodpeckers are part of the bird family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks, and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions. ...
s are small to medium-sized birds with chisel-like beaks, short legs, stiff tails, and long tongues used for capturing insects. Some species have feet with two toes pointing forward and two backward, while several species have only three toes. Many woodpeckers have the habit of tapping noisily on tree trunks with their beaks.
*
Puerto Rican woodpecker, ''Melanerpes portoricensis'' (E)
*
Yellow-bellied sapsucker, ''Sphyrapicus varius'' (A)
*
Hairy woodpecker, ''Dryobates villosus'' (A)
Falcons and caracaras
Order:
Falconiformes
The order Falconiformes () is represented by the extant family Falconidae (falcons and caracaras) and a handful of enigmatic Paleogene species. Traditionally, the other bird of prey families Cathartidae (New World vultures and condors), Sagitt ...
Family:
Falconidae
Falconidae is a family of diurnal birds of prey. They differ from hawks, eagles, and kites in that they kill with their beaks instead of their talons.
*
American kestrel
The American kestrel (''Falco sparverius''), also called the sparrow hawk, is the smallest and most common falcon in North America. It has a roughly two-to-one range in size over subspecies and sex, varying in size from about the weight of ...
, ''Falco sparverius''
*
Merlin, ''Falco columbarius'' (A)
*
Aplomado falcon
The aplomado falcon (''Falco femoralis'') is a medium-sized falcon of the Americas. The species' largest contiguous range is in South America, but not in the deep interior Amazon Basin. It was long known as ''Falco fusco-coerulescens'' or ''Fal ...
, ''Falco femoralis'' (A)
*
Peregrine falcon, ''Falco peregrinus''
Cockatoos
Order:
PsittaciformesFamily:
Cacatuidae
A cockatoo is any of the 21 parrot species belonging to the family Cacatuidae, the only family in the superfamily Cacatuoidea. Along with the Psittacoidea (true parrots) and the Strigopoidea (large New Zealand parrots), they make up the orde ...
The cockatoos share many features with other parrots including the characteristic curved beak shape and a
zygodactyl
In biology, dactyly is the arrangement of digits (fingers and toes) on the hands, feet, or sometimes wings of a tetrapod animal. It comes from the Greek word δακτυλος (''dáktylos'') = "finger".
Sometimes the ending "-dactylia" is use ...
foot, with two forward toes and two backwards toes. They differ, however in a number of characteristics, including the often spectacular movable
headcrest.
*
Sulphur-crested cockatoo
The sulphur-crested cockatoo (''Cacatua galerita'') is a relatively large white cockatoo found in wooded habitats in Australia, New Guinea, and some of the islands of Indonesia. They can be locally very numerous, leading to them sometimes being ...
, ''Cacatua galerita'' (I)
*
White cockatoo
The white cockatoo (''Cacatua alba''), also known as the umbrella cockatoo, is a medium-sized all-white cockatoo endemic to tropical rainforest on islands of Indonesia. When surprised, it extends a large and striking head crest, which has a se ...
, ''Cacatua alba'' (I)
New World and African parrots
Order:
PsittaciformesFamily:
Psittacidae
The family Psittacidae or holotropical parrots is one of three families of true parrots. It comprises the roughly 10 species of subfamily Psittacinae (the Old World or Afrotropical parrots) and 157 of subfamily Arinae (the New World or Neotropi ...
Characteristic features of parrots include a strong curved bill, an upright stance, strong legs, and clawed
zygodactyl
In biology, dactyly is the arrangement of digits (fingers and toes) on the hands, feet, or sometimes wings of a tetrapod animal. It comes from the Greek word δακτυλος (''dáktylos'') = "finger".
Sometimes the ending "-dactylia" is use ...
feet. Many parrots are vividly colored, and some are multi-colored. In size they range from to in length. Most of the more than 150 species in this family are found in the New World.
*
Monk parakeet
The monk parakeet (''Myiopsitta monachus''), also known as the Quaker parrot, is a species of true parrot in the family Psittacidae. It is a small, bright-green parrot with a greyish breast and greenish-yellow abdomen. Its average lifespan is 20 ...
, ''Myiopsitta monachus'' (I)
*
Orange-fronted parakeet, ''Eupsittula canicularis'' (I)
*
Brown-throated parakeet, ''Eupsittula pertinax'' (I)
*
Nanday parakeet
The nanday parakeet (''Aratinga nenday''), also known as the black-hooded parakeet or nanday conure, is a medium-small, mostly green, Neotropical parrot native to continental South America.
Taxonomy
The nanday parakeet was previously regarded as ...
, ''Aratinga nenday'' (I)
*
Blue-and-yellow macaw
The blue-and-yellow macaw (''Ara ararauna''), also known as the blue-and-gold macaw, is a large South American parrot with mostly blue top parts and light orange underparts, with gradient hues of green on top of its head. It is a member of the la ...
, ''Ara ararauna'' (I)
*
Puerto Rican parakeet, ''Psittacara maugei '' (E) (extinct)
[Greeney, H. F., N. Collar, P. F. D. Boesman, and C. J. Sharpe (2020). Puerto Rican Parakeet (''Psittacara maugei''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, B. K. Keeney, P. G. Rodewald, and T. S. Schulenberg, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.purpar2.01 retrieved August 14, 2021]
*
Red-masked parakeet
The red-masked parakeet (''Psittacara erythrogenys'')DNA-sequence data require revision of the parrot genus Aratinga (Aves: Psittacidae) J.V. Remsen, Jr., Erin E. Schirtzinger, Anna Ferraroni, Luís Fábio Silveira & Timothy F. Wright is a medium ...
