Bird families of North America.

The largest order, with more than half of all bird species. Includes songbirds, corvids, finches, warblers, and sparrows.

Crows, Jays and Magpies Corvidae | e.g. Blue Jay | Intelligent, social, tool-using

42 spp.

New World Warblers Parulidae | e.g. Yellow Warbler | Tiny, colorful, long-distance migrants

54 spp.

Thrushes Turdidae | e.g. American Robin | Melodic singers, ground foragers

19 spp.

Cardinals and Grosbeaks Cardinalidae | e.g. Northern Cardinal | Vivid plumage, heavy seed-cracking bills

14 spp.

Sparrows and Buntings Emberizidae | e.g. Song Sparrow | Streaky brown, grassland and brush specialists

46 spp.

Blackbirds and Orioles Icteridae | e.g. Baltimore Oriole | Hanging nests, flocking behavior

28 spp.

Finches Fringillidae | e.g. American Goldfinch | Conical bills, undulating flight, irruptive

18 spp.

Swallows and Martins Hirundinidae | e.g. Barn Swallow | Aerial insectivores, forked tails, colonial

9 spp.

Wrens Troglodytidae | e.g. Carolina Wren | Disproportionately loud songs, cocked tails

11 spp.

Diurnal raptors with hooked bills, powerful talons, and keen binocular vision. Includes the national bird.

Hawks, Eagles and Kites Accipitridae | e.g. Red-tailed Hawk | Soaring, buteo body plan, variable plumage

38 spp.

Ospreys Pandionidae | e.g. Osprey | Reversible outer toes, fish-only diet

1 spp.

New World Vultures Cathartidae | e.g. Turkey Vulture | Carrion diet, dihedral wing soaring, keen smell

3 spp.

Ducks, geese, and swans. Web-footed aquatic birds with lamellate bills for filter-feeding.

Ducks, Geese and Swans Anatidae | e.g. Mallard | Waterproof plumage, diverse feeding strategies

56 spp.

Near water from mudflats to open ocean. Over 350 species worldwide.

Sandpipers and Snipes Scolopacidae | e.g. Spotted Sandpiper | Probing bills, tidal migrants

48 spp.

Gulls and Terns Laridae | e.g. Ring-billed Gull | Opportunistic feeders, colonial nesters

36 spp.

Plovers Charadriidae | e.g. Killdeer | Run-and-stop foraging, distraction displays

12 spp.

Auks and Puffins Alcidae | e.g. Atlantic Puffin | Diving seabirds, colonial breeders

7 spp.

Cavity-nesting, tree-climbing specialists with chisel bills and stiffened tail feathers.

Woodpeckers Picidae | e.g. Downy Woodpecker | Drumming, undulating flight, stiff tails

23 spp.

Nocturnal and crepuscular hunters with forward-facing eyes, asymmetric ears, and silent flight feathers.

Typical Owls Strigidae | e.g. Great Horned Owl | Silent flight, rotating head, binocular vision

19 spp.

Barn Owls Tytonidae | e.g. Barn Owl | Heart-shaped facial disc, rodent specialist

1 spp.

Fastest fliers and the only birds that can truly hover in still air. Wings beat up to 80 times per second.

Hummingbirds Trochilidae | e.g. Ruby-throated Hummingbird | Hovering flight, nectar-feeding, iridescent gorgets

18 spp.

Swifts Apodidae | e.g. Chimney Swift | Fastest sustained flight, spend most of life airborne

4 spp.