List of Puerto Rican birds - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

This is a categorized list of the bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...

species recorded in the archipelago
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...

of Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

which consists of the main island

Island

An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...

of Puerto Rico, two island municipalities off the east coast (Vieques

Vieques, Puerto Rico

Vieques , in full Isla de Vieques, is an island–municipality of Puerto Rico in the northeastern Caribbean, part of an island grouping sometimes known as the Spanish Virgin Islands...

and Culebra

Culebra, Puerto Rico

Isla Culebra is an island-municipality of Puerto Rico originally called Isla Pasaje and Isla de San Ildefonso. It is located approximately east of the Puerto Rican mainland, west of St. Thomas and north of Vieques. Culebra is spread over 5 wards and Culebra Pueblo...

), three uninhabited islands off the west coast (Mona

Mona, Puerto Rico

Mona is the third largest island of the archipelago of Puerto Rico, after the main island of Puerto Rico and Vieques. It is the largest of three islands located in the Mona Passage, a strait between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, the others being Monito Island and Desecheo Island...

, Monito

Monito Island

Monito Island is an uninhabited island about 5 kilometers northwest of much larger Mona Island. Monito is the masculine diminutive form of Mona in Spanish. It is one of three islands in the Mona Passage, and part of the Isla de Mona e Islote Monito barrio, a subdivision of the municipality of...

, and Desecheo

Desecheo Island

Desecheo is a small uninhabited island of the archipelago of Puerto Rico located in the northeast of the Mona Passage; 21 km from the west coast of the main island of Puerto Rico and 50 km northeast of Mona Island. It has a land area of 1.5 km² . Politically, the island is...

) and more than 125 smaller cays and islands. The avifauna of Puerto Rico includes a total of 349 species, of which 166 (47.56%) are accidental

Vagrancy (biology)

Vagrancy is a phenomenon in biology whereby individual animals appear well outside their normal range; individual animals which exhibit vagrancy are known as vagrants. The term accidental is sometimes also used...

, 42 (12.03%) are introduced

Introduced species

An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...

by humans and 16 (4.58%) are endemic

Endemism in birds

An endemic bird area is a region of the world that contains two or more restricted-range species, while a "secondary area" contains one or more restricted-range species. Both terms were devised by Birdlife International....

. Around 120 of these species breed in Puerto Rico while the majority of the others overwinter in the archipelago. This list does not include extinct

Extinction

In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...

species.

Taxonomy

This list's taxonomic

Taxonomy

Taxonomy is the science of identifying and naming species, and arranging them into a classification. The field of taxonomy, sometimes referred to as "biological taxonomy", revolves around the description and use of taxonomic units, known as taxa...

treatment (designation and sequence of orders, families, and species) and nomenclature (common and scientific names) follow the conventions of Clements

James Clements

Dr. James Franklin Clements was an ornithologist, author and very successful businessman. He was born in New York....

's 5th edition. The family accounts at the beginning of each heading reflects this taxonomy, as do the species counts found in each family account. Introduced, accidental and extirpated species are included in the total species counts for Puerto Rico.

The following tags have been used to highlight certain relevant categories, but not all species fall into one of these categories. Those that do not are common occurring, native species.

(A) Accidental A species that rarely or accidentally occurs in the archipelago of Puerto Rico.
(E) Endemic A species endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico.
(Ex) Extirpated A species that no longer occurs in the archipelago Puerto Rico although populations exist elsewhere.
(I) Introduced A species introduced to the archipelago of Puerto Rico as a consequence, direct or indirect, of human actions.

Grebes

Order: Podicipediformes. Family: Podicipedidae

Grebe

A grebe is a member of the Podicipediformes order, a widely distributed order of freshwater diving birds, some of which visit the sea when migrating and in winter...

s are small to medium-large sized 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. There are 20 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Least Grebe
Least Grebe
The Least Grebe , 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 Chile and Argentina, and also on Trinidad and Tobago, the Bahamas and the Greater Antilles.-Description:The Least Grebe ranges in length from...

, Tachybaptus dominicus
Pied-billed Grebe
Pied-billed Grebe
The Pied-billed Grebe is a species of the grebe family of water birds. Since the Atitlán Grebe, Podilymbus gigas, has become extinct, it is the sole extant member of the genus Podilymbus.-Description:...

, Podilymbus podiceps

Shearwaters and petrels

Order: Procellariiformes

Procellariiformes

Procellariiformes is an order of seabirds that comprises four families: the albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters, storm petrels, and diving petrels...

. Family: Procellariidae

Procellariidae

The family Procellariidae is a group of seabirds that comprises the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the prions, and the shearwaters. This family is part of the bird order Procellariiformes , which also includes the albatrosses, the storm-petrels, and the diving petrels.The procellariids are...

The Procellariids are the main group of medium-sized 'true petrel

Petrel

Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group...

s', characterised by united nostrils with medium septum, and a long outer functional primary. There are 75 species world wide and 8 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Black-capped Petrel
Black-capped Petrel
The Black-capped Petrel is a small seabird in the gadfly petrel genus, Pterodroma. It is also known as the Diablotín. The extinct Jamaica Petrel was a related dark form, often considered a subspecies of this bird.This long-winged petrel has a grey-brown back and wings, with a white nape and rump...

, Pterodroma hasitata (A)
Herald Petrel
Herald Petrel
The Trindade Petrel, Pterodroma arminjoniana, is a species of seabird and a member of the gadfly petrels. The bird is 35-39 cm in size, with a 88-102 cm wingspan....

, Pterodroma arminjoniana (A)
Cory's Shearwater
Cory's Shearwater
The Cory's Shearwater is a large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae.This species breeds on islands and cliffs in the Mediterranean, with the odd outpost on the Atlantic coast of Iberia. The nest is on open ground or among rocks or less often in a burrow where one white egg is laid,...

, Calonectris diomedea (A)
Greater Shearwater, Puffinus gravis (A)
Sooty Shearwater
Sooty Shearwater
The Sooty Shearwater is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand it is also known by its Māori name tītī and as "muttonbird", like its relatives the Wedge-tailed Shearwater and the Australian Short-tailed Shearwater The Sooty Shearwater (Puffinus griseus) is...

, Puffinus griseus (A)
Manx Shearwater
Manx Shearwater
The Manx Shearwater is a medium-sized shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. The scientific name of this species records a name shift: Manx Shearwaters were called Manks Puffins in the 17th century. Puffin is an Anglo-Norman word for the cured carcasses of nestling shearwaters...

, Puffinus puffinus (A)
Little Shearwater
Little Shearwater
The Little Shearwater is a small shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae.mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data indicates that the former North Atlantic Little Shearwater group is closer to Audubon's Shearwater , and myrtae being closer to the Newell's and possibly Townsend's Shearwater...

, Puffinus assimilis (A)
Audubon's Shearwater
Audubon's Shearwater
Audubon's Shearwater, Puffinus lherminieri, is a common tropical seabird from the family Procellariidae. Sometimes called Dusky-backed Shearwater, the scientific name of this species commemorates the French naturalist Félix Louis L'Herminier....

, Puffinus lherminieri

Storm-Petrels

Order: Procellariiformes

Procellariiformes

Procellariiformes is an order of seabirds that comprises four families: the albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters, storm petrels, and diving petrels...

. Family: Hydrobatidae

The Storm-Petrel

Storm-petrel

Storm petrels are seabirds in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. These smallest of seabirds feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.Storm petrels have a cosmopolitan...

s are the smallest of seabirds, relatives of the petrel

Petrel

s, feeding on plankton

Plankton

Plankton are any drifting organisms that inhabit the pelagic zone of oceans, seas, or bodies of fresh water. That is, plankton are defined by their ecological niche rather than phylogenetic or taxonomic classification...

ic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat

Bat

Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

-like. There are 21 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

Wilson's Storm-Petrel
Wilson's Storm-petrel
Wilson's Storm Petrel , also known as Wilson's Petrel, is a small seabird of the storm-petrel family. It is one of the most abundant bird species in the world and has a circumpolar distribution mainly in the seas of the southern hemisphere but extending northwards during the summer of the northern...

, Oceanites oceanicus (A)
Leach's Storm-Petrel
Leach's Storm-petrel
The Leach's Storm Petrel or Leach's Petrel is a small seabird of the tubenose family. It is named after the British zoologist William Elford Leach....

, Oceanodroma leucorhoa (A)

Tropicbirds

Order: Pelecaniformes

Pelecaniformes

The Pelecaniformes is a 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 names as totipalmates or steganopodes...

. Family: Phaethontidae

Tropicbird

Tropicbird

Tropicbirds are a family, Phaethontidae, of tropical pelagic seabirds now classified in their own order Phaethontiformes. Their relationship to other living birds is unclear, and they appear to have no close relatives. There are three species in one genus, Phaethon...

s are slender white birds of tropical oceans, with exceptionally long central tail feathers. Their long wings have black markings, as does the head. There are 3 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Red-billed Tropicbird
Red-billed Tropicbird
The Red-billed Tropicbird, Phaethon aethereus, also known as the Boatswain Bird is a tropicbird, one of three closely related seabirds of tropical oceans.-Distribution and habitat:...

, Phaethon aethereus
White-tailed Tropicbird
White-tailed Tropicbird
The White-tailed Tropicbird Phaethon lepturus, is a tropicbird, smallest of three closely related seabirds of the tropical oceans and smallest member of the order Phaethontiformes. It occurs in the tropical Atlantic, western Pacific and Indian Oceans...

, Phaethon lepturus

Pelicans

Order: Pelecaniformes

Pelecaniformes

. Family: Pelecanidae

Pelican

A pelican, derived from the Greek word πελεκυς pelekys is a large water bird with a large throat pouch, belonging to the bird family Pelecanidae....

s are very large water birds with a distinctive pouch under the beak Like other birds in the order Pelecaniformes, they have four webbed toes. There are 8 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

American White Pelican
American White Pelican
The American White Pelican is a large aquatic bird from the order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America, in winter....

, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos (A)
Brown Pelican
Brown Pelican
The Brown Pelican is the smallest of the eight species of pelican, although it is a large bird in nearly every other regard. It is in length, weighs from and has a wingspan from .-Range and habits:...

, Pelecanus occidentalis

Boobies

Order: Pelecaniformes

Pelecaniformes

. Family: Sulidae

Sulidae

The bird family Sulidae comprises the gannets and boobies. Collectively called sulidas, they are medium-large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish and similar prey. The ten species in this family are often considered congeneric in older sources, placing all in the genus Sula...

The sulids comprise the gannet

Gannet

Gannets are seabirds comprising the genus Morus, in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies.The gannets are large black and white birds with yellow heads. They have long pointed wings and long bills. Northern gannets are the largest seabirds in the North Atlantic, with a wingspan of up...

s and boobies

Booby

A booby is a seabird in the genus Sula, part of the Sulidae family. Boobies are closely related to the gannets , which were formerly included in Sula.-Description:...

with only boobies occurring in Puerto Rico. Both groups are medium-large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish. There are 8 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Masked Booby
Masked Booby
The Masked Booby, Sula dactylatra, is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae. This species breeds on islands in tropical oceans, except in the eastern Atlantic; in the eastern Pacific it is replaced by the Nazca Booby, Sula granti, which was formerly regarded as a subspecies of Masked Booby...

, Sula dactylatra
Red-footed Booby
Red-footed Booby
The Red-footed Booby, Sula sula, is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae. As suggested by the name, adults always have red feet, but the colour of the plumage varies. They are powerful and agile fliers, but they are clumsy in takeoffs and landings...

, Sula sula
Brown Booby
Brown Booby
The Brown Booby is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae. The adult brown booby reaches about in length. Its head and upper body are covered in dark brown, with the remainder being a contrasting white. The juvenile form is gray-brown with darkening on the head, wings and tail...

, Sula leucogaster

Cormorants

Order: Pelecaniformes

Pelecaniformes

. Family: Phalacrocoracidae

The 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 colourful. There are 38 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Double-crested Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
The Double-crested Cormorant is a member of the cormorant family of seabirds. It occurs along inland waterways as well as in coastal areas, and is widely distributed across North America, from the Aleutian Islands in Alaska down to Florida and Mexico...

, Phalacrocorax auritus (A)
Neotropic Cormorant
Neotropic Cormorant
The Neotropic Cormorant or Olivaceous Cormorant 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 USA south through Mexico and Central America to southern South America. It also breeds on the...

, Phalacrocorax brasilianus (A)

Frigatebirds

Order: Pelecaniformes

Pelecaniformes

. Family: Fregatidae

Frigatebird

Frigatebird

The frigatebirds are a family, Fregatidae, of seabirds. There are five species in the single genus Fregata. They are also sometimes called Man of War birds or Pirate birds. Since they are related to the pelicans, the term "frigate pelican" is also a name applied to them...

s are large sea-birds usually found over tropical oceans. They are large, black or black and white, with long wings and deeply-forked tails. The males have inflatable coloured 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. There are 5 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Magnificent Frigatebird
Magnificent Frigatebird
The Magnificent Frigatebird was sometimes previously known as Man O'War, reflecting its rakish lines, speed, and aerial piracy of other birds....

, Fregata magnificens

Bitterns, Herons, and Egrets

Order: Ciconiiformes

Ciconiiformes

Traditionally, the order Ciconiiformes has included a variety of large, long-legged wading birds with large bills: storks, herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, and several others. Ciconiiformes are known from the Late Eocene...