, '' Psittacara erythrogenys'' (I)
*
Hispaniolan parakeet
The Hispaniolan parakeet (''Psittacara chloropterus'') (Spanish: ''perico'' or ''periquito''), colloquially known as xaxabí, is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae that is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominica ...
, '' Psittacara choloropterus'' (I)
*
White-winged parakeet
The white-winged parakeet (''Brotogeris versicolurus''), or canary-winged parakeet is a small parrot native to the Amazon River basin from southeast Colombia to the river's mouth in Brazil. Caged birds have been released and the birds have esta ...
''Brotogeris versicolorus'' (I)
*
Green-cheeked parakeet, ''Pyrrhura molinae'' (I)
*
Orange-winged parrot, ''Amazona amazonica'' (I)
*
White-fronted parrot, ''Amazona albifrons'' (I)
*
Hispaniolan parrot
The Hispaniolan amazon or Hispaniolan parrot (''Amazona ventralis''), colloquially known as cuca, is a species of Amazon parrot in the family Psittacidae
The family Psittacidae or holotropical parrots is one of three families of true parrot ...
, ''Amazona ventralis'' (I)
*
Puerto Rican parrot
The Puerto Rican amazon (''Amazona vittata''), also known as the Puerto Rican parrot (Puerto Rican Spanish: ''cotorra puertorriqueña'') or ''iguaca'', is the only extant parrot endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico, and belongs to the Neo ...
, ''Amazona vittata'' (E)
*
Red-crowned parrot
The red-crowned amazon (''Amazona viridigenalis''), also known as the red-crowned parrot, green-cheeked amazon or Mexican red-headed parrot, is an endangered amazon parrot native to northeastern Mexico and possibly southern Texas in the United St ...
, ''Amazona viridigenalis'' (I)
*
Yellow-headed parrot
The yellow-headed amazon (''Amazona oratrix''), also known as the yellow-headed parrot and double yellow-headed amazon, is an endangered amazon parrot of Mexico and northern Central America. Measuring in length, it is a stocky short-tailed gree ...
, ''Amazona oratrix'' (I)
*
Yellow-naped parrot
The yellow-naped amazon or yellow-naped parrot (''Amazona auropalliata'') is a widespread amazon parrot sometimes considered to be a subspecies of the yellow-crowned amazon (''Amazona ochrocephala'').. It inhabits the Pacific coast of southern M ...
, ''Amazona auropalliata'' (I)
Tyrant flycatchers
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Tyrannidae
The tyrant flycatchers (Tyrannidae) are a family of passerine birds which occur throughout North and South America. They are considered the largest family of birds known to exist in the world, with more than 400 species. They are the most dive ...
Tyrant flycatcher
The tyrant flycatchers (Tyrannidae) are a family of passerine birds which occur throughout North and South America. They are considered the largest family of birds known to exist in the world, with more than 400 species. They are the most dive ...
s are Passerine birds which occur throughout North and South America. They superficially resemble the Old World flycatchers, but are more robust and have stronger bills. They do not have the sophisticated vocal capabilities of the songbirds. Most, but not all, are rather plain. As the name implies, most are insectivorous.
*
Caribbean elaenia, ''Elaenia martinica''
*
Great crested flycatcher
The great crested flycatcher (''Myiarchus crinitus'') is a large insect-eating bird of the tyrant flycatcher family. It is the most widespread member of the genus ''Myiarchus'' in North America, and is found over most of the eastern and mid-west ...
, ''Myiarchus crinitus'' (A)
*
Puerto Rican flycatcher
The Puerto Rican flycatcher (''Myiarchus antillarum'') is a tyrant flycatcher endemic to the Puerto Rican archipelago and one of the 22 species belonging to the genus ''Myiarchus'' of the family Tyrannidae.
See also
* Fauna of Puerto Rico
* ...
, ''Myiarchus antillarum'' (E)
*
Western kingbird
The western kingbird (''Tyrannus verticalis'') is a large tyrant flycatcher found throughout western environments of North America, as far south as Mexico. Description
Adults are a combination of both gray and yellow plumage, along with crimson f ...
, ''Tyrannus verticalis'' (A)
*
Eastern kingbird
The eastern kingbird (''Tyrannus tyrannus'') is a large tyrant flycatcher native to the Americas. The bird is predominantly dark gray with white underbelly and pointed wings. Eastern kingbirds are conspicuous and are commonly found in open areas ...
, ''Tyrannus tyrannus'' (A)
*
Gray kingbird
The gray kingbird or grey kingbird (''Tyrannus dominicensis''), also known as pitirre, petchary or white-breasted kingbird, is a passerine bird. The species was first described on the island of Hispaniola, then called Santo Domingo, thus the ''do ...
, ''Tyrannus dominicensis''
*
Loggerhead kingbird, ''Tyrannus caudifasciatus''
*
Scissor-tailed flycatcher
The scissor-tailed flycatcher (''Tyrannus forficatus''), also known as the Texas bird-of-paradise and swallow-tailed flycatcher, is a long-tailed bird of the genus ''Tyrannus'', whose members are collectively referred to as kingbirds. The kingbi ...
, ''Tyrannus forficatus'' (A)
*
Fork-tailed flycatcher
The fork-tailed flycatcher (''Tyrannus savana'') is a passerine bird of the tyrant flycatcher family, and is the member of a genus typically referred to as kingbirds. Named for their distinguishingly long, forked tail, fork-tailed flycatchers are ...
