Bird Conservation

Birders from across the nation and world flock to National Wildlife Refuges during annual migrations.

Relatively undisturbed, and built around historical migration stopover points, the lands and waters that make up your National Wildlife Refuge System provide protected habitat for more than 700 species of migratory birds, waterfowl, shorebirds, and grassland birds across the country.

Birders from across the nation and world flock to National Wildlife Refuges during annual migrations to catch a glimpse at not only the birds, but also the wildlife that call these natural communities home. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service along with multiple partner organizations and agencies joined forces in 2006 to develop a National Wildlife Refuge System Birding Initiative and Birders Team, and are working together to build quality visitor experiences on refuges for birders and wildlife viewers.

2011 State of the Birds Report

Birds Regularly Occuring in the Midwest Region

Swans, Geese, and Ducks
Greater White-fronted Goose
Snow Goose
Ross's Goose
Brant
Cackling Goose
Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Trumpeter Swan
Tundra Swan
Wood Duck
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon
American Wigeon
American Black Duck
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
King Eider
Harlequin Duck
Surf Scoter
White-winged Scoter
Black Scoter
Long-tailed Duck
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Barrow's Goldeneye
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Ruddy Duck
Quails
Northern Bobwhite
Grouse and Turkeys
Gray Partridge
Ring-necked Pheasant
Ruffed Grouse
Spruce Grouse
Sharp-tailed Grouse
Greater Prairie-Chicken
Wild Turkey
Loons
Red-throated Loon
Pacific Loon
Common Loon
Grebes
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Eared Grebe
Western Grebe
Clark's Grebe
Cormorants
Double-crested Cormorant
Pelicans
American White Pelican
Herons and Bitterns
American Bittern
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Ibises
Glossy Ibis
White-faced Ibis
Vultures
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Ospreys
Osprey
Hawks and Eagles
Mississippi Kite
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Northern Goshawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Swainson's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Ferruginous Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Golden Eagle
Falcons
American Kestrel
Merlin
Gyrfalcon
Peregrine Falcon
Prairie Falcon
Rails and Coots
Yellow Rail
Black Rail
King Rail
Virginia Rail
Sora
Purple Gallinule
Common Moorhen
American Coot
Cranes
Sandhill Crane
Whooping Crane
Plovers
Black-bellied Plover
American Golden-Plover
Snowy Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover
Killdeer
Avocets and Stilts
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Sandpipers
Spotted Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Willet
Lesser Yellowlegs
Upland Sandpiper
Whimbrel
Hudsonian Godwit
Marbled Godwit
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot
Sanderling
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
Baird's Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Purple Sandpiper
Dunlin
Curlew Sandpiper
Stilt Sandpiper
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
Ruff
Short-billed Dowitcher
Long-billed Dowitcher
Wilson's Snipe
American Woodcock
Wilson's Phalarope
Red-necked Phalarope
Red Phalarope
Gulls and Terns
Black-legged Kittiwake
Sabine's Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
Black-headed Gull
Little Gull
Laughing Gull
Franklin's Gull
Ring-billed Gull
California Gull
Herring Gull
Thayer's Gull
Iceland Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Glaucous Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Least Tern
Caspian Tern
Black Tern
Common Tern
Forster's Tern
Jaegers
Pomarine Jaeger
Parasitic Jaeger
Pigeons and Doves
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Cuckoos
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Black-billed Cuckoo
Greater Roadrunner
Barn Owls
Barn Owl
Owls
Eastern Screech-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Snowy Owl
Northern Hawk Owl
Burrowing Owl
Barred Owl
Great Gray Owl
Long-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl
Boreal Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Nightjars
Common Nighthawk
Chuck-will's-widow
Eastern Whip-poor-will
Swifts
Chimney Swift
Hummingbirds
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Rufous Hummingbird
Kingfishers
Belted Kingfisher
Woodpeckers
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
American Three-toed Woodpecker
Black-backed Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Flycatchers
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Acadian Flycatcher
Alder Flycatcher
Willow Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Say's Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Western Kingbird
Eastern Kingbird
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Shrikes
Loggerhead Shrike
Northern Shrike
Vireos
White-eyed Vireo
Bell's Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Philadelphia Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Jays and Crows
Blue Jay
Gray Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Fish Crow
Common Raven
Larks
Horned Lark
Swallows
Purple Martin
Tree Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Chickadees and Titmice
Carolina Chickadee
Black-capped Chickadee
Boreal Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Nuthatches
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Creepers
Brown Creeper
Wrens
Carolina Wren
Bewick's Wren
House Wren
Winter Wren
Sedge Wren
Marsh Wren
Gnatcatchers
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Kinglets
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Thrushes
Eastern Bluebird
Mountain Bluebird
Townsend's Solitaire
Veery
Gray-cheeked Thrush
Swainson's Thrush
Hermit Thrush
Wood Thrush
American Robin
Varied Thrush
Mockingbirds and Thrashers
Gray Catbird
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
Starlings
European Starling
Pipits
American Pipit
Sprague's Pipit
Waxwings
Bohemian Waxwing
Cedar Waxwing
Longspurs
Lapland Longspur
Chestnut-collared Longspur
Smith's Longspur
Snow Bunting
Wood Warblers
Blue-winged Warbler
Golden-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Cape May Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Pine Warbler
Kirtland's Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Palm Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Prothonotary Warbler
Worm-eating Warbler
Swainson's Warbler
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
Kentucky Warbler
Connecticut Warbler
Mourning Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Canada Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Sparrows
Spotted Towhee
Eastern Towhee
Bachman's Sparrow
American Tree Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Clay-colored Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Lark Bunting
Savannah Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
Baird's Sparrow
Henslow's Sparrow
Le Conte's Sparrow
Nelson's Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Harris's Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Tanagers and Buntings
Summer Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Western Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak
Lazuli Bunting
Indigo Bunting
Painted Bunting
Dickcissel
Blackbirds and Orioles
Bobolink
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Western Meadowlark
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Rusty Blackbird
Brewer's Blackbird
Common Grackle
Great-tailed Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Bullock's Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Finches
Pine Grosbeak
Purple Finch
House Finch
Red Crossbill
White-winged Crossbill
Common Redpoll
Hoary Redpoll
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
Evening Grosbeak
Old World Sparrows
House Sparrow
Eurasian Tree Sparrow