. Family: Ardeidae

The family Ardeidae contains the bittern

Bittern

Bitterns are a classification of birds in the heron family, Ardeidae, a family of wading birds. Species named bitterns tend to be the shorter-necked, often more secretive members of this family...

s, heron

Heron

The herons are long-legged freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae. There are 64 recognised species in this family. Some are called "egrets" or "bitterns" instead of "heron"....

s and egret

Egret

An egret is any of several herons, most of which are white or buff, and several of which develop fine plumes during the breeding season. Many egrets are members of the genera Egretta or Ardea which contain other species named as herons rather than egrets...

s. Herons and Egrets are medium to large sized wading birds with long necks and legs. Bitterns tend to be shorter necked and more secretive. Unlike other long necked birds suck as storks, ibises and spoonbills, members of Ardeidae fly with their necks retracted. There are 61 species world wide and 14 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Great Blue Heron
Great Blue Heron
The Great Blue Heron is a large wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, common near the shores of open water and in wetlands over most of North and Central America as well as the West Indies and the Galápagos Islands. It is a rare vagrant to Europe, with records from Spain, the Azores and England...

, Ardea herodias
Great Egret
Great Egret
The Great Egret , also known as the Great White Egret or Common Egret, White Heron, or Great White Heron, is a large, widely-distributed egret. Distributed across most of the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world, in southern Europe it is rather localized...

, Ardea alba
Reddish Egret
Reddish Egret
The Reddish Egret is a small heron. It is a resident breeder in Central America, The Bahamas, the Caribbean, the Gulf Coast of the United States, and Mexico. There is post-breeding dispersal to well north of the nesting range...

, Egretta rufescens (A)
Tricolored Heron
Tricolored Heron
The Tricolored Heron formerly known in North America as the Louisiana Heron, is a small heron. It is a resident breeder from the Gulf states of the USA and northern Mexico south through Central America and the Caribbean to central Brazil and Peru...

, Egretta tricolor
Little Blue Heron
Little Blue Heron
The Little Blue Heron, Egretta caerulea, is a small heron. It breeds from the Gulf states of the USA through Central America and the Caribbean south to Peru and Uruguay. It is a resident breeder in most of its range, but some northern breeders migrate to the southeastern USA or beyond in winter...

, Egretta caerulea
Western Reef-Heron, Egretta gularis (A)
Snowy Egret
Snowy Egret
The Snowy Egret is a small white heron. It is the American counterpart to the very similar Old World Little Egret, which has established a foothold in the Bahamas....

, Egretta thula
Little Egret
Little Egret
The Little Egret is a small white heron. It is the Old World counterpart to the very similar New World Snowy Egret.-Subspecies:Depending on authority, two or three subspecies of Little Egret are currently accepted....

, Egretta garzetta (A)
Cattle Egret
Cattle Egret
The Cattle Egret is a cosmopolitan species of heron found in the tropics, subtropics and warm temperate zones. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Bubulcus, although some authorities regard its two subspecies as full species, the Western Cattle Egret and the Eastern Cattle Egret...

, Bubulcus ibis
Green Heron
Green Heron
The Green Heron is a small heron of North and Central America. It was long considered conspecific with its sister species the Striated Heron , and together they were called "Green-backed Heron"...

, Butorides virescens
Black-crowned Night-Heron, Nycticorax nycticorax
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Nyctanassa violacea
Least Bittern
Least Bittern
The Least Bittern is a small wading bird, the smallest heron found in the Americas.This bird's underparts and throat are white with light brown streaks. Their face and the sides of the neck are light brown; they have yellow eyes and a yellow bill. The adult male is glossy greenish black on the...

, Ixobrychus exilis
American Bittern
American Bittern
The American Bittern is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae. New evidence has led the American Ornithologists' Union to move the heron family into the order Pelecaniformes .-Description:...

, Botaurus lentiginosus (A)

Ibises and spoonbills

Order: Ciconiiformes

Ciconiiformes

. Family: Threskiornithidae

Threskiornithidae

The family Threskiornithidae includes 34 species of large terrestrial and wading birds, falling into two subfamilies, the ibises and the spoonbills. It was formerly known as Plataleidae. The spoonbills and ibises were once thought to be related to other groups of long-legged wading birds in the...

The Threskiornithidae is a family of large terrestrial and wading birds which includes the ibis

Ibis

The ibises are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae....

es and spoonbill

Spoonbill

Spoonbills are a group of large, long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, which also includes the Ibises.All have large, flat, spatulate bills and feed by wading through shallow water, sweeping the partly opened bill from side to side...

s. 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. There are 36 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

White Ibis
American White Ibis
The American White Ibis is a species of wading bird in the ibis family Threskiornithidae. It occurs from the mid-Atlantic and Gulf coast of the United States south through most of the New World tropics...

, Eudocimus albus (A)
Glossy Ibis
Glossy Ibis
The Glossy Ibis is a wading bird in the ibis family Threskiornithidae.This is the most widespread ibis species, breeding in scattered sites in warm regions of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and the Atlantic and Caribbean region of the Americas...

, Plegadis falcinellus (A)
Roseate Spoonbill
Roseate Spoonbill
The Roseate Spoonbill, Platalea ajaja, is a gregarious wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family, Threskiornithidae...

, Platalea ajaja (A)

Flamingos

Order: Phoenicopteriformes. Family: Phoenicopteridae

Flamingo

Flamingo

Flamingos or flamingoes are gregarious wading birds in the genus Phoenicopterus , the only genus in the family Phoenicopteridae...

s (genus Phoenicopterus monotypic in family Phoenicopteridae) are gregarious wading birds, usually 3–5 feet in height, found in both the Western and Eastern Hemispheres. They are more numerous in the latter. 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 are uniquely used upside-down. There are 6 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Caribbean Flamingo
Caribbean Flamingo
The American Flamingo is a large species of flamingo closely related to the Greater Flamingo and Chilean Flamingo. It was formerly considered conspecific with the Greater Flamingo, but that treatment is now widely viewed as incorrect due to a lack of evidence...

, Phoenicopterus ruber (A)

Ducks, Geese, and Swans

Order: Anseriformes

Anseriformes

The order Anseriformes contains about 150 living species of birds in three extant families: the Anhimidae , Anseranatidae , and the Anatidae, which includes over 140 species of waterfowl, among them the ducks, geese, and swans.All species in the order are highly adapted for an aquatic existence at...

. Family: Anatidae

Anatidae

Anatidae is the biological family of birds that includes ducks, geese and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents except Antarctica and on most of the world's islands and island groups...

The family Anatidae includes the duck

Duck

Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...

s and most duck-like waterfowl, such as geese

Goose

The word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....

and swan

Swan

Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...

s. These are birds that are modified for 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. There are 131 species world wide and 28 species which occur in Puerto Rico, the majority of which occur accidentally.

Fulvous Whistling-Duck, Dendrocygna bicolor (A)
West Indian Whistling-Duck, Dendrocygna arborea
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Dendrocygna autumnalis (A)
Tundra Swan, Cygnus columbianus (A)
Snow Goose
Snow Goose
The Snow Goose , also known as the Blue Goose, is a North American species of goose. Its name derives from the typically white plumage. The genus of this bird is disputed...

, Chen caerulescens (A)
Brant Goose, Branta bernicla (A)
Canada Goose
Canada Goose
The Canada Goose is a wild goose belonging to the genus Branta, which is native to arctic and temperate regions of North America, having a black head and neck, white patches on the face, and a brownish-gray body....

, Branta canadensis (A)
Wood Duck
Wood Duck
The Wood Duck or Carolina Duck is a species of duck found in North America. It is one of the most colourful of North American waterfowl.-Description:...

, Aix sponsa (A)
Eurasian Wigeon, Anas penelope (A)
American Wigeon
American Wigeon
The American Wigeon, also American Widgeon or Baldpate, is a species of wigeon in the dabbling duck genus Anas. If this is split up, all wigeons will go into their old genus Mareca again...

, Anas americana (A)
Gadwall
Gadwall
The Gadwall is a common and widespread duck of the family Anatidae.- Description :The Gadwall is 46–56 cm long with a 78–90 cm wingspan. The male is slightly larger than the female, weighing on average 990 g against her 850 g...

, Anas strepera (A)
Green-winged Teal
Green-winged Teal
The Green-winged Teal 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 Common Teal The Green-winged Teal (Anas carolinensis) is a common and widespread duck that breeds in the northern areas of...

, Anas carolinensis (A)
Mallard
Mallard
The Mallard , or Wild Duck , is a dabbling duck which breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, and has been introduced to New Zealand and Australia....

, Anas platyrhynchos (A)
American Black Duck
American Black Duck
The American Black Duck is a large dabbling duck. American Black Ducks are similar to Mallards in size, and resemble the female Mallard in coloration, although the Black Duck's plumage is darker...

, Anas rubripes (A)
Northern Shoveler
Northern Shoveler
The Northern Shoveler , Northern Shoveller in British English, sometimes known simply as the Shoveler, is a common and widespread duck. It breeds in northern areas of Europe and Asia and across most of North America, and is a rare vagrant to Australia...

, Anas clypeata (A)
White-cheeked Pintail
White-cheeked Pintail
The White cheeked Pintail or Bahama Pintail is a dabbling duck of the Caribbean, South America, and the Galápagos Islands....

, Anas bahamensis
Garganey
Garganey
The Garganey is a small dabbling duck. It breeds in much of Europe and western Asia, but is strictly migratory, with the entire population moving to southern Africa, India Santragachi and Australasia in winter, where large flocks can occur. This species was first described by Linnaeus in 1758...

Anas querquedula (A)
Blue-winged Teal
Blue-winged Teal
The Blue-winged Teal is a small dabbling duck from North America.-Description:The Blue-winged Teal is long, with a wingspan of , and a weight of . The adult male has a greyish blue head with a white facial crescent, a light brown body with a white patch near the rear and a black tail. The adult...

, Anas discors
Cinnamon Teal
Cinnamon Teal
The Cinnamon Teal is a small, reddish dabbling duck found in marshes and ponds of western North and South America.thumb|left|Female Anas cyanoptera septentrionalium...

, Anas cyanoptera (A)
Northern Pintail
Northern Pintail
The Pintail or Northern Pintail is a widely occurring duck which breeds in the northern areas of Europe, Asia and North America. It is strongly migratory and winters south of its breeding range to the equator...

, Anas acuta
Canvasback
Canvasback
The Canvasback is the largest of the North American diving ducks, that ranges from between long and weighs approximately , with a wingspan of . The canvasback has a distinctive wedge-shaped head and long graceful neck. The adult male has a black bill, a chestnut red head and neck, a black...

, Aythya valisineria (A)
Ring-necked Duck
Ring-necked Duck
The Ring-necked Duck is a smaller diving duck from North America.The adult male is similar in color pattern to the Eurasian Tufted Duck, its relative. It has a grey bill with a white band, a shiny purple head, a white breast, yellow eyes and a dark grey back...

, Aythya collaris (A)
Lesser Scaup
Lesser Scaup
The Lesser Scaup 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...

, Aythya affinis (A)
Bufflehead
Bufflehead
The Bufflehead is a small American sea duck of the genus Bucephala, the goldeneyes. This species was first described by Linnaeus in his Systema naturae in 1758 as Anas albeola.-Description:...

, Bucephala albeola (A)
Hooded Merganser
Hooded Merganser
The Hooded Merganser is a small duck and is the only member of the genus Lophodytes.Hooded Mergansers have a crest at the back of the head which can be expanded or contracted. In adult males, this crest has a large white patch, the head is black and the sides of the duck are reddish-brown...

, Lophodytes cucullatus (A)
Red-breasted Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
The Red-breasted Merganser is a diving duck.-Taxonomy:The Red-breasted Merganser was one of the many species originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th-century work, Systema Naturae.-Description:...

, Mergus serrator (A)
Masked Duck
Masked Duck
The Masked Duck is a tiny stiff-tailed duck ranging through the tropical Americas. They are found from Mexico to South America and also in the Caribbean...

, Nomonyx dominica
Ruddy Duck
Ruddy Duck
The Ruddy Duck is a small stiff-tailed duck.Their breeding habitat is marshy lakes and ponds throughout much of North America, and in South America in the Andes. They nest in dense marsh vegetation near water. The female builds her nest out of grass, locating it in tall vegetation to hide it from...

, Oxyura jamaicensis

New World vultures

Order: Ciconiiformes

Ciconiiformes

. Family: Cathartidae

The New World vultures are not closely related to Old World vultures, but superficially resemble them because of convergent evolution. 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 located carcasses. There are 7 species world wide, all found only in the Americas, and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Turkey Vulture
Turkey Vulture
The Turkey Vulture is a bird found throughout most of the Americas. It is also known in some North American regions as the Turkey Buzzard , and in some areas of the Caribbean as the John Crow or Carrion Crow...

, Cathartes aura (I)

Osprey

Order: Falconiformes

Falconiformes

The order Falconiformes is a group of about 290 species of birds that comprises the diurnal birds of prey. Raptor classification is difficult and the order is treated in several ways.- Classification problems :...

. Family: Pandionidae

The Pandionidae family contains only one species, the Osprey. The Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) is a medium large raptor

Bird of prey

Birds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....

which is a specialist fish-eater with a worldwide distribution.

Osprey
Osprey
The Osprey , sometimes known as the sea hawk or fish eagle, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and across the wings...

, Pandion haliaetus

Hawks, Kites, and Eagles

Order: Falconiformes

Falconiformes

. Family: Accipitridae

Accipitridae

The Accipitridae, one of the two major families within the order Accipitriformes , are 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-sized mammals, with a number feeding on carrion and a...