, ''Tyrannus savana'' (A)
*
Eastern wood-pewee, ''Contopus virens'' (A)
*
Hispaniolan pewee
The Hispaniolan pewee (''Contopus hispaniolensis'') is a species of bird in the Tyrannidae (flycatcher) family.
It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominican Republic and Haiti) in the Caribbean
The Caribbean (, ) ( ...
, ''Contopus hispaniolensis'' (A)
*
Lesser Antillean pewee
The Lesser Antillean pewee (''Contopus latirostris'') is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae.
It is found in Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Puerto Rico, and Saint Lucia with records from Saint Kitts. Birds on Puerto Rico are sometimes ...
, ''Contopus latirostris''
*
Acadian flycatcher, ''Empidonax virescens'' (A)
*
Willow flycatcher, ''Empidonax traillii'' (A)
Vireos, shrike-babblers, and erpornis
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Vireonidae
The vireos make up a family, Vireonidae, of small to medium-sized passerine birds found in the New World (Canada to Argentina, including Bermuda and the West Indies) and Southeast Asia. "Vireo" is a Latin word referring to a green migratory bir ...
The
vireo
The vireos make up a family, Vireonidae, of small to medium-sized passerine birds found in the New World (Canada to Argentina, including Bermuda and the West Indies) and Southeast Asia. "Vireo" is a Latin word referring to a green migrato ...
s are a group of small to medium-sized passerine birds. They are typically greenish in color and resemble New World warblers apart from their heavier bills.
*
White-eyed vireo
The white-eyed vireo (''Vireo griseus'') is a small songbird of the family Vireonidae.
Distribution and habitat
It breeds in the eastern United States from New England west to northern Missouri and south to Texas and Florida, and also in easte ...
, ''Vireo griseus'' (A)
*
Puerto Rican vireo, ''Vireo latimeri'' (E)
*
Yellow-throated vireo
The yellow-throated vireo (''Vireo flavifrons'') is a small American songbird.
Etymology
"Vireo" is a Latin word referring to a green migratory bird, perhaps the female golden oriole, possibly the European greenfinch. The specific ''flavifron ...
, ''Vireo flavifrons'' (A)
*
Philadelphia vireo, ''Vireo philadelphicus'' (A)
*
Warbling vireo, ''Vireo gilvus'' (A)
*
Red-eyed vireo, ''Vireo olivaceus''
*
Black-whiskered vireo, ''Vireo altiloquus''
Crows, jays, and magpies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Corvidae
Corvidae is a cosmopolitan family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs, and nutcrackers. In colloquial English, they are known as the crow family or corvids. Cu ...
The family Corvidae includes
crow
A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifica ...
s,
ravens,
jays,
chough
There are two species of passerine birds commonly called chough ( ) that constitute the genus ''Pyrrhocorax'' of the Corvidae (crow) family of birds. These are the red-billed chough (''Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax''), and the Alpine chough (or yellow- ...
s,
magpies,
treepie
The treepies (known also as crypsirinines from the subfamily's name, ''Crypsirininae'') comprise four closely related genera (''Dendrocitta, Crypsirina, Temnurus'' and ''Platysmurus'') of long-tailed passerine birds in the family Corvidae. There ...
s,
nutcracker
A nutcracker is a tool designed to open nuts by cracking their shells. There are many designs, including levers, screws, and ratchets. The lever version is also used for cracking lobster and crab shells.
A decorative version portrays a person w ...
s, and
ground jays. Corvids are above average in size among the Passeriformes, and some of the larger species show high levels of intelligence.
*
White-necked crow
The white-necked crow (''Corvus leucognaphalus'') is the largest of the four Caribbean corvids. It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola (split between Haiti and the Dominican Republic); it was formerly also extant on Puerto Rico, but has been ...
, ''Corvus leucognaphalus'' (Ex)
Swallows
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Hirundinidae
The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...
The family Hirundinidae is adapted to aerial feeding. They have a slender streamlined body, long pointed wings, and a short bill with a wide gape. The feet are adapted to perching rather than walking, and the front toes are partially joined at the base.
*
Bank swallow
The sand martin (''Riparia riparia''), also known as the bank swallow (in the Americas), collared sand martin, or common sand martin, is a migratory passerine bird in the swallow family. It has a wide range in summer, embracing practically the ...
, ''Riparia riparia''
*
Tree swallow, ''Tachycineta bicolor'' (A)
*
Violet-green swallow, ''Tachycineta thalassina'' (A)
*
Northern rough-winged swallow, ''Stelgidopteryx serripennis'' (A)
*
Brown-chested martin, ''Progne tapera'' (A)
*
Purple martin, ''Progne subis'' (A)
*
Cuban martin, ''Progne cryptoleuca'' (A)
*
Caribbean martin, ''Progne dominicensis''
*
Barn swallow
The barn swallow (''Hirundo rustica'') is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. In fact, it appears to have the largest natural distribution of any of the world's passerines, ranging over 251 million square kilometres globally. ...
, ''Hirundo rustica''
*
Cliff swallow, ''Petrochelidon pyrrhonota'' (A)
*
Cave swallow, ''Petrochelidon fulva''
Waxwings
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Bombycillidae
The waxwings are three species of passerine birds classified in the genus ''Bombycilla''. They are pinkish-brown and pale grey with distinctive smooth plumage in which many body feathers are not individually visible, a black and white eyestri ...
The
waxwings are a group of birds with soft silky plumage and unique red tips to some of the wing feathers. In the Bohemian and cedar waxwings, these tips look like
sealing wax
Sealing wax is a wax material of a seal which, after melting, hardens quickly (to paper, parchment, ribbons and wire, and other material) forming a bond that is difficult to separate without noticeable tampering. Wax is used to verify something ...
and give the group its name. These are arboreal birds of northern forests. They live on insects in summer and berries in winter.
*
Cedar waxwing
The cedar waxwing (''Bombycilla cedrorum'') is a member of the family Bombycillidae or waxwing family of passerine birds. It is a medium-sized, mostly brown, gray, and yellow. This bird is named for its wax-like wing tips. It is a native of Nort ...
, ''Bombycilla cedrorum'' (A)
Mockingbirds and thrashers
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Mimidae
The mimids are a family of passerine birds that includes
thrasher
Thrashers are a New World group of perching bird, passerine birds related to mockingbirds and New World catbirds. Like these, they are in the family (biology), family Mimidae. There are 15 species in one large and 4 monotypic genus, genera.
T ...
s,
mockingbird
Mockingbirds are a group of New World passerine birds from the family Mimidae. They are best known for the habit of some species mimicking the songs of other birds and the sounds of insects and amphibians, often loudly and in rapid succession. ...
s,
tremblers, and the
New World catbirds. These birds are notable for their vocalization, especially their remarkable ability to mimic a wide variety of birds and other sounds heard outdoors. The species tend towards dull grays and browns in their appearance.
*
Gray catbird
The gray catbird (''Dumetella carolinensis''), also spelled grey catbird, is a medium-sized North American and Central American perching bird of the mimid family. It is the only member of the "catbird" genus ''Dumetella''. Like the black catbir ...
, ''Dumetella carolinensis'' (A)
*
Pearly-eyed thrasher
The pearly-eyed thrasher (''Margarops fuscatus'') is a bird in the thrasher family Mimidae. It is found on many Caribbean islands, from the Bahamas in the north to the Grenadines in the south, with an isolated subspecies on Bonaire.
Descriptio ...
, ''Margarops fuscatus''
*
Bahama mockingbird
The Bahama mockingbird (''Mimus gundlachii'') is a species of bird in the family Mimidae. It is found in the Bahamas, Cuba, Jamaica and the Turks and Caicos Islands, and is a vagrant to Florida.
Taxonomy and systematics
The Bahama mockingbi ...
, ''Mimus gundlachii'' (A)
*
Northern mockingbird
The northern mockingbird (''Mimus polyglottos'') is a mockingbird commonly found in North America. This bird is mainly a permanent resident, but northern birds may move south during harsh weather. This species has rarely been observed in Europe ...
, ''Mimus polyglottos''
Starlings
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Sturnidae
Starlings and mynas are small to medium-sized Old World passerine birds with strong feet. Their flight is strong and direct and they are very gregarious. Their preferred habitat is fairly open country, and they eat insects and fruit. Plumage is typically dark with a metallic sheen.
*
Common hill myna
The common hill myna (''Gracula religiosa''), sometimes spelled "mynah" and formerly simply known as the hill myna or myna bird, is the myna most commonly seen in aviculture, where it is often simply referred to by the latter two names. It is a ...
, ''Gracula religiosa'' (I)
*
European starling
The common starling or European starling (''Sturnus vulgaris''), also known simply as the starling in Great Britain and Ireland, is a medium-sized passerine bird in the starling family, Sturnidae. It is about long and has glossy black plumage ...
, ''Sturnus vulgaris'' (I) (A)
*
Common myna, ''Acridotheres tristis'' (I)
Thrushes and allies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Turdidae
The thrushes are a passerine bird family, Turdidae, with a worldwide distribution. The family was once much larger before biologists reclassified the former subfamily Saxicolinae, which includes the chats and European robins, as Old World fl ...
The
Thrushes
The thrushes are a passerine bird family, Turdidae, with a worldwide distribution. The family was once much larger before biologists reclassified the former subfamily Saxicolinae, which includes the chats and European robins, as Old World flyca ...
are a group of passerine birds that occur mainly but not exclusively in the Old World. They are plump, soft plumaged, small to medium-sized insectivores or sometimes omnivores, often feeding on the ground. Many have attractive songs.
*
Veery, ''Catharus fuscescens'' (A)
*
Gray-cheeked thrush, ''Catharus minimus'' (A)
*
Bicknell's thrush, ''Catharus bicknelli'' (A)
*
Swainson's thrush, ''Catharus ustulatus'' (A)
*
Wood thrush, ''Hylocichla mustelina'' (A)
*
American robin, ''Turdus migratorius'' (A)
*
Red-legged thrush, ''Turdus plumbeus''
Old World flycatchers
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Muscicapidae
The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia), with the exception of several vagrants and two species, Bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica)'' and Northe ...
Old World flycatcher
The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World (Europe, Africa and Asia), with the exception of several vagrants and two species, Bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica)'' and Northe ...
s are a large group of small passerine birds native to the Old World. They are mainly small arboreal
insectivores. The appearance of these birds is highly varied, but they mostly have weak songs and harsh calls.
*
Northern wheatear
The northern wheatear or wheatear (''Oenanthe oenanthe'') is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae. It is th ...
, ''Oenanthe oenanthe'' (A)
Weavers and allies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Ploceidae
Ploceidae is a family of small passerine birds, many of which are called weavers, weaverbirds, weaver finches and bishops. These names come from the nests of intricately woven vegetation created by birds in this family. In most recent classifica ...