The family Accipitridae is a family of birds of prey and include hawk

Hawk

The term hawk can be used in several ways:* In strict usage in Australia and Africa, to mean any of the species in the subfamily Accipitrinae, which comprises the genera Accipiter, Micronisus, Melierax, Urotriorchis and Megatriorchis. The large and widespread Accipiter genus includes goshawks,...

s, eagle

Eagle

Eagles are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just two species can be found in the United States and Canada, nine more in...

s, kites

Kite (bird)

Kites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. Most feed mainly on carrion but some take various amounts of live prey.They are birds of prey which, along with hawks and eagles, are from the family Accipitridae....

, harriers

Harrier (bird)

A harrier is any of the several species of diurnal hawks forming the Circinae sub-family of the Accipitridae family of birds of prey. Harriers characteristically hunt by flying low over open ground, feeding on small mammals, reptiles, or birds....

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. There are 233 species world wide and 8 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Swallow-tailed Kite
Swallow-tailed Kite
The Swallow-tailed Kite is an elanid kite which breeds from the southeastern United States to eastern Peru and northern Argentina. Most North and Central American breeders winter in South America where the species is resident year round...

, Elanoides forficatus (A)
Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...

, Haliaeetus leucocephalus (A)
Northern Harrier
Hen Harrier
The Hen Harrier or Northern Harrier is a bird of prey. It breeds throughout the northern parts of the northern hemisphere in Canada and the northernmost USA, and in northern Eurasia. This species is polytypic, with two subspecies. Marsh Hawk is a historical name for the American form.It migrates...

, Circus cyaneus
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Sharp-shinned Hawk
The Sharp-shinned Hawk is a small hawk. In fact, "sharp-shins" or "sharpies" are the smallest to reside in USA and Canada, though some Neotropical species are smaller...

, Accipiter striatus
Common Black-Hawk, Buteogallus anthracinus (A)
Ridgway's Hawk
Ridgway's Hawk
Ridgway's Hawk is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles, hawks and Old World vultures...

, Buteo ridgwayi (A)
Broad-winged Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
The Broad-winged Hawk is a small 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 winter in the neotropics from Mexico down to southern Brazil. Other subspecies are all-year...

, Buteo platypterus
Red-tailed Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
The Red-tailed Hawk is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West...

, Buteo jamaicensis

Falcons

Order: Falconiformes

Falconiformes

. Family: Falconidae

Falconidae

The falcons and caracaras are around 60 species of diurnal birds of prey that make up the family Falconidae. The family is divided into two subfamiles, Polyborinae, which includes the caracaras and forest falcons, and Falconinae, the falcons, kestrels and falconets.-Description:Falcons and...

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 feet. There are 62 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

American Kestrel
American Kestrel
The American Kestrel , sometimes colloquially known as the Sparrow Hawk, is a small falcon, and the only kestrel found in the Americas. It is the most common falcon in North America, and is found in a wide variety of habitats. At long, it is also the smallest falcon in North America...

, Falco sparverius
Merlin
Merlin (bird)
The Merlin is a small species of falcon from the Northern Hemisphere. A bird of prey once known colloquially as a pigeon hawk in North America, the Merlin breeds in the northern Holarctic; some migrate to subtropical and northern tropical regions in winter.-European and North American...

, Falco columbarius (A)
Peregrine Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...

, Falco peregrinus (A)

New World Quails

Order: Galliformes

Galliformes

Galliformes are an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding domestic or game bird, containing turkey, grouse, chicken, New and Old World Quail, ptarmigan, partridge, pheasant, and the Cracidae. Common names are gamefowl or gamebirds, landfowl, gallinaceous birds or galliforms...

. Family: Odontophoridae

The New World quail

New World quail

The New World quails or Odontophorids are small birds only distantly related to the Old World Quails, but named for their similar appearance and habits. The American species are in their own family Odontophoridae, whereas Old World Quail are in the pheasant family Phasianidae...

s are small, plump terrestrial birds only distantly related to the quails of the Old World, but named for their similar appearance and habits. There are 32 species worldwide, all found only in the Americas, of which one is introduced to Puerto Rico.

Northern Bobwhite, Colinus virginianus (I)

Junglefowls and Pheasants

Order: Galliformes

Galliformes

. Family: Phasianidae

Phasianidae

The Phasianidae is a family of birds which consists of the pheasants and partridges, including the junglefowl , Old World Quail, francolins, monals and peafowl. The family is a large one, and is occasionally broken up into two subfamilies, the Phasianinae, and the Perdicinae...

The Phasianidae are a family of terrestrial birds which consists of quail

Quail

Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally considered in the order Galliformes. Old World quail are found in the family Phasianidae, while New World quail are found in the family Odontophoridae...

s, partridge

Partridge

Partridges are birds in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are a non-migratory Old World group.These are medium-sized birds, intermediate between the larger pheasants and the smaller quails. Partridges are native to Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East...

s, snowcock

Snowcock

The snowcocks are a group of bird species in the genus Tetraogallus of the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are ground-nesting birds which breed in the mountain ranges of southern Eurasia from the Caucasus to the Himalayas and western China. The Himalayan Snowcock has been introduced...

s, francolin

Francolin

Francolins are birds that traditionally have been placed in the genus Francolinus, but now commonly are divided into multiple genera , although some of the major taxonomic listing sources have yet to divide them. They are members of the pheasant family, Phasianidae...

s, spurfowls, tragopan

Tragopan

Tragopan is a genus of bird in the family Phasianidae. These birds are commonly called "horny pheasants" because of two brightly-colored, fleshy horns on their heads that they can erect during courtship displays...

s, monal

Monal

A Monal is a bird of genus Lophophorus of the Pheasant family, Phasianidae. There are three species and several sub-species within the genus Lophophorus:* Himalayan Monal Lophophorus impejanus* Sclater's Monal Lophophorus sclateri...

s, pheasants, peafowl

Peafowl

Peafowl are two Asiatic species of flying birds in the genus Pavo of the pheasant family, Phasianidae, best known for the male's extravagant eye-spotted tail, which it displays as part of courtship. The male is called a peacock, the female a peahen, and the offspring peachicks. The adult female...

s and jungle fowls. In general, they are plump (although they may vary in size) and have broad, relatively short wings. There are 156 species worldwide, including 2 species that occur in Puerto Rico.

Red Junglefowl
Red Junglefowl
The Red Junglefowl is a tropical member of the Pheasant family. They are thought to be ancestors of the domestic chicken with some hybridisation with the Grey Junglefowl...

, Gallus gallus (I)
Common Pheasant
Common Pheasant
The Common Pheasant , is a bird in the pheasant family . It is native to Georgia and has been widely introduced elsewhere as a game bird. In parts of its range, namely in places where none of its relatives occur such as in Europe , it is simply known as the "pheasant"...

, Phasianus colchicus (I)

Guineafowls

Order: Galliformes

Galliformes

. Family: Numididae

Guineafowl

The guineafowl are a family of birds in the Galliformes order, although some authorities include the guineafowl as a subfamily, Numidinae, of the family Phasianidae...

s are a group of African seed-eating, ground-nesting birds resembling partridges, but with featherless heads and spangled gray plumage. There are 6 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Helmeted Guineafowl
Helmeted Guineafowl
The Helmeted Guineafowl is the best known of the guineafowl bird family, Numididae, and the only member of the genus Numida...

, Numida meleagris (I)

Limpkin

Order: Gruiformes

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"....

. Family: Aramidae

The Limpkin is a large, odd bird with drably plumaged brown with a greyer head and neck.

Limpkin
Limpkin
The Limpkin , Aramus guarauna, is a bird that looks like a large rail but is skeletally closer to cranes. It is the only extant species in the genus Aramus and the family Aramidae. It is found mostly in wetlands in warm parts of the Americas, from Florida to northern Argentina...

, Aramus guarauna (Ex)

Rails, Gallinules, and Coots

Order: Gruiformes

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"....

. Family: Rallidae

Rallidae

The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small to medium-sized birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and the family also includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules...

Rallidae is a large family of small to medium-sized birds which includes the rails, crakes, coot

Coot

Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family Rallidae. They constitute the genus Fulica. Coots have predominantly black plumage, and, unlike many of the rails, they are usually easy to see, often swimming in open water...

s, and gallinule

Rallidae

The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small to medium-sized birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and the family also includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules...

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, difficult to observe. Most species have strong legs, and have long toes which are well adapted to soft, uneven surfaces. They tend to have short, rounded wings and be weak fliers. There are 143 species world wide and 9 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Black Rail
Black Rail
The Black Rail is a mouse-sized member of the Rallidae family of birds. It is found in scattered parts of North America and the Pacific region of South America, usually in coastal salt marshes but also in some freshwater marshes. It is extinct or threatened in many locations due to habitat loss...

, Laterallus jamaicensis (A)
Clapper Rail
Clapper Rail
The Clapper Rail is a member of the rail family, Rallidae. Some researchers believe that this bird and the similar King Rail are a single species; the two birds are known to interbreed.-Distribution and habitat:...

, Rallus longirostris
Virginia Rail
Virginia Rail
The Virginia Rail, Rallus limicola, is a small waterbird, of the family Rallidae.Adults are mainly brown, darker on the back and crown, with orange-brown legs. They have long toes, a short tail and a long slim reddish bill...

, Rallus limicola (A)
Sora
Sora (crake)
The Sora is a small waterbird of the family Rallidae, sometimes also referred to as the Sora Rail or Sora Crake.Adults Soras are long, with dark-marked brown upperparts, a blue-grey face and underparts, and black and white barring on the flanks. They have a short thick yellow bill, with black...

, Porzana carolina (A)
Yellow-breasted Crake
Yellow-breasted Crake
The Yellow-breasted Crake is a species of bird in the Rallidae family.It is found in Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto...

, Porzana flaviventer
Purple Gallinule
American Purple Gallinule
The American Purple Gallinule is a "swamp hen" in the rail family Rallidae.A medium-sized rail with big yellow feet, purple-blue plumage with a green back, and red and yellow bill. It has a pale blue forehead shield and white undertail.Juveniles are brown overall with a brownish olive back...

, Porphyrio martinica
Common Gallinule
Common Gallinule
The Common Gallinule, is a North American bird in the Rallidae family which has recently been split from the Common Moorhen by the AOU in July 2011. It lives around well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals and other wetlands. The species is not found in the polar regions, or many tropical rainforests...

, Gallinula galeata
American Coot
American Coot
The American Coot is a bird of the family Rallidae, inhabiting wetlands and open water bodies. Measuring in length and across the wings, adults have a short thick white bill and white frontal shield, which usually has a reddish-brown spot near the top of the bill between the eyes...

, Fulica americana
Caribbean Coot
Caribbean Coot
The Caribbean Coot is a large waterbird of the family Rallidae, which is a resident breeder in the Caribbean and parts of Venezuela. Several alleged sightings have occurred in North America, but these cannot be authenticated since some American Coots lack red knobs on the frontal shield of the bill...

, Fulica caribaea

Jacanas

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Jacanidae

The Jacana

Jacana

The jaçanas are a group of tropical waders in the family Jacanidae. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone. See Etymology below for pronunciation....

s are a group of tropical waders in the family Jacanidae. They are 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. There 8 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Northern Jacana
Northern Jacana
The Northern Jacana or Northern Jaçana is a wader which is a resident breeder from coastal Mexico to western Panama, and on Cuba, Jamaica and Hispaniola. It sometimes breeds in Texas, USA, and has also been recorded on several occasions as a vagrant in Arizona...

, Jacana spinosa (A)

Oystercatchers

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Haematopodidae

The oystercatcher

Oystercatcher

The oystercatchers are a group of waders; they form 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...

s are large, obvious and noisy plover

Plover

Plovers are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. There are about 40 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subfamily, Vanellinae, comprises another 20-odd species.Plovers are found throughout...

-like birds, with strong bills used for smashing or prising open molluscs. There are 11 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

American Oystercatcher
American Oystercatcher
The American Oystercatcher , occasionally called the American Pied Oystercatcher, is a member of family Haematopodidae. The bird is marked by its black and white body and a long, thick orange beak...

, Haematopus palliatus

Stilts and Avocets

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Recurvirostridae

Recurvirostridae

Recurvirostridae is a family of birds in the wader suborder Charadrii. It contains two distinct groups of birds, the avocets and the stilts .-Description and diet:...

Recurvirostridae is a family of large wading birds, which includes the avocet

Avocet

The four species of Avocets are a genus, Recurvirostra, of waders in the same avian family as the stilts.Avocets have long legs and long, thin, upcurved bills which they sweep from side to side when feeding in the brackish or saline wetlands they prefer...

s and the stilt

Stilt

Stilt is a common name for several species of birds in the family Recurvirostridae, which also includes those known as avocets. They are found in brackish or saline wetlands in warm or hot climates....

s. The avocets have long legs and long up-curved bills. The stilts have extremely long legs and long, thin, straight bills. There are 9 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Black-necked Stilt
Black-necked Stilt
The Black-necked Stilt is a locally abundant shorebird of American wetlands and coastlines. It is found from the coastal areas of California through much of the interior western United States and along the Gulf of Mexico as far east as Florida, then south through Central America and the Caribbean...

, Himantopus mexicanus
American Avocet
American Avocet
The American Avocet is a large wader in the avocet and stilt family, Recurvirostridae.This avocet has long, thin, gray legs, giving it its colloquial name, "blue shanks". The plumage is black and white on the back with white on the underbelly. The neck and head are cinnamon colored in the summer...

, Recurvirostra americana (A)

Lapwings and Plovers

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Charadriidae

Charadriidae

The bird family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings, about 64 to 66 species in all.- Morphology :They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings, but most species of lapwing may have more rounded wings...

The family Charadriidae includes the plover

Plover

s, dotterels, and lapwing

Lapwing

Vanellinae are any of various crested plovers, family Charadriidae, noted for its slow, irregular wingbeat in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. Its length is 10-16 inches. They are a subfamily of medium-sized wading birds which also includes the plovers and dotterels. The Vanellinae are...

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, although there are some exceptions. There are 66 species world wide and 8 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Northern Lapwing
Northern Lapwing
The Northern Lapwing , also known as the Peewit, Green Plover or just Lapwing, is a bird in the plover family. It is common through temperate Eurasia....

, Vanellus vanellus (A)
American Golden-Plover, Pluvialis dominica (A)
Black-bellied Plover, Pluvialis squatarola
Semipalmated Plover
Semipalmated Plover
The Semipalmated Plover is a small plover.This species weighs and measures in length and across the wings. Adults have a grey-brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with one black neckband...

, Charadrius semipalmatus
Wilson's Plover
Wilson's Plover
The Wilson's Plover is a small plover.Wilson's Plover is a coastal wader which breeds on both coasts of the Americas from the equator northwards. Its range extends north to include much of the U.S. eastern seaboard, and the Pacific coast of Mexico on the west.It is a partial migrant. Birds leave...

, Charadrius wilsonia
Killdeer
Killdeer
The Killdeer is a medium-sized plover.Adults have a brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with two black bands. The rump is tawny orange. The face and cap are brown with a white forehead. They have an orange-red eyering...

, Charadrius vociferus
Piping Plover
Piping Plover
The Piping Plover is a small sand-colored, sparrow-sized shorebird that nests and feeds along coastal sand and gravel beaches in North America. The adult has yellow-orange legs, a black band across the forehead from eye to eye, and a black ring around the neck...

, Charadrius melodus (A)
Snowy Plover
Snowy Plover
The Snowy Plover is a small wader in the plover bird family. It breeds in Ecuador, Peru, Chile, the southern and western USA and the Caribbean...

, Charadrius nivosus

Sandpipers, Curlews, Stints, Godwits, Snipes, and Phalaropes

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Scolopacidae

Scolopacidae

The sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders or shorebirds. 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...

The Scolopacidae are a large diverse family of small to medium sized shorebirds including the sandpipers, curlew

Curlew

The curlews , genus Numenius, are a group of eight species of birds, characterised by long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. They are one of the most ancient lineages of scolopacid waders, together with the godwits which look similar but have straight bills...

s, godwit

Godwit

The godwits are a group of large, long-billed, long-legged and strongly migratory wading birds of the genus Limosa. They form large flocks on coasts and estuaries in winter....

s, shanks

Tringa

Tringa is a genus of waders, containing the shanks and tattlers. They are mainly freshwater birds, often with brightly coloured legs as reflected in the English names of six species, as well as the specific names of two of these and the Green Sandpiper. They are typically associated with northern...

, tattlers

Tattler (bird)

The tattlers are the two very similar bird species in the shorebird genus Tringa. They formerly had their own genus, Heteroscelus. The old genus name means "different leg" in Greek, referring to the leg scales that differentiate the tattlers from their close relatives, the shanks.The species are:*...

, woodcock

Woodcock

The woodcocks are a group of seven or eight very similar living species of wading birds in the genus Scolopax. Only two woodcocks are widespread, the others being localized island endemics. Most are found in the Northern Hemisphere but a few range into Wallacea...

s, snipe

Snipe

A snipe is any of about 25 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill and crypsis plumage. The Gallinago snipes have a nearly worldwide distribution, the Lymnocryptes Jack Snipe is restricted to Asia and Europe and the...

s, dowitcher

Dowitcher

The three dowitchers are medium-sized long-billed wading birds. They resemble godwits in body and bill shape, and the reddish underparts in summer, but are much shorter legged, more like snipe to which they are also somewhat closer related...

s and phalarope

Phalarope

A phalarope or wadepiper is any of three living species of slender-necked shorebirds in the genus Phalaropus of the bird family Scolopacidae. They are close relatives of the shanks and tattlers, the Actitis and Terek Sandpipers, and also of the turnstones and calidrids...

s. The majority of species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. Different lengths of legs and bills enable different species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food. There are 86 species world wide and 31 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Wilson's Snipe
Wilson's Snipe
Wilson's Snipe is a small, stocky shorebird. This species was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the Common Snipe, G. gallinago. Wilson's Snipe differs from the latter species in having a narrower white edge to the wings, and eight pairs of tail feathers instead of seven.Adults are...

, Gallinago delicata
Short-billed Dowitcher
Short-billed Dowitcher
The Short-billed Dowitcher 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, Middle America, and northern South America. It is strongly migratory; it completely vacates in breeding areas...

, Limnodromus griseus
Long-billed Dowitcher
Long-billed Dowitcher
The Long-billed Dowitcher, Limnodromus scolopaceus, is a medium-sized shorebird.Adults have yellowish legs and a long straight dark bill. The body is dark brown on top and reddish underneath with spotted throat and breast, bars on flanks. The tail has a black and white barred pattern...

, Limnodromus scolopaceus (A)
Hudsonian Godwit
Hudsonian Godwit
The Hudsonian Godwit, Limosa haemastica, is a large shorebird.-Identification:Adults have long dark legs and a long pink bill with a slight upward curve and dark at the tip. The upper parts are mottled brown and the underparts are chestnut. The tail is black and the rump is white...

, Limosa haemastica (A)
Marbled Godwit
Marbled Godwit
The Marbled Godwit, Limosa fedoa, is a large shorebird. On average, it is the largest of the 4 species of godwit. The total length is , including a large bill of , and wingspan is . Body mass can vary from ....

, Limosa fedoa (A)
Eskimo Curlew
Eskimo Curlew
The Eskimo or the "Northern Curlew" is a critically endangered shorebird, now considered by many to be extinct.-Taxonomy:The Eskimo Curlew is one of eight species of curlew, and is classed with them in the genus Numenius. It was formerly placed in the separate genus Mesoscolopax. Numenius is...

, Numenius borealis (A) (This species is presumed to be extinct)
Whimbrel
Whimbrel
The Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus, is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae. It is one of the mostwidespread of the curlews, breeding across much of subarctic North America, Europe and Asia as far south as Scotland....

, Numenius phaeopus (A)
Long-billed Curlew
Long-billed Curlew
The Long-billed Curlew, Numenius americanus, is a large North American shorebird of the family Scolopacidae. This species was also called "sicklebird" and the "candlestick bird". The species is native to central and western North America...

, Numenius americanus (A)
Upland Sandpiper
Upland Sandpiper
The Upland Sandpiper is a large shorebird, closely related to the curlews . Older names are the Upland Plover and Bartram's Sandpiper. It is the only member of the genus Bartramia. The genus name and the old common name Bartram's Sandpiper commemorate the American naturalist William Bartram...

, Bartramia longicauda (A)
Common Greenshank, Tringa nebularia (A)
Greater Yellowlegs
Greater Yellowlegs
The Greater Yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca, is a large North American shorebird, similar in appearance to the smaller Lesser Yellowlegs. Its closest relative, however, is the Greenshank, which together with the Spotted Redshank form a close-knit group...

, Tringa melanoleuca
Lesser Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
The Lesser Yellowlegs is a medium-sized shorebird similar in appearance to the larger Greater Yellowlegs. It is not closely related to this bird, however, but instead to the much larger and quite dissimilar Willet; merely the fine, clear and dense pattern of the neck shown in breeding plumage...

, Tringa flavipes
Solitary Sandpiper
Solitary Sandpiper
The Solitary Sandpiper is a small wader .-Description:This species measures long, with a wingspan up to and a body mass of . It is a dumpy wader with a dark green back, greyish head and breast and otherwise white underparts. It is obvious in flight, with wings dark above and below, and a dark...

, Tringa solitaria
Spotted Sandpiper
Spotted Sandpiper
The Spotted Sandpiper is a small shorebird, 18–20 cm long. Together with its sister species, the Common Sandpiper they make up the genus Actitis...

, Tringa macularia
Willet
Willet
The Willet, Tringa semipalmata , is a large shorebird in the sandpiper family. It is a good-sized and stout scolopacid, the largest of the shanks...

, Catoptrophorus semipalmatus
Ruddy Turnstone
Turnstone
Turnstones are the bird species in the genus Arenaria in the family Scolopacidae. They are closely related to calidrid sandpipers and might be considered members of the tribe Calidriini....

, Arenaria interpres
Red Knot
Red Knot
The Red 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 Great Knot...

, Calidris canutus (A)
Sanderling
Sanderling
The Sanderling is a small wader. It is a circumpolar Arctic breeder, and is a long-distance migrant, wintering south to South America, South Europe, Africa, and Australia...

, Calidris alba
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Semipalmated Sandpiper
The Semipalmated Sandpiper, Calidris pusilla, is a very small shorebird. It is sometimes separated with other "stints" in Erolia but although these apparently form a monophyletic group, the present species' old genus Ereunetes had been proposed before Erolia.Adults have black legs and a short stout...

, Calidris pusilla
Western Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
The Western Sandpiper, Calidris or Erolia mauri, is a small shorebird.Adults have dark legs and a short thin dark bill, thinner at the tip. The body is brown on top and white underneath. They are reddish-brown on the crown. This bird can be difficult to distinguish from other similar tiny...

, Calidris mauri
Least Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
The Least Sandpiper is the smallest shorebird.This species has greenish legs and a short thin dark bill. Breeding adults are brown with dark brown streaks on top and white underneath. They have a light line above the eye and a dark crown. In winter, Least Sandpipers are grey above...

, Calidris minutilla
White-rumped Sandpiper
White-rumped Sandpiper
The White-rumped Sandpiper is a small shorebird.Adults have black legs and a small thin dark bill. The body is dark brown on top and mainly white underneath, with brown streaks on the breast and a white rump. They have a white stripe over their eyes. This bird shows long wings in flight. In winter...

, Calidris fuscicollis (A)
Baird's Sandpiper
Baird's Sandpiper
The Baird's Sandpiper is a small shorebird. It is among those calidrids sometimes separated in Erolia.Adults have black legs and a short thin dark bill. They are dark brown on top and mainly white underneath with a black patch on the rump. The head and breast are light brown with dark streaks. In...

, Calidris bairdii (A)
Pectoral Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
The Pectoral Sandpiper, Calidris melanotos, is a small wader. It is sometimes separated with the "stint" sandpipers in Erolia. This may or may not represent a good monophyletic group, depending on the placement of the phylogenetically enigmatic Curlew Sandpiper , the type species of Erolia...

, Calidris melanotos
Curlew Sandpiper
Curlew Sandpiper
The Curlew Sandpiper 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 Australasia...

, Calidris ferruginea (A)
Dunlin
Dunlin
The Dunlin, Calidris alpina, is a small wader, sometimes separated with the other "stints" in Erolia. It is a circumpolar breeder in Arctic or subarctic regions. Birds that breed in northern Europe and Asia are long-distance migrants, wintering south to Africa, southeast Asia and the Middle East...

, Calidris alpina (A)
Stilt Sandpiper
Stilt Sandpiper
The Stilt Sandpiper, Calidris himantopus or Micropalama himantopus, is a small shorebird; it bears some resemblance to the smaller calidrid sandpipers or "stints". DNA sequence information is incapable of determining whether it should be placed in Calidris or in the monotypic genus Micropalama...

, Calidris himantopus
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
The Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Tryngites subruficollis, is a small shorebird. It is a calidrid sandpipers and currently considered to be the only member of the genus Tryngites. Indeed, it probably belongs in the genus Calidris itself, or more precisely with the small species thereof which should be...

, Tryngites subruficollis (A)
Ruff, Philomachus pugnax (A)
Wilson's Phalarope
Wilson's Phalarope
The 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 around the central Andes in South America. They are passage migrants through...

, Phalaropus tricolor (A)
Red-necked Phalarope
Red-necked Phalarope
The Red-necked Phalarope, Phalaropus lobatus, is a small wader. This phalarope breeds in the Arctic regions of North America and Eurasia. It is migratory, and, unusually for a wader, winters at sea on tropical oceans....

, Phalaropus lobatus (A)

Skuas and jaegers

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Stercorariidae

The family Stercorariidae are, in general, medium to large birds, typically with grey 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. There are 7 species world wide and 4 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

South Polar Skua
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)
Great Skua
Great Skua
The Great Skua, Stercorarius skua, is a large seabird in the skua family Stercorariidae. In Britain, it is sometimes known by the name Bonxie, a Shetland name of unknown origin.-Description:...

, Stercorarius skua (A)
Pomarine Jaeger, Stercorarius pomarinus (A)
Parasitic Jaeger, Stercorarius parasiticus (A)

Gulls

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Laridae

Laridae is a family of medium to large birds seabirds and includes gull

Gull

Gulls are birds in the family Laridae. They are most closely related to the terns and only distantly related to auks, skimmers, and more distantly to the waders...

s and kittiwake

Black-legged Kittiwake

The Black-legged Kittiwake is a seabird species in the gull family Laridae.This species was first described by Linnaeus in his Systema naturae in 1758 as Larus tridactylus....

s. They are typically gray or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They have stout, longish bills and webbed feet. There are 55 species world wide and 11 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Ring-billed Gull
Ring-billed Gull
The Ring-billed Gull is a medium-sized gull.Adults are length and with a wingspan. The head, neck and underparts are white; the relatively short bill is yellow with a dark ring; the back and wings are silver gray; and the legs are yellow. The eyes are yellow with red rims...