Weavers
Weaver or Weavers may refer to:
Activities
* A person who engages in weaving fabric
Animals
* Various birds of the family Ploceidae
* Crevice weaver spider family
* Orb-weaver spider family
* Weever (or weever-fish)
Arts and entertainmen ...
are a group of small passerine birds related to the finches. These are seed-eating birds with rounded conical bills, most of which breed in sub-Saharan Africa, with fewer species in tropical Asia. Weavers get their name from the large woven nests many species make. They are gregarious birds which often breed colonially.
*
Northern red bishop, ''Euplectes franciscanus'' (I)
*
Yellow-crowned bishop, ''Euplectes afer'' (I)
Indigobirds
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Viduidae
__NOTOC__
The indigobirds and whydahs, together with the cuckoo-finch, make up the family Viduidae; they are small passerine birds native to Africa.
These are finch-like species which usually have black or indigo predominating in their plumage ...
The Viduidae is a family of small passerine birds native to
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
that includes
indigobirds and whydahs. All species are
brood parasites which lay their eggs in the nests of
estrildid finch
Estrildidae, or estrildid finches, is a family of small seed-eating passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They comprise species commonly known as munias, mannikins, firefinches, parrotfinches and waxbills. Despite the word "fi ...
es. Species usually have black or indigo predominating in their plumage.
*
Pin-tailed whydah, ''Vidua macroura'' (I)
Waxbills and allies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Estrildidae
Estrildidae, or estrildid finches, is a family of small seed-eating passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They comprise species commonly known as munias, mannikins, firefinches, parrotfinches and waxbills. Despite the word "fi ...
The
estrildid finch
Estrildidae, or estrildid finches, is a family of small seed-eating passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They comprise species commonly known as munias, mannikins, firefinches, parrotfinches and waxbills. Despite the word "fi ...
es are small passerine birds of the Old World tropics and
Australasia
Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologi ...
. They are gregarious and often colonial seed eaters with short thick but pointed bills. They are all similar in structure and habits, but have wide variation in plumage colors and patterns.
*
Bronze mannikin, ''Spermestes cucullata'' (I)
*
Indian silverbill, ''Euodice malabarica'' (I)
*
Java sparrow
The Java sparrow (''Padda oryzivora''), also known as Java finch, Java rice sparrow or Java rice bird, is a small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is a resident breeding bird in Java, Bali and Bawean in Indonesia. It is a popular cage bird, ...
, ''Padda oryzivora'' (I)
*
Scaly-breasted munia, ''Lonchura punctulata'' (I)
*
Tricolored munia, ''Lonchura malacca'' (I)
*
Chestnut munia, ''Lonchura atricapilla'' (I)
*
Red avadavat
The red avadavat (''Amandava amandava''), red munia or strawberry finch, is a sparrow-sized bird of the family Estrildidae. It is found in the open fields and grasslands of tropical Asia and is popular as a cage bird due to the colourful plumage ...
, ''Amandava amandava'' (I)
*
Orange-cheeked waxbill, ''Estrilda melpoda'' (I)
*
Black-rumped waxbill
The black-rumped waxbill (''Estrilda troglodytes'') is a common species of estrildid finch found in Southern Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 2,000,000 km2.
It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central Afr ...
, ''Estrilda troglodytes'' (I)
Old World sparrows
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Passeridae
Old World sparrows are a group of small passerine birds forming the family Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, a name also used for a particular genus of the family, '' Passer''. They are distinct from both the New World sparrows, ...
Sparrows are small passerine birds. In general, sparrows tend to be small plump brownish or grayish birds with short tails and short powerful beaks. Sparrows are seed eaters, but they also consume small insects.
*
House sparrow, ''Passer domesticus'' (I)
Finches, euphonias, and allies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Fringillidae
The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usua ...
Finch
The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usua ...
es are seed-eating passerine birds, that are small to moderately large and have a strong beak, usually conical and in some species very large. All have twelve tail feathers and nine primaries. These birds have a bouncing flight with alternating bouts of flapping and gliding on closed wings, and most sing well.
*
Antillean euphonia, ''Chlorophonia musica''
*
Yellow-fronted canary
The yellow-fronted canary (''Crithagra mozambica'') is a small passerine bird in the finch family. It is sometimes known in aviculture as the green singing finch.
The yellow-fronted canary was formerly placed in the genus '' Serinus'', but phy ...
, ''Crithagra mozambica'' (I) (A)
*
Red siskin, ''Spinus cucullata'' (I)
*
Island canary, ''Serinus canaria'' (I)
New World sparrows
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Passerellidae
New World sparrows are a group of mainly New World passerine birds, forming the family Passerellidae. They are seed-eating birds with conical bills, brown or gray in color, and many species have distinctive head patterns.
Although they share t ...
Until 2017, these species were considered part of the family
Emberizidae
The buntings are a group of Old World passerine birds forming the genus ''Emberiza'', the only genus in the family Emberizidae. The family contains 45 species. They are seed-eating birds with stubby, conical bills.
Taxonomy
The family Emberizid ...
. Most of the species are known as sparrows, but these birds are not closely related to the Old World sparrows which are in the family Passeridae. Many of these have distinctive head patterns.
*
Grasshopper sparrow, ''Ammodramus savannarum''
*
Dark-eyed junco
The dark-eyed junco (''Junco hyemalis'') is a species of junco, a group of small, grayish New World sparrows. This bird is common across much of temperate North America and in summer ranges far into the Arctic. It is a very variable species, much ...
, ''Junco hyemalis'' (A)
*
White-throated sparrow
The white-throated sparrow (''Zonotrichia albicollis'') is a passerine bird of the New World sparrow family Passerellidae.
Etymology
The genus name ''Zonotrichia'' is from Ancient Greek (, ) and (, ). The specific ''albicollis'' is from Lati ...
, ''Zonotrichia albicollis'' (A)
*
Lincoln's sparrow, ''Melospiza lincolnii'' (A)
Puerto Rican tanager
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Nesospingidae
The Puerto Rican tanager (''Nesospingus speculiferus'') is a small passerine bird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico. It is the only member of the genus ''Nesospingus'' and has historically been placed in the tanager family, but recent st ...
This species was formerly classified as a tanager (family Thraupidae) but was placed in its own family in 2017.
*
Puerto Rican tanager, ''Nesospingus speculiferus'' (E)
Spindalises
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Spindalidae
''Spindalis'' is a genus consisting of four non-migratory species of bird. It is the only genus in the family Spindalidae. The species are mostly endemic to the West Indies; exceptions include populations of western spindalises on Cozumel Island ...
The members of this small family are native to the
Greater Antilles
The Greater Antilles ( es, Grandes Antillas or Antillas Mayores; french: Grandes Antilles; ht, Gwo Zantiy; jam, Grieta hAntiliiz) is a grouping of the larger islands in the Caribbean Sea, including Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, a ...
. They were formerly classified as tanagers but were placed in their own family in 2017.
*
Puerto Rican spindalis
The Puerto Rican spindalis (''Spindalis portoricensis'') is a bird endemic to the island of Puerto Rico, where it is commonly known as ''reina mora''. The species is widely distributed throughout the island and is an important part of the Puerto ...
, ''Spindalis portoricensis'' (E)
Troupials and allies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Icteridae
Icterids () or New World blackbirds make up a family, the Icteridae (), of small to medium-sized, often colorful, New World passerine birds. Most species have black as a predominant plumage color, often enlivened by yellow, orange, or red. Th ...
The icterids are a group of small to medium-sized, often colorful passerine birds restricted to the New World and include the
grackle
Grackles is the common name of any of 11 passerine birds (10 extant and one extinct) native to North and South America. They belong to various genera in the icterid family. In all the species with this name, adult males have black or mostly blac ...
s,
New World blackbirds, and
New World oriole
New World orioles are a group of birds in the genus ''Icterus'' of the blackbird family. Unrelated to Old World orioles of the family Oriolidae, they are strikingly similar in size, diet, behavior, and strongly contrasting plumage. As a resu ...
s. Most species have black as a predominant plumage color, often enlivened by yellow, orange, or red.
*
Yellow-headed blackbird
The yellow-headed blackbird (''Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus'') is a medium-sized blackbird with a yellow head.
It is the only member of the genus ''Xanthocephalus''.
Description
Measurements:
* Length: 8.3-10.2 in (21-26 cm)
* Weight: ...
, ''Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus'' (A)
*
Bobolink
The bobolink (''Dolichonyx oryzivorus'') is a small New World blackbird and the only member of the genus ''Dolichonyx''. An old name for this species is the "rice bird", from its tendency to feed on cultivated grains during winter and migration. ...
, ''Dolichonyx oryzivorus'' (A)
*
Puerto Rican oriole
The Puerto Rican oriole (''Icterus portoricensis'') is a species of bird in the family Icteridae, and genus ''Icterus'' or New World blackbirds. This species is a part of a subgroup of orioles (Clade A) that includes the North American orchard o ...
, ''Icterus portoricensis'' (E)
*
Orchard oriole, ''Icterus spurius'' (A)
*
Venezuelan troupial
The Venezuelan troupial (''Icterus icterus'') is the national bird of Venezuela. It is found in Colombia, Venezuela, and the Caribbean islands of Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire, Trinidad, and Puerto Rico. Together with the orange-backed troupial an ...
, ''Icterus icterus'' (I)
*
Bullock's oriole
Bullock's oriole (''Icterus bullockii'') is a small New World blackbird. At one time, this species and the Baltimore oriole were considered to be a single species, the northern oriole. This bird is named after William Bullock, an English amateur ...
, ''Icterus bullockii'' (A)
*
Baltimore oriole, ''Icterus galbula'' (A)
*
Red-winged blackbird
The red-winged blackbird (''Agelaius phoeniceus'') is a passerine bird of the family Icteridae found in most of North America and much of Central America. It breeds from Alaska and Newfoundland south to Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, Mexico, and G ...
, ''Agelaius phoeniceus'' (A)
*
Yellow-shouldered blackbird
The yellow-shouldered blackbird (''Agelaius xanthomus''), known in Puerto Rican Spanish as ''mariquita de Puerto Rico'' or ''capitán'', is a species of blackbird endemic to Puerto Rico. It has black plumage with a prominent yellow patch on the ...
, ''Agelaius xanthomus'' (E)
*
Shiny cowbird
The shiny cowbird (''Molothrus bonariensis'') is a passerine bird in the New World family Icteridae. It breeds in most of South America except for dense forests and areas of high altitude such as mountains. Since 1900 the shiny cowbird's range h ...
, ''Molothrus bonariensis''
*
Brown-headed cowbird
The brown-headed cowbird (''Molothrus ater'') is a small, obligate brood parasitic icterid native to temperate and subtropical North America. It is a permanent resident in the southern parts of its range; northern birds migrate to the southern ...
, ''Molothrus ater'' (A)
*
Great-tailed grackle
The great-tailed grackle or Mexican grackle (''Quiscalus mexicanus'') is a medium-sized, highly social passerine bird native to North and South America. A member of the family Icteridae, it is one of 10 extant species of grackle and is closely r ...
, ''Quiscalus mexicanus'' (A)
*
Greater Antillean grackle
The Greater Antillean grackle (''Quiscalus niger'') is a grackle found throughout the Greater Antilles as well as smaller, nearby islands. Like all ''Quiscalus'' grackles, it is a rather large, gregarious bird. It lives largely in heavily settl ...
, ''Quiscalus niger''
*
Yellow-hooded blackbird
The yellow-hooded blackbird (''Chrysomus icterocephalus'') is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. It is found in grassy and brush areas near water in northern South America, and is generally fairly common. It is sexually dimorphic, and th ...
, ''Chrysomus icterocephalus'' (A)
New World warblers
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Parulidae
The New World warblers or wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful, passerine birds that make up the family Parulidae and are restricted to the New World. They are not closely related to Old World warblers or Australian warblers. Mos ...
The
wood-warblers are a group of small often colorful passerine birds restricted to the New World. Most are arboreal, but some are more terrestrial. Most members of this family are insectivores.
*
Ovenbird
The ovenbird (''Seiurus aurocapilla'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family (Parulidae). This migratory bird breeds in eastern North America and winters in Central America, many Caribbean islands, Florida and northern Venezuela.
...
, ''Seiurus aurocapilla''
*
Worm-eating warbler
The worm-eating warbler (''Helmitheros vermivorum'') is a small New World warbler that breeds in the Eastern United States and migrates to southern Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America for the winter.
Taxonomy
The worm-eating warbler is ...
, ''Helmitheros vermivorum'' (A)
*
Louisiana waterthrush, ''Parkesia motacilla''
*
Northern waterthrush, ''Parkesia noveboracensis''
*
Golden-winged warbler
The golden-winged warbler (''Vermivora chrysoptera'') is a New World warbler. It breeds in southeastern and south-central Canada and in the Appalachian Mountains in northeastern to north-central United States. The majority (~70%) of the global pop ...
, ''Vermivora chrysoptera'' (A)
*
Blue-winged warbler, ''Vermivora cyanoptera'' (A)
*
Black-and-white warbler
The black-and-white warbler (''Mniotilta varia'') is a species of New World warbler, and the only member of its genus, ''Mniotilta''.
It breeds in northern and eastern North America and winters in Florida, Central America, and the West Indies ...
, ''Mniotilta varia''
*
Prothonotary warbler
The prothonotary warbler (''Protonotaria citrea'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. It is named for its plumage which resembles the yellow robes once worn by papal clerks (named prothonotaries) in the Roman Catholic church.
...
, ''Protonotaria citrea'' (A)
*
Swainson's warbler
Swainson's warbler (''Limnothlypis swainsonii'') is a small species of New World warbler. It is monotypic, the only member of the genus ''Limnothlypis''. Swainson's warbler was named after William Swainson, an English ornithologist.
Descriptio ...
, ''Limnothlypis swainsonii'' (A)
*
Tennessee warbler, ''Leieothlypis peregrina'' (A)
*
Nashville warbler
The Nashville warbler (''Leiothlypis ruficapilla'') is a small songbird in the New World warbler family, found in North and Central America. It breeds in parts of the northern and western United States and southern Canada, and migrates to winter ...
, ''Leieothlypis ruficapilla'' (A)
*
Connecticut warbler, ''Oporornis agilis'' (A)
*
Mourning warbler
The mourning warbler (''Geothlypis philadelphia'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. Mourning warblers are native to eastern and central North America as well as some countries in Central America.Gough, G.A., Sauer, J.R. ''Patu ...
, ''Geothlypis philadelphia'' (A)
*
Kentucky warbler
The Kentucky warbler (''Geothlypis formosa'') is a small species of New World warbler. It is a sluggish and heavy warbler with a short tail, preferring to spend most of its time on or near the ground, except when singing.
Description
Adult Kent ...
, ''Geothlypis formosa'' (A)
*
Common yellowthroat
The common yellowthroat (''Geothlypis trichas'') is a New World warbler. In the U.S. Midwest, it is also known as the yellow bandit. It is an abundant breeder in North America, ranging from southern Canada to central Mexico. The genus name ''Geo ...
, ''Geothlypis trichas''
*
Elfin-woods warbler, ''Setophaga angelae'' (E)
*
Hooded warbler, ''Setophaga citrina'' (A)
*
American redstart
The American redstart (''Setophaga ruticilla'') is a New World warbler. It is unrelated to the Old World (common) redstart.
Taxonomy
The American redstart was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his ''Systema Naturae'' und ...
, ''Setophaga ruticilla''
*
Cape May warbler, ''Setophaga tigrina''
*
Cerulean warbler
The cerulean warbler (''Setophaga cerulea'') is a small songbird in the family Parulidae. It is a long-distance migrant, breeding in eastern North American hardwood forests. In the non-breeding season, it winters on the eastern slope of the And ...
, ''Setophaga cerulea'' (A)
*
Northern parula
The northern parula (''Setophaga americana'') is a small New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America from southern Canada to Florida.
Description
The northern parula is one of the smaller North American migratory warblers, often being ...
, ''Setophaga americana''
*
Magnolia warbler
The magnolia warbler (''Setophaga magnolia'') is a member of the wood warbler family Parulidae.
Etymology
The genus name ''Setophaga'' is from Ancient Greek ''ses'', "moth", and ', "eating", and the specific ''magnolia'' refers to the type lo ...
, ''Setophaga magnolia'' (A)
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Bay-breasted warbler
The bay-breasted warbler (''Setophaga castanea'') is a small species of songbird in the New World warbler family, Parulidae. It is one of thirty-four species in the diverse genus ''Setophaga.'' Like all songbirds, or passerines, the species is cl ...
, ''Setophaga castanea'' (A)
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Blackburnian warbler
The Blackburnian warbler (''Setophaga fusca'') is a small New World warbler. They breed in eastern North America, from southern Canada, westwards to the southern Canadian Prairies, the Great Lakes region and New England, to North Carolina.
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, ''Setophaga fusca'' (A)
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Yellow warbler, ''Setophaga petechia''
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Chestnut-sided warbler
The chestnut-sided warbler (''Setophaga pensylvanica'') is a New World warbler. They breed in eastern North America and in southern Canada westwards to the Canadian Prairies. They also breed in the Great Lakes region and in the eastern United St ...
, ''Setophaga pensylvanica'' (A)
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Blackpoll warbler
The blackpoll warbler (''Setophaga striata'') is a New World warbler. Breeding males are mostly black and white. They have a prominent black cap, white cheeks and white wing bars. The blackpoll breeds in forests of northern North America, from Ala ...
, ''Setophaga striata''
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Black-throated blue warbler, ''Setophaga caerulescens''
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Palm warbler
The palm warbler (''Setophaga palmarum'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.
Description
Measurements:
* Length:
* Weight:
* Wingspan:
Taxonomy
The species comprises two distinct subspecies that may merit specific stat ...
, ''Setophaga palmarum'' (A)
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Pine warbler, ''Setophaga pinus'' (A)
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Yellow-rumped warbler, ''Setophaga coronata'' (A)
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Yellow-throated warbler
The yellow-throated warbler (''Setophaga dominica'') is a small migratory songbird species breeding in temperate North America. It belongs to the New World warbler family (Parulidae).
Description
In summer, male yellow-throated warblers displ ...
, ''Setophaga dominica'' (A)
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Prairie warbler, ''Setophaga discolor''
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Adelaide's warbler
Adelaide's warbler (''Setophaga adelaidae'') is a bird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico belonging to the genus ''Setophaga'' of the family Parulidae. The species is named after Adelaide Swift, daughter of Robert Swift, the person who cap ...
, ''Setophaga adelaidae'' (E)
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Townsend's warbler, ''Setophaga townsendi'' (A)
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Black-throated green warbler
The black-throated green warbler (''Setophaga virens'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.
Description
It has an olive-green crown, a yellow face with olive markings, a thin pointed bill, white wing bars, an olive-green back an ...
, ''Setophaga virens'' (A)
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Canada warbler
The Canada warbler (''Cardellina canadensis'') is a small boreal songbird of the New World warbler family (Parulidae). It summers in Canada and northeastern United States and winters in northern South America.
Taxonomy
In 1760 the French zoolo ...
, ''Cardellina canadensis'' (A)
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Wilson's warbler, ''Cardellina pusilla'' (A)
Cardinals and allies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family:
Cardinalidae
Cardinalidae (often referred to as the "cardinal-grosbeaks" or simply the "cardinals") is a family of New World-endemic passerine birds that consists of cardinals, grosbeaks, and buntings. It also includes several birds such as the tanager-lik ...
The cardinals are a family of robust, seed-eating birds with strong bills. They are typically associated with open woodland. The sexes usually have distinct plumages.
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Summer tanager, ''Piranga rubra'' (A)
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Scarlet tanager
The scarlet tanager (''Piranga olivacea'') is a medium-sized American songbird. Until recently, it was placed in the tanager family (Thraupidae), but it and other members of its genus are now classified as belonging to the cardinal family (Cardin ...
, ''Piranga olivacea'' (A)
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Rose-breasted grosbeak
The rose-breasted grosbeak (''Pheucticus ludovicianus''), colloquially called "cut-throat" due to its coloration, is a large, seed-eating grosbeak in the cardinal family ( Cardinalidae). It is primarily a foliage gleaner. Males have black heads, ...
, ''Pheucticus ludovicianus'' (A)
* Blue grosbeak, ''Passerina caerulea'' (A)
* Indigo bunting, ''Passerina cyanea'' (A)
* Dickcissel, ''Spiza americana'' (A)
Tanagers and allies
Order:
Passeriformes
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
Family: Thraupidae
The tanagers are a large group of small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to the New World, mainly in the tropics. Many species are brightly colored. As a family they are omnivorous, but individual species specialize in eating fruits, seeds, insects, or other types of food.
* Red-crested cardinal, ''Paroaria coronata'' (I)
* Saffron finch, ''Sicalis flaveola'' (I)
* Bananaquit, ''Coereba flaveola''
* Yellow-faced grassquit, ''Tiaris olivaceus''
* Puerto Rican bullfinch, ''Melopyrrha portoricensis'' (E)
* Lesser Antillean bullfinch, ''Loxigilla noctis'' (A)
* Black-faced grassquit, ''Melanospiza bicolor''
See also
* Fauna of Puerto Rico
* List of birds
* List of birds of North America
* List of endemic fauna of Puerto Rico
* List of Vieques birds
* El Toro Wilderness
References
Further reading
*
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{{North American birds
Birds of Puerto Rico, '
Lists of biota of Puerto Rico, birds
Lists of birds of North America, Puerto Rico
Lists of birds of insular areas of the United States, Puerto Rico