, Larus delawarensis
Great Black-backed Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
The Great Black-backed Gull is the largest gull in the world, which breeds on the European and North American coasts and islands of the North Atlantic...

, Larus marinus (A)
Herring Gull, Larus argentatus (A)
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
The Lesser Black-backed Gull is a large gull that breeds on the Atlantic coasts of Europe. It is migratory, wintering from the British Isles south to West Africa...

, Larus fuscus (A)
Black-headed Gull
Black-headed Gull
The Black-headed Gull is a small gull which breeds in much of Europe and Asia, and also in coastal eastern Canada. Most of the population is migratory, wintering further south, but some birds in the milder westernmost areas of Europe are resident...

, Larus ridibundus (A)
Bonaparte's Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
The Bonaparte's Gull is a small gull.The Bonaparte's Gull is a small species, larger only than the Little Gull and the Saunders's Gull among all gull species. Adults are long with a wingspan and a body mass of . They have a black hood and a short thin dark bill. The body is mainly white with...

, Larus philadelphia (A)
Laughing Gull
Laughing Gull
The Laughing Gull, Leucophaeus atricilla, is a medium-sized gull of North and South America. It breeds on the Atlantic coast of North America, the Caribbean, and northern South America. Northernmost populations migrate further south in winter, and this species occurs as a rare vagrant to western...

, Larus atricilla
Franklin's Gull
Franklin's Gull
The Franklin's Gull is a small gull.-Description:It breeds in central provinces of Canada and adjacent states of the northern United States...

, Larus pipixcan (A)
Little Gull
Little Gull
The Little Gull, Hydrocoloeus minutus or Larus minutus, is a small gull which breeds in northern Europe and Asia. It also has small colonies in parts of southern Canada. It is migratory, wintering on coasts in western Europe, the Mediterranean and the northeast USA. As is the case with many gulls,...

, Larus minutus (A)
Sabine's Gull
Sabine's Gull
The Sabine's Gull is a small gull. Its generic placement is disputed; some authors treat it as the sole species in the genus Xema as Xema sabini, while others retain it in the genus Larus as Larus sabini. It breeds in the arctic and has a circumpolar distribution through northernmost North America...

, Xema sabini (A)
Black-legged Kittiwake
Black-legged Kittiwake
The Black-legged Kittiwake is a seabird species in the gull family Laridae.This species was first described by Linnaeus in his Systema naturae in 1758 as Larus tridactylus....

, Rissa tridactyla (A)

Terns

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Sternidae

Tern

Terns are seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily of the gull family Laridae . They form a lineage with the gulls and skimmers which in turn is related to skuas and auks...

s are a group of generally general medium to large seabirds typically with grey or white plumage, often with black markings on the head. Most terns hunt fish by diving but some pick insects of the surface of fresh water. Terns are generally long-lived birds, with several species now known to live in excess of 25–30 years. There are 44 species world wide and 15 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Gull-billed Tern
Gull-billed Tern
The Gull-billed Tern formerly Sterna nilotica , is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae...

, Gelochelidon nilotica (A)
Caspian Tern
Caspian Tern
The Caspian Tern is a species of tern, with a subcosmopolitan but scattered distribution. Despite its extensive range, it is monotypic of its genus, and has no subspecies accepted either...

, Hydroprogne caspia (A)
Sandwich Tern, Sterna sandvicensis
Royal Tern
Royal Tern
The Royal Tern is a seabird in the tern family Sternidae. This bird has two distinctive subspecies. T. m. maximus breeds on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the southern USA and Mexico into the Caribbean. The slightly smaller T. m. albididorsalis breeds in coastal west Africa...

, Sterna maxima
Roseate Tern
Roseate Tern
The Roseate Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a number of geographical races, differing mainly in bill colour and minor plumage details....

, Sterna dougallii
Common Tern
Common Tern
The Common Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, breeding in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America. It is strongly migratory, wintering in coastal tropical and subtropical regions. It is sometimes...

, Sterna hirundo
Arctic Tern
Arctic Tern
The Arctic Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar breeding distribution covering the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and North America...

, Sterna paradisaea (A)
Forster's Tern
Forster's Tern
The Forster's Tern, Sterna forsteri, is a member of the tern family Sternidae. It breeds inland in North America and winters south to the Caribbean and northern South America....

, Sterna forsteri (A)
Least Tern, Sternula antillarum
Bridled Tern
Bridled Tern
The Bridled Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. It is a bird of the tropical oceans.-Description:...

, Onychoprion anaethetus
Sooty Tern
Sooty Tern
The Sooty Tern, Onychoprion fuscatus , is a seabird of the tern family . It is a bird of the tropical oceans, breeding on islands throughout the equatorial zone. Colloquially, it is known as the Wideawake Tern or just wideawake...

, Onychoprion fuscata
White-winged Tern
White-winged Tern
The White-winged Tern, or White-winged Black Tern, Chlidonias leucopterus, is a small tern generally found in or near bodies of fresh water across from Southeastern Europe east to Australia....

, Chlidonias leucopterus (A)
Black Tern
Black Tern
The Black Tern, Chlidonias niger, is a small tern generally found in or near inland water in Europe and North America. As its name suggests, it has predominantly dark plumage.- Description :...

, Chlidonias niger
Black Noddy
Black Noddy
The Black Noddy or White-capped Noddy is a seabird from the tern family. It resembles the closely related Brown or Common Noddy , but is smaller with darker plumage, a whiter cap, a longer, straighter beak and shorter tail...

, Anous minutus (A)
Brown Noddy
Brown Noddy
The Brown Noddy or Common Noddy is a seabird from the tern family. 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...

, Anous stolidus

Skimmers

Order: Charadriiformes

Charadriiformes

. Family: Rynchopidae

Skimmer

Skimmer

The Skimmers, Rynchopidae, are a small family of tern-like birds in the order Charadriiformes, which also includes the waders, gulls and auks. The family comprises three species found in South Asia, Africa, and the Americas....

s 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. There are 3 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Black Skimmer
Black Skimmer
The Black Skimmer, Rynchops niger, is a tern-like seabird, one of three very similar birds species in the skimmer family. It breeds in North and South America...

, Rynchops niger (A)

Pigeons and doves

Order: Columbiformes

Columbiformes

Columbiformes are an avian order that includes the very widespread and successful doves and pigeons, classified in the family Columbidae, and the extinct Dodo and the Rodrigues Solitaire, long classified as a second family Raphidae. 313 species, found worldwide, comprise the Columbiformes order....

. Family: Columbidae

Pigeons and dove

Dove

Pigeons and doves constitute the bird family Columbidae within the order Columbiformes, which include some 300 species of near passerines. In general terms "dove" and "pigeon" are used somewhat interchangeably...

s are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with a fleshy cere. There are 308 species world wide and 14 species which occur in Puerto Rico, four of which are introduced.

Rock Pigeon, Columba livia (I)
White-crowned Pigeon
White-crowned Pigeon
The White-crowned Pigeon is a species of bird in the family Columbidae . It inhabits the northern and central Caribbean islands and some places on the North and Central American mainland...

, Columba leucocephala
Scaly-naped Pigeon
Scaly-naped Pigeon
The Scaly-naped Pigeon , also known as the Red-necked Pigeon, is a bird belonging to the family Columbidae. The species occurs throughout the Caribbean.- Description :...

, Columba squamosa
Plain Pigeon
Plain Pigeon
The Plain Pigeon is a species of bird in the Columbidae family. It is found in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico. Its natural habitats are forest, woodland, coastal desert, mangrove and swampy areas...

, Columba inornata
Eurasian Collared-Dove, Streptopelia decaocto (I)
African Collared-Dove, Streptopelia roseogrisea (I)
Diamond Dove
Diamond Dove
The Diamond Dove is a bird resident in Australia.The dove predominantly exists in areas near water but which are lightly arid or semi-arid in nature, being Central, West and Northern Australia. They are one of Australia's smallest pigeons along with the Peaceful Dove...

, Geopelia cuneata (I)
Mourning Dove
Mourning Dove
The Mourning Dove is a member of the dove family . The bird is also called the Turtle Dove or the American Mourning Dove or Rain Dove, and formerly was known as the Carolina Pigeon or Carolina Turtledove. It is one of the most abundant and widespread of all North American birds...

, Zenaida macroura
Zenaida Dove
Zenaida Dove
The Zenaida Dove is a member of the bird family Columbidae, which includes doves and pigeons. It is the national bird of Anguilla, where it is commonly referred to as a Turtle Dove. It lays two white eggs on a flimsy platform built on a tree or shrub. It also nests in rock crevices and on grassy...

, Zenaida aurita
White-winged Dove
White-winged Dove
The White-winged Dove is a dove whose native range extends from the south-western USA through Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. In recent years with increasing urbanization and backyard feeding, it has expanded throughout Texas and into Louisiana...

, Zenaida asiatica
Common Ground-Dove
Common Ground Dove
The Common Ground Dove is a small bird that inhabits the southern United States, parts of Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America. The Common Ground Dove is considered to be the smallest dove that inhabits the United States...

, Columbina passerina
Key West Quail-Dove
Key West Quail-Dove
The Key West Quail-Dove is a member of the bird family Columbidae, which includes doves and pigeons.The Key West Quail-Dove breeds in the Bahamas and, except for Jamaica, throughout the Greater Antilles. It formerly bred in the Florida Keys and southernmost mainland Florida. It was discovered on...

, Geotrygon chrysia
Bridled Quail-Dove
Bridled Quail-dove
The Bridled Quail-Dove is a species of bird in the Columbidae family.It is found in Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Puerto Rico, Saint Lucia, the British Virgin Islands, and the U.S...

, Geotrygon mystacea (A)
Ruddy Quail-Dove
Ruddy Quail-Dove
The Ruddy Quail-Dove is a member of the bird family Columbidae, which includes doves and pigeons.It breeds throughout the West Indies, Central America, and tropical South America. It has appeared as a vagrant in Florida and southern Texas. It lays two buff colored eggs on a flimsy platform...

, Geotrygon montana

Cockatoos

Order: Psittaciformes. Family: Cacatuidae
Cockatoo

Cockatoo

A cockatoo is any of the 21 species belonging to the bird family Cacatuidae. Along with the Psittacidae and the Strigopidae , they make up the parrot order Psittaciformes . Placement of the cockatoos as a separate family is fairly undisputed, although many aspects of the other living lineages of...

s share many features with true parrots (Psittacidae family) including the characteristic curved beak shape and a zygodactyl foot, with two forward toes and two backwards toes. They differ, however in a number of characteristics, including the movable headcrest, and their lack of the Dyck texture feather composition, which gives many parrots their iridescent colours. Cockatoos are also, on average, larger than the true parrots. There are 21 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico, all of which are introduced.

Tanimbar Corella (old name: Goffin's Cockatoo), Cacatua goffiniana (I)
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
Sulphur-crested Cockatoo
The Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Cacatua galerita, is a relatively large white cockatoo found in wooded habitats in Australia and New Guinea. They can be locally very numerous, leading to them sometimes being considered pests...

, Cacatua galerita (I)
White Cockatoo, Cacatua alba (I)

Budgerigars, Parakeets and Parrots

Order: Psittaciformes

Parrot

Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...

. Family: Psittacidae

True parrots

The true parrots are about 330 species of bird belonging to the Psittacidae family, one of the two "traditional" families in the biological order Psittaciformes . The other family is the Cacatuidae which are also parrots, but not classified as true parrots...

Parrot

s are small to large birds with a characteristic curved beak shape. Their upper mandibles have slight mobility in the joint with the skull and the have a generally erect stance. All parrots are zygodactyl, having the four toes on each foot placed two at the front and two back. There are 335 species world wide and 14 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Budgerigar
Budgerigar
The Budgerigar , also known as Common Pet Parakeet or Shell Parakeet informally nicknamed the budgie, is a small, long-tailed, seed-eating parrot, and the only species in the Australian genus Melopsittacus...

, Melopsittacus undulatus (I)
Red-masked Parakeet
Red-masked Parakeet
The Red-masked Parakeet, Aratinga erythrogenys, is a medium-sized parrot from Ecuador and Peru. It is popular as a pet and considered a good talker. It is known in aviculture as the Cherry-headed Conure.-Description:...

, Aratinga erythrogenys (I)
Hispaniolan Parakeet
Hispaniolan Parakeet
The Hispaniolan Parakeet, Conure Maîtresse, Aratinga De La Española, or Perico is a species of parrot in the Psittacidae family.It is endemic to the island of Hispaniola...

, Aratinga chloroptera (A)
Brown-throated Parakeet
Brown-throated Parakeet
The Brown-throated Parakeet , commonly known as the St. Thomas Conure or Brown-throated Conure in aviculture, is a species of parrot in the Psittacidae family...

, Aratinga pertinax (I)
Orange-fronted Parakeet
Orange-fronted Parakeet
The Orange-fronted Parakeet or Orange-fronted Conure , also known as the Half-moon Conure, is a medium-sized parrot which is a resident from western Mexico to Costa Rica.-Taxonomy:There are three subspecies:...

, Aratinga canicularis (I)
Nanday Parakeet, Nandayus nenday (I)
Monk Parakeet
Monk Parakeet
The Monk Parakeet, also known as the Quaker Parrot, is a species of parrot, in most treatments the only member of the genus Myiopsitta. It originates from the temperate to subtropical areas of Argentina and the surrounding countries in South America...

, Myiopsitta monachus (I)
Canary-winged Parakeet
Canary-winged Parakeet
The White-winged Parakeet , also known as the Canary-winged Parakeet, is a small parrot native to the Amazon River basin from southeast Colombia to the River’s mouth in Brazil...

Brotogeris versicolorus (I)
Hispaniolan Amazon
Hispaniolan Amazon
The Hispaniolan Amazon or Hispaniolan Parrot is a species of parrot in the Psittacidae family. It is found on Hispaniola , and has been introduced to Puerto Rico, and the U.S...

, Amazona ventralis (I)
Puerto Rican Amazon, Amazona vittata (E)
White-fronted Amazon, Amazona albifrons (I)
Red-crowned Amazon, Amazona viridigenalis (I)
Yellow-headed Amazon, Amazona oratrix (I)
Orange-winged Amazon, Amazona amazonica (I)

Cuckoos

Order: Cuculiformes

Cuculiformes

The near passerine bird order Cuculiformes traditionally included three families as below:* Musophagidae - turacos and allies* Cuculidae - cuckoos, coucals, roadrunners and anis* Opisthocomidae - Hoatzin...

. Family: Cuculidae

The family Cuculidae includes cuckoo

Cuckoo

The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...

s, roadrunners and anis

Ani (bird)

The anis are the three species of near-passerine birds in the genus Crotophaga of the cuckoo family. They are essentially tropical New world birds, although the range of two species just reaches the United States...

. These birds are of variable size with slender bodies, long tails and strong legs. Unlike the cuckoo species of the Old World, North American cuckoos are not brood parasites. There are 138 species world wide and 5 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Black-billed Cuckoo
Black-billed Cuckoo
The Black-billed Cuckoo, Coccyzus erythropthalmus, is a cuckoo.Adults have a long brown tail and a black bill. The head and upper parts are brown and the underparts are white. There is a red ring around the eye. Juveniles are drabber, and the eye ring is greenish.Their breeding habitat is edges of...

, Coccyzus erythropthalmus (A)
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
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...

, Coccyzus americanus
Mangrove Cuckoo
Mangrove Cuckoo
The Mangrove Cuckoo, Coccyzus minor, is a species of cuckoo that is native to the Neotropics.Adults have a long tail, brown above and black-and-white below, and a black curved bill with yellow on the lower mandible. The head and upper parts are brown. There is a yellow ring around the eye...

, Coccyzus minor
Puerto Rican Lizard-Cuckoo
Puerto Rican Lizard-Cuckoo
The Puerto Rican Lizard Cuckoo is a cuckoo endemic to the island of Puerto Rico, and is one of 4 species of lizard-cuckoos which occur only on Caribbean islands...

, Saurothera vieilloti (E)
Smooth-billed Ani
Smooth-billed Ani
The Smooth-billed Ani is a large near passerine bird in the cuckoo family. It is a resident breeding species from southern Florida, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, parts of Central America, south to western Ecuador, Brazil, and northern Argentina.This ani is found in open and semi-open country and...

, Crotophaga ani

Barn owls

Order: Strigiformes. Family: Tytonidae

Tytonidae

Barn-owls are one of the two families of owls, the other being the true owls, Strigidae. They are medium to large sized owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long, strong legs with powerful talons...

Barn owl

Barn Owl

The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as Common Barn Owl, to distinguish it from other species in the barn-owl family Tytonidae. These form one of two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical...

s are medium to large sized owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long strong legs with powerful talons. There are 16 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Barn Owl
Barn Owl
The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as Common Barn Owl, to distinguish it from other species in the barn-owl family Tytonidae. These form one of two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical...

, Tyto alba (A)

Typical owls

Order: Strigiformes. Family: Strigidae

Typical owl

True owl or Typical owl are one of the two generally accepted families of Owls, the other being the barn owls . The Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy unites the Caprimulgiformes with the owl order; here, the typical owls are a subfamily Strigidae...

s 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. There are 195 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rican Screech-Owl, Megascops nudipes (E)
Short-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl
The Short-eared Owl is a species of typical owl . In Scotland this species of owl is often referred to as a cataface, grass owl or short-horned hootlet. Owls belonging to genus Asio are known as the eared owls, as they have tufts of feathers resembling mammalian ears. These "ear" tufts may or may...

, Asio flammeus

Potoos

Order: Caprimulgiformes

Caprimulgiformes

The Caprimulgiformes is an order of birds that includes a number of birds with global distribution . They are generally insectivorous and nocturnal...

. Family: Nyctibiidae

Potoo

Potoo

The potoos are a family, Nyctibiidae of near passerine birds related to the nightjars and frogmouths. They are sometimes called Poor-me-ones, after their haunting calls. There are seven species in one genus, Nyctibius, in tropical Central and South America.These are nocturnal insectivores which...

s are a group of large near passerine

Near passerine

Near passerine or higher land-bird assemblage are terms often given to arboreal birds or those most often believed to be related to the true passerines due to ecological similarities; the group corresponds to some extent with the Anomalogonatae of Garrod All near passerines are land birds...

birds related to the nightjars and frogmouths. These are nocturnal

Nocturnal animal

Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by activity during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal"....

insectivores which lack the bristles around the mouth found in the true nightjars. There are 5 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Northern Potoo
Northern Potoo
The Northern Potoo is a nocturnal bird belonging to the potoo family, Nyctibiidae. It is found from Mexico south to Costa Rica and on the islands of Jamaica and Hispaniola...

, Nyctibius jamaicensis (A)

Nightjars

Order: Caprimulgiformes

Caprimulgiformes

The Caprimulgiformes is an order of birds that includes a number of birds with global distribution . They are generally insectivorous and nocturnal...

. Family: Caprimulgidae

Nightjar

Nightjar

Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds with long wings, short legs and very short bills. They are sometimes referred to as goatsuckers from the mistaken belief that they suck milk from goats . Some New World species are named as nighthawks...

s are medium-sized nocturnal birds with long wings, short legs and very short bills that usually nest on the ground. Most have small feet, of little use for walking, and long pointed wings. Their soft plumage is cryptically coloured to resemble bark or leaves. There are 86 species world wide and 5 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Common Nighthawk
Common Nighthawk
The Common Nighthawk is a medium-sized crepuscular or nocturnal bird, whose presence and identity are best revealed by its vocalization. Typically dark , displaying cryptic colouration and intricate patterns, this bird becomes invisible by day. Once aerial, with its buoyant but erratic flight,...

, Chordeiles minor (A)
Antillean Nighthawk
Antillean Nighthawk
The Antillean Nighthawk, Chordeiles gundlachii, is a nightjar.The adults are dark with brown, grey and white patterning on the upperparts and breast; the long wings are black and show a white bar in flight. The tail is dark with white barring; the underparts are white with black bars. The adult...

, Chordeiles gundlachii
Chuck-will's-widow
Chuck-will's-widow
The Chuck-will's-widow, Caprimulgus carolinensis is a nocturnal bird of the nightjar family Caprimulgidae. It is found in the southeastern United States near swamps, rocky uplands, and pine woods...

, Caprimulgus carolinensis (A)
Puerto Rican Nightjar
Puerto Rican Nightjar
The Puerto Rican Nightjar, Caprimulgus noctitherus, is a very rare bird found in the coastal dry scrub forests in localized areas of southwestern Puerto Rico....

, Caprimulgus noctitherus (E)
White-tailed Nightjar
White-tailed Nightjar
The White-tailed Nightjar is a species of nightjar in the Caprimulgidae family.It is found in Aruba, Barbados, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Martinique, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela.Its natural habitats are subtropical or...

, Caprimulgus cayennensis (A)

Swifts

Order: Apodiformes

Apodiformes

Traditionally, the bird order Apodiformes contained three living families: the swifts , the tree swifts , and the hummingbirds . In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this order is raised to a superorder Apodimorphae in which hummingbirds are separated as a new order, Trochiliformes...

. Family: Apodidae

Swift

Swift

The swifts are a family, Apodidae, of highly aerial birds. They are superficially similar to swallows, but are actually not closely related to passerine species at all; swifts are in the separate order Apodiformes, which they share with hummingbirds...

s are small aerial birds, spending 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 that resemble a crescent or a boomerang. There are 98 species world wide and 4 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Black Swift
Black Swift
The American Black Swift or more simply Black Swift is found from northern British Columbia in Canada through the United States and Mexico to Costa Rica. It is also found on islands in the West Indies....

, Cypseloides niger
White-collared Swift
White-collared Swift
The White-collared Swift, Streptoprocne zonaris, is a resident breeding bird from central Mexico, the Greater Antilles and Trinidad south to Peru, northern Argentina and southeastern Brazil....

, Streptoprocne zonaris (A)
Antillean Palm-Swift, Tachornis phoenicobia (A)
Alpine Swift
Alpine Swift
The Alpine Swift syn. is a species of Swift. The bird is superficially similar to a large Barn Swallow or House Martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since swifts are in the order Apodiformes...

, Tachymarptis melba (A)

Hummingbirds

Order: Trochiliformes. Family: Trochilidae

Hummingbird

Hummingbirds are birds that comprise the family Trochilidae. They are among the smallest of birds, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm range. Indeed, the smallest extant bird species is a hummingbird, the 5-cm Bee Hummingbird. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings...

s 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. There are 337 species world wide and 9 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Green-breasted Mango
Green-breasted Mango
The Green-breasted Mango is a hummingbird from tropical America. The scientific name of this bird commemorates the French naturalist Florent Prévost.- Description :...

, Anthracothorax prevostii (A)
Antillean Mango
Antillean Mango
The Antillean Mango is a species of hummingbird in the Trochilidae family.It is found in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Puerto Rico, the British Virgin Islands, and Virgin Islands, U.S.....

, Anthracothorax dominicus
Green Mango
Green Mango
The Green Mango is a large species of hummingbird endemic to the main island of Puerto Rico and its archipelago. It is usually found in the mountainous regions of the island, often in coffee and other kind of plantations. They usually feed on the nectar found in Heliconia flowers...

, Anthracothorax viridis (E)
Purple-throated Carib
Purple-throated Carib
The Purple-throated Carib is a species of hummingbird in the Trochilidae family.It breeds on Antigua, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and Sint Eustatius...

, Eulampis jugularis (A)
Green-throated Carib
Green-throated Carib
The Green-throated Carib is a species of hummingbird found throughout the Caribbean region.It is found in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, north-east Puerto Rico, Saba, Saint-Barthélemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint...

, Eulampis holosericeus
Antillean Crested Hummingbird
Antillean Crested Hummingbird
The Antillean Crested Hummingbird is a species of hummingbird in the Trochilidae family.It is found in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, north-east Puerto Rico, Saba, Saint-Barthélemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin,...

, Orthorhyncus cristatus
Puerto Rican Emerald
Puerto Rican Emerald
The Puerto Rican Emerald , or Zumbadorcito de Puerto Rico in Spanish, is an endemic hummingbird found only in the archipelago of Puerto Rico....

, Chlorostilbon maugaeus (E)
Vervain Hummingbird
Vervain Hummingbird
The Vervain Hummingbird, Mellisuga minima, is a species of hummingbird in the Trochilidae family.It is found in the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Jamaica, and is a vagrant to Puerto Rico....

, Mellisuga minima (A)
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
The Ruby-throated Hummingbird , is a small hummingbird. It is the only species of hummingbird that regularly nests east of the Mississippi River in North America.- Description :...

, Archilochus colubris (A)

Water Kingfisher

Order: Coraciiformes

Coraciiformes

The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Cerylidae

Water Kingfisher

Water Kingfisher

The water kingfishers or Cerylidae are one of the three families of kingfishers, and are also known as the cerylid kingfishers. All six American species are in this family....

s are medium sized birds with large heads, long pointed bills, short legs, and stubby tails. There are 94 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Belted Kingfisher
Belted Kingfisher
The Belted Kingfisher is a large, conspicuous water kingfisher, the only member of that group commonly found in the northern United States and Canada. It is depicted on the 1986 series Canadian $5 note. All kingfishers were formerly placed in one family, Alcedinidae, but recent research suggests...

, Ceryle alcyon
Ringed Kingfisher
Ringed Kingfisher
The Ringed Kingfisher is a large, conspicuous and noisy kingfisher, commonly found along the lower Rio Grande River valley in southeasternmost Texas in the United States through Central America to Tierra del Fuego in South America....

, Ceryle torquatus (A)

Todies

Order: Coraciiformes

Coraciiformes

The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Todidae
Todies

Tody

The todies are a family, Todidae, of Caribbean birds in the order Coraciiformes, which also includes the kingfishers, bee-eaters and rollers. The family has one genus, Todus...

are a group of small near passerine forest species of endemic to the Caribbean. These birds have colourful plumage and resembles kingfishers, but with flattened bills with serrated edges. They eat small prey such as insects and lizards. There are 5 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rican Tody
Puerto Rican Tody
The Puerto Rican Tody is a tody endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico. Despite is scientific name, Todus mexicanus, it is endemic to Puerto Rico...

, Todus mexicanus (E)

Woodpeckers and Sapsuckers

Order: Piciformes

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...

. Family: Picidae

Picidae

The woodpeckers, piculets and wrynecks are a family, Picidae, of near-passerine birds. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia and New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions...

Woodpecker

Woodpeckers are near passerine birds of the order Piciformes. They are one subfamily in the family Picidae, which also includes the piculets and wrynecks. They are found worldwide and include about 180 species....

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. There are 218 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rican Woodpecker
Puerto Rican Woodpecker
The Puerto Rican Woodpecker is the only woodpecker endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico and is one of the five species of the Melanerpes genus that occur in the Antilles. Furthermore, it is the only resident species of the Picidae family in Puerto Rico...

, Melanerpes portoricensis (E)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is a medium-sized woodpecker found in North America, Central America and the Caribbean.-Taxonomy:...

, Sphyrapicus varius (A)
Hairy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
The Hairy Woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker, averaging approximately 250 mm in length with a 380 mm wingspan...

, Picoides villosus (A)

Tyrant flycatchers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Tyrannidae

Tyrant flycatcher

The tyrant flycatchers are a family of passerine birds which occur throughout North and South America. They are considered the largest family of birds on Earth, with more than 400 species. They are the most diverse avian family in every country in the Americas, except for the United States and...

s are Passerine birds which occur throughout North and South America. They superficially resemble the Old World flycatchers, but are more robust with 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. There are 429 species world wide, all found only in the Americas and 9 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Caribbean Elaenia
Caribbean Elaenia
The Caribbean Elaenia is a species of bird in the Tyrannidae family.It is found in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands, Colombia , Dominica, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mexico , Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Puerto Rico, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint...

, Elaenia martinica
Hispaniolan Pewee
Hispaniolan Pewee
The Hispaniolan Pewee is a species of bird in the Tyrannidae family.It is found on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 25 July 2007....

, Contopus hispaniolensis (A)
Lesser Antillean Pewee
Lesser Antillean Pewee
The Lesser Antillean Pewee is a species of bird in the Tyrannidae family.It is found in Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Puerto Rico, and Saint Lucia with records from Saint Kitts. Birds on Puerto Rico are sometimes considered to be a separate species The Lesser Antillean Pewee (Contopus...

, Contopus latirostris
Great Crested Flycatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
The Great Crested Flycatcher 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-western portions of the continent...

, Myiarchus crinitus (A)
Puerto Rican Flycatcher
Puerto Rican Flycatcher
The Puerto Rican Flycatcher is a tyrant flycatcher endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico and one of the 22 species belonging to the Myiarchus genus of the Tyrannidae family.-See also:*Fauna of Puerto Rico...

, Myiarchus antillarum (E)
Eastern Kingbird
Eastern Kingbird
The Eastern Kingbird, Tyrannus tyrannus, is a large Tyrant flycatcher.Adults are grey-black on the upperparts with light underparts; they have a long black tail with a white end and long pointed wings. They have a red patch on their crown, seldom seen...

, Tyrannus tyrannus (A)
Gray Kingbird
Gray Kingbird
The Gray Kingbird, also known as Pitirre, Tyrannus dominicensis, is a passerine bird. It breeds from the extreme southeast of the USA through Central America, from Cuba to Puerto Rico as well as eastward towards all across the Lesser West Indies, south to Venezuela, Trinidad, Tobago the Guiana and...

, Tyrannus dominicensis
Loggerhead Kingbird
Loggerhead Kingbird
The Loggerhead Kingbird is a species of bird in the Tyrannidae family.It is found in the Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and, very rarely, in the United States....

, Tyrannus caudifasciatus
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
The Scissor-tailed Flycatcher is a long-tailed insectivorous bird of the genus, whose members are collectively referred to as kingbirds. The kingbirds are a group of large insectivorous birds in the tyrant flycatcher family...

, Tyrannus forficatus (A)

Swallows and martins

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Hirundinidae

The Hirundinidae family is a group of passerines characterized by their adaptation to aerial feeding. Their adaptations include a slender streamlined body, long pointed wings and short bills with wide gape. The feet are designed for perching rather than walking, and the front toes are partially joined at the base. There are 75 species world wide and 8 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Purple Martin
Purple Martin
The Purple Martin is the largest North American swallow. These aerial acrobats have speed and agility in flight, and when approaching their housing, will dive from the sky at great speeds with their wings tucked.-Description and taxonomy:...

, Progne subis (A)
Caribbean Martin
Caribbean Martin
The Caribbean Martin or White-bellied Martin, Progne dominicensis, is a large swallow.It breeds on Caribbean islands from Jamaica east to Tobago. It is closely related to 2 species to which it formerly was considered conspecific-P. sinaloae and P. cryptoleuca...

, Progne dominicensis
Tree Swallow
Tree Swallow
The Tree Swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, is a migratory passerine bird that breeds in North America and winters in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. It is a very rare vagrant to western Europe....

, Tachycineta bicolor (A)
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
The Northern Rough-winged Swallow is a small swallow.Adults are 13–15 cm in length, brown on top with light underparts and a forked tail. They are similar in appearance to the Bank Swallow but have a dusky throat and breast...

, Stelgidopteryx serripennis (A)
Bank Swallow, Riparia riparia
Cliff Swallow
Cliff Swallow
The Cliff Swallow is a member of the passerine bird family Hirundinidae — the swallows and martins.It breeds in North America, and is migratory, wintering in western South America from Venezuela southwards to northeast Argentina...

, Petrochelidon pyrrhonota (A)
Cave Swallow
Cave Swallow
The Cave Swallow, Petrochelidon fulva, is a medium-sized, squarish tailed swallow belonging to the same genus as the more familiar and widespread Cliff Swallow of North America...

, Petrochelidon fulva
Barn Swallow
Barn Swallow
The Barn Swallow is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. It is a distinctive passerine bird with blue upperparts, a long, deeply forked tail and curved, pointed wings. It is found in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas...

, Hirundo rustica

Waxwings

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Bombycillidae

The waxwing

Waxwing

The waxwings form the genus Bombycilla of passerine birds. According to most authorities, this is the only genus placed in the family Bombycillidae.-Description:Waxwings are characterised by soft silky plumage...

s are a group of passerine birds characterized by 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, and give the group its name. These are arboreal birds of northern forests. They live on insects in summer and berries in winter. There are 3 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Cedar Waxwing
Cedar Waxwing
The Cedar Waxwing is a member of the family Bombycillidae or waxwing family of passerine birds. It breeds in open wooded areas in North America, principally southern Canada and the northern United States.-Description:...

, Bombycilla cedrorum (A)

Mockingbirds and Thrashers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Mimidae

The Mimids are a family of passerine birds that includes thrasher

Thrasher

Thrashers are a New World group of passerine birds related to mockingbirds and New World catbirds. Like these, they are in the Mimidae family. There are 15 species in one large and 4 monotypic genera.These do not form a clade but are a phenetic assemblage...

s, mockingbird

Mockingbird

Mockingbirds are a group of New World passerine birds from the Mimidae family. 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. There are about 17 species in three genera...

s, trembler

Trembler

Tremblers are a New World group of passerine birds related to mockingbirds and New World catbirds. Like these, they are in the Mimidae family. There are 2-4 species in one genus, Cinclocerthia:...

s, 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. There are 35 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Gray Catbird
Gray Catbird
The Gray Catbird , also spelled Grey Catbird, is a medium-sized northern American perching bird of the mimid family. It is the only member of the "catbird" genus Dumetella...

, Dumetella carolinensis (A)
Northern Mockingbird
Northern Mockingbird
The Northern Mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos, is the only mockingbird commonly found in North America. This species was first described by Linnaeus in his Systema naturae in 1758 as Turdus polyglottos....

, Mimus polyglottos
Pearly-eyed Thrasher
Pearly-eyed Thrasher
The Pearly-eyed Thrasher is a bird found in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, the Bahamas and Antilles. Its genus, Margarops, is considered monotypic today; formerly the Scaly-breasted Thrasher was placed here too...

, Margarops fuscatus

Thrushes

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Turdidae

The Thrushes

Thrush (bird)

The thrushes, family Turdidae, are a group of passerine birds that occur worldwide.-Characteristics:Thrushes are plump, soft-plumaged, small to medium-sized birds, inhabiting wooded areas, and often feed on the ground or eat small fruit. The smallest thrush may be the Forest Rock-thrush, at and...

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. There are 335 species world wide and 4 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Gray-cheeked Thrush
Gray-cheeked Thrush
The Grey-cheeked Thrush, Catharus minimus, is a medium-sized thrush. This species is 15–17 cm in length, and has the white-dark-white underwing pattern characteristic of Catharus thrushes. It is a member of a close-knit group of migrant species together with the Veery and Bicknell's Thrush ;...

, Catharus minimus (A)
Bicknell's Thrush
Bicknell's Thrush
The Bicknell's Thrush, Catharus bicknelli, is a medium-sized thrush, at 17.5 cm and 28 g . It was named after Eugene Bicknell, an American amateur ornithologist, who discovered the species on Slide Mountain in the Catskills in the late 19th century.Adults are olive-brown on the upperparts,...

, Catharus bicknelli (A)
Wood Thrush
Wood Thrush
The Wood Thrush, Hylocichla mustelina, is a North American passerine bird. It is closely related to other thrushes such as the American Robin and is widely distributed across North America, wintering in Central America and southern Mexico...

, Hylocichla mustelina (A)
Red-legged Thrush
Red-legged Thrush
The Red-legged Thrush is a species of bird in the Turdidae family.It is found in the Bahamas, Cayman Brac, Cuba, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Puerto Rico...

, Turdus plumbeus

Old World flycatchers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Muscicapidae

Old World flycatcher

Old World flycatcher

The Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae is a large family of small passerine birds mostly restricted to the Old World. These are mainly small arboreal insectivores, many of which, as the name implies, take their prey on the wing.-Characteristics:...

s are a large group of small passerine birds native to the Old World. They are mainly small arboreal insectivore

Insectivore

An insectivore is a type of carnivore with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures. An alternate term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of eating insects....

s. The appearance of these birds is very varied, but they mostly have weak songs and harsh calls. There 274 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico.

Northern Wheatear
Northern Wheatear
The Northern Wheatear or Wheatear 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...

, Oenanthe oenanthe (A)

Crows

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Corvidae

Corvidae

Corvidae is a cosmopolitan family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs and nutcrackers. The common English names used are corvids or the crow family , and there are over 120 species...

The Corvidae family includes crow

Crow

Crows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...

s, raven

Raven

Raven is the common name given to several larger-bodied members of the genus Corvus—but in Europe and North America the Common Raven is normally implied...

s, jay

Jay

The jays are several species of medium-sized, usually colorful and noisy, passerine birds in the crow family Corvidae. The names jay and magpie are somewhat interchangeable, and the evolutionary relationships are rather complex...

s, chough

Chough

The Red-billed Chough or Chough , Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax, is a bird in the crow family; it is one of only two species in the genus Pyrrhocorax...

s, magpie

Magpie

Magpies are passerine birds of the crow family, Corvidae.In Europe, "magpie" is often used by English speakers as a synonym for the European Magpie, as there are no other magpies in Europe outside Iberia...

s, treepie

Treepie

The treepies comprise four closely related genera of long-tailed passerine birds in the family Corvidae...

s, nutcracker

Nutcracker (bird)

The nutcrackers are a genus of two species of passerine bird, in the family Corvidae, related to the jays and crows. One, the Spotted Nutcracker , occurs in Europe and Asia, the other, Clark's Nutcracker , in western North America.The most important food resources for both these species are the...

s, and ground jay

Ground jay

The ground jays or ground choughs belong to a distinct group of the passerine order of birds in the genus Podoces of the crow family Corvidae...

s. Corvids are above average in size for the bird order Passeriformes. Some of the larger species show levels of learned behavior of a high degree. There are 120 species world wide and 1 Puerto Rican speicies.

White-necked Crow
White-necked Crow
The White-necked Crow is the largest of the four Caribbean crow species. Two other species, the Cuban Crow and the Jamaican Crow , appear to be very closely related to it sharing several key morphological features...

, Corvus leucognaphalus (Ex)

Starlings

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Sturnidae

Starling

Starling

Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The name "Sturnidae" comes from the Latin word for starling, sturnus. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, are called mynas, and many African species are known as glossy starlings because of their iridescent...

s are small to medium-sized passerine birds. They are medium-sized passerines 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. There are 125 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico, all of which are introduced.

Common Hill Myna
Hill Myna
The Common Hill Myna , sometimes spelled "mynah" and formerly simply known as "Hill Myna", is the myna bird most commonly seen in aviculture, where it is often simply referred to by the latter two names. It is a member of the starling family , resident in hill regions of South Asia and Southeast Asia...

, Gracula religiosa (I)
Common Myna
Common Myna
The Common Myna or Indian Myna also sometimes spelled Mynah, is a member of family Sturnidae native to Asia. An omnivorous open woodland bird with a strong territorial instinct, the Myna has adapted extremely well to urban environments...

, Acridotheres tristis (I)
European Starling, Sturnus vulgaris (I)

Weavers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Ploceidae

Weavers 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. There are 114 species world wide and 2 species which occur in Puerto Rico, both of which are introduced.

Yellow-crowned Bishop
Yellow-crowned Bishop
The Yellow-crowned Bishop is a species of passerine bird in the family Ploceidae native to Africa south of the Sahara. It is highly sexually dimorphic in its breeding season, during which the male adopts a distinctive yellow and black plumage, contrasting with the female's predominantly brown...

, Euplectes afer (I)
Orange Bishop, Euplectes franciscanus (I)

Estrildid finchs

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Estrildidae

The estrildid finch

Estrildid finch

The estrildid finches are small passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They can be classified as the family Estrildidae , or as a sub-group within the family Passeridae, which also includes the true sparrows....

es are small passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia

Australasia

Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...

. They are gregarious and often colonial seed-eaters with short thick but pointed bills. They are all similar in structure and habits, but have a wide variation in plumage colours and pattern. There are 139 species world wide and 8 species which occur in Puerto Rico, all of which are introduced.

Orange-cheeked Waxbill
Orange-Cheeked Waxbill
The Orange-cheeked Waxbill Estrilda melpoda is a common species of estrildid finch native to western and central Africa, with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 3,600,000 km².-Lifestyle:...

, Estrilda melpoda (I)
Black-rumped Waxbill
Black-rumped Waxbill
The Black-rumped Waxbill is a common species of estrildid finch found in Southern Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 2,000,000 km²....

, Estrilda troglodytes (I)
Red Avadavat, Amandava amandava (I)
Bronze Mannikin
Bronze Mannikin
The Bronze Mannikin or Bronze Munia Lonchura cucullata is a small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is an abundant resident breeding bird in much of Africa south of the Sahara Desert of dry savanna habitats...

, Lonchura cucullata (I)
White-throated Munia
Indian Silverbill
The Indian Silverbill or White-throated Munia is a small passerine bird found in South Asia that was formerly considered to include the closely related African Silverbill . This estrildid finch is a common resident breeding bird in the dry regions of the Middle East and South Asia...

, Lonchura malabarica (I)
Nutmeg Mannikin, Lonchura punctulata (I)
Black-headed Munia
Black-headed Munia
The Black-headed Munia, Lonchura atricapilla also known as Chestnut Munia, is a small passerine bird...

, Lonchura malacca (I)
Java Sparrow
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 cagebird, and has been introduced in a large number of other...

, Padda oryzivora (I)

Whydahs

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Viduidae

The Viduidae is a family of small passerine birds native to Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

that includes indigobird

Indigobird

The indigobirds and whydahs, are a family, Viduidae, of small passerine birds native to Africa.These are finch-like species which usually have black or indigo predominating in their plumage...

s and whydahs. All species are brood parasite

Brood parasite

Brood parasites are organisms that use the strategy of brood parasitism, a kind of kleptoparasitism found among birds, fish or insects, involving the manipulation and use of host individuals either of the same or different species to raise the young of the brood-parasite...

s, which lay their eggs in the nests of estrildid finch species. Species usually have black or indigo predominating in their plumage. There 19 species world wide of which 1 species is introduced to Puerto Rico.

Pin-tailed Whydah
Pin-tailed Whydah
The Pin-tailed Whydah, Vidua macroura, is a small songbird. It is a resident breeding bird in most of Africa south of the Sahara Desert.This whydah is found in many open habitats including open woodland, scrub and cultivation....

, Vidua macroura (I)

Vireos

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Vireonidae

The vireo

Vireo

The vireos are a group of small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to the New World. They are typically dull-plumaged and greenish in color, the smaller species resembling wood warblers apart from their heavier bills...

s are a group of small to medium sized passerine birds restricted to the New World. They are typically greenish in colour and resemble wood warblers apart from their heavier bills. There are 52 species world wide and 6 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

White-eyed Vireo
White-eyed Vireo
The White-eyed Vireo, Vireo griseus, is a small songbird. It breeds in the southeastern USA from New Jersey west to northern Missouri and south to Texas and Florida, and also in eastern Mexico, northern Central America, Cuba and the Bahamas....

, Vireo griseus (A)
Puerto Rican Vireo
Puerto Rican Vireo
The Puerto Rican Vireo is a small true vireo endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico and one of the 31 species belonging to the Vireo genus of the Vireonidae family...

, Vireo latimeri (E)
Yellow-throated Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
The Yellow-throated Vireo, Vireo flavifrons, is a small American songbird.Adults are mainly olive on the head and upperparts with a yellow throat and white belly; they have dark eyes with yellow "spectacles". The tail and wings are dark with white wing bars...

, Vireo flavifrons (A)
Philadelphia Vireo
Philadelphia Vireo
The Philadelphia Vireo, Vireo philadelphicus, is a small songbird.Adults are mainly olive-brown on the upperparts with yellow underparts; they have dark eyes and a grey crown. There is a dark line through the eyes and a white stripe just over them. They have thick blue-grey legs and a stout...

, Vireo philadelphicus (A)
Red-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
The Red-eyed Vireo, Vireo olivaceus, is a small American songbird, 13–14 cm in length. It is somewhat warbler-like but not closely related to the New World warblers...

, Vireo olivaceus (A)
Black-whiskered Vireo
Black-whiskered Vireo
The Black-whiskered Vireo, Vireo altiloquus, is a small passerine bird, which breeds in southern Florida, USA, and the West Indies as far south as the offshore islands of Venezuela. It is a partial migrant, with northern birds wintering from the Greater Antilles to northern South America...

, Vireo altiloquus

New World warblers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Parulidae
The New World warbler

New World warbler

The New World warblers or wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful, passerine birds restricted to the New World. They are not related to the Old World warblers or the Australian warblers....

s are a group of small often colourful passerine birds restricted to the New World. Most are arboreal, but some like are more terrestrial. Most members of this family are insectivores. There are 119 species world wide and 36 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Blue-winged Warbler
Blue-winged Warbler
The Blue-winged Warbler, Vermivora cyanoptera, is a fairly common New World warbler, 11.5 cm long and weighing 8.5 g. It breeds in eastern North America in southern Ontario and the eastern USA. Its range is extending northwards, where it is replacing the very closely related...

, Vermivora pinus (A)
Golden-winged Warbler
Golden-winged Warbler
The Golden-winged Warbler, Vermivora chrysoptera, is a New World warbler, 11.6 cm long and weighing 8.5 g. It breeds in eastern North America, southeastern Canada and the eastern USA...

, Vermivora chrysoptera (A)
Nashville Warbler
Nashville Warbler
The Nashville Warbler, Vermivora ruficapilla, is a small songbird in the New World warbler family.They have olive-brown upperparts, a white belly and a yellow throat and breast; they have a white eye ring, no wing bars and a thin pointed bill. Adult males have a grey head with a rusty crown patch ;...

, Vermivora ruficapilla (A)
Northern Parula
Northern Parula
The Northern Parula, Parula americana, is a small New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America from southern Canada to Florida....

, Parula americana
Yellow Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Dendroica petechia is a New World warbler species or superspecies; the subspecies group around D. aestiva is increasingly treated as good species Dendroica aestiva again. The name for the entire cryptic species complex is Mangrove Warbler, and another group of subspecies is known as Golden Warbler...

, Dendroica petechia
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
The Chestnut-sided Warbler is a New World warbler. They breed in eastern North America and in southern Canada westwards to the Canadian Prairies...

, Dendroica pensylvanica (A)
Magnolia Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Setophaga magnolia, commonly known as the Magnolia warbler, is a member of the Parulidae family of wood warblers. [4] This warbler was first discovered in magnolia trees in the 19th century by famed ornithologist Alexander Wilson while in Mississippi. [7]-Description:The magnolia warbler can be...

, Dendroica magnolia (A)
Cape May Warbler
Cape May Warbler
The Cape May Warbler, Dendroica tigrina, is a small New World warbler. It breeds in northern North America. Its breeding habitat spans across all but the westernmost parts of southern Canada, and into the Great Lakes region and New England. It is migratory, wintering in the West Indies...

, Dendroica tigrina
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Black-throated Blue Warbler
The Black-throated Blue Warbler, Setophaga caerulescens, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.Adult males have white underparts with black throat, face and flanks; the upperparts are deep blue; immature males are similar with upperparts more greenish...

, Dendroica caerulescens
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Four closely related North American bird forms—the eastern Myrtle Warbler , its western counterpart, Audubon's Warbler , the northwest Mexican Black-fronted Warbler , and the Guatemalan Goldman's Warbler —are periodically lumped as the Yellow-rumped Warbler .-Classification:Since...

, Dendroica coronata (A)
Black-throated Green Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
The Black-throated Green Warbler, Setophaga virens, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.It is 12 cm long and weighs 9 g, and has an olive-green crown, a yellow face with olive markings, a thin pointed bill, white wing bars, an olive-green back and pale underparts with...

, Dendroica virens (A)
Blackburnian Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
The Blackburnian Warbler, Dendroica 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....

, Dendroica fusca (A)
Yellow-throated Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
The Yellow-throated Warbler, Dendroica dominica, is a small migratory songbird species breeding in temperate North America. It belongs to the New World warbler family .-Description:...

, Dendroica dominica (A)
Adelaide's Warbler
Adelaide's Warbler
Adelaide's Warbler is a bird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico belonging to the Dendroica genus of the Parulidae family. The species is named after Adelaide Swift, daughter of Robert Swift, the person who captured the first specimen.-Description:Dendroica adelaidae was originally...

, Dendroica adelaidae (E)
Pine Warbler
Pine Warbler
The Pine Warbler, Dendroica pinus, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.These birds have white bellies, white wing bars, dark legs and thin, relatively long pointed bills; they have yellowish lines over their eyes. Adult males have olive upperparts and bright yellow throats and...

, Dendroica pinus (A)
Prairie Warbler
Prairie Warbler
The Prairie Warbler, Dendroica discolor, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.These birds have yellow underparts with dark streaks on the flanks, and olive upperparts with rusty streaks on the back; they have a yellow line above the eye, a dark line through it, and a yellow spot...

, Dendroica discolor
Palm Warbler
Palm Warbler
The Palm Warbler, Dendroica palmarum, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.The species comprises two distinct subspecies that may merit specific status....

, Dendroica palmarum (A)
Bay-breasted Warbler
Bay-breasted Warbler
The Bay-breasted Warbler, Dendroica castanea , is a New World warbler. They breed in northern North America, specifically in Canada, into the Great Lakes region, and into northern New England....

, Dendroica castanea (A)
Blackpoll Warbler
Blackpoll Warbler
The Blackpoll Warbler, Dendroica 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 northern North America, from Alaska, through most of Canada, and into the Great Lakes region and...

, Dendroica striata
Cerulean Warbler
Cerulean Warbler
The Cerulean Warbler, Dendroica cerulea, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.-Description:Adult males have pale cerulean blue upperparts and white underparts with a black necklace across the breast; they also have black streaks on the back and flanks...

, Dendroica cerulea (A)
Elfin-woods Warbler
Elfin-woods Warbler
The Elfin-woods Warbler , or Reinita de Bosque Enano , is a bird endemic to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico where it is a local and uncommon species. Discovered in 1968 and described in 1972, it is the most recently described species of New World warbler...

, Dendroica angelae (E)
Black-and-white Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
The Black-and-white Warbler is a small New World warbler. It breeds in northern and eastern North America from southern Canada to Florida....

, Mniotilta varia
American Redstart
American Redstart
The American Redstart is a New World warbler. It is the only member of its genus and is unrelated to the Old World redstarts. It derives its name from the male's red tail, start being an old word for tail.-Description:...

, Setophaga ruticilla
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler
The Prothonotary Warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. It is the only member of the genus Protonotaria....

, Protonotaria citrea (A)
Worm-eating Warbler
Worm-eating Warbler
The Worm-eating Warbler is a small New World warbler. It is the only species classified in the genus Helmitheros....

, Helmitheros vermivorum (A)
Swainson's Warbler
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.-Description:...

, Limnothlypis swainsonii (A)
Ovenbird
Ovenbird
The Ovenbird is a small songbird of the New World warbler family . This migratory bird breeds in eastern North America and moves south in winter.-Taxonomy:...

, Seiurus aurocapilla
Northern Waterthrush
Northern Waterthrush
The Northern Waterthrush is one of the larger New World warblers. It breeds in the northern part of North America in Canada, and in the northern United States, . This bird is migratory, wintering in Central America, the West Indies, and Florida; also Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador...

, Seiurus noveboracensis
Louisiana Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
The Louisiana Waterthrush is a New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America from southernmost Canada and south through the eastern USA, excluding Florida and the coast....

, Seiurus motacilla
Kentucky Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
The Kentucky Warbler, Oporornis formosus, is a small species of New World warbler. The Kentucky Warbler, like all members of the genus Oporornis, 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.Adult Kentucky...

, Oporornis formosus (A)
Connecticut Warbler
Connecticut Warbler
The Connecticut Warbler Oporornis agilis is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.These 15 cm long birds have light yellow underparts and olive upperparts; they have a light eye ring, pink legs, a long tail, pale wing bars and a thin pointed bill...

, Oporornis agilis (A)
Mourning Warbler
Mourning Warbler
The Mourning Warbler, Oporornis philadelphia, is a small songbird of the New World warbler family.These 13 cm long birds have yellow underparts, olive-green upperparts and pink legs. Adult males have a grey hood and a black patch on the throat and breast...

, Oporornis philadelphia (A)
Common Yellowthroat
Common Yellowthroat
The Common Yellowthroat is a New World warbler. They are abundant breeders in North America, ranging from southern Canada to central Mexico....

, Geothlypis trichas
Hooded Warbler
Hooded Warbler
The Hooded Warbler, Wilsonia citrina, is a New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America and across the eastern USA and into southernmost Canada, . It is migratory, wintering in Central America and the West Indies...

, Wilsonia citrina (A)
Wilson's Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
The Wilson's Warbler, Wilsonia pusilla, is a small New World warbler. It is primarily greenish above and yellow below, with rounded wings and a long, slim tail. The male has a black crown patch which is greatly reduced or missing entirely in the female...

, Wilsonia pusilla (A)
Canada Warbler
Canada Warbler
The Canada Warbler is a small 13 cm long songbird of the New World warbler family.These birds have yellow underparts, blue-grey upperparts and pink legs; they also have yellow eye-rings and thin, pointed bills. Adult males have black foreheads and black necklaces...

, Wilsonia canadensis (A)

Bananaquit

Order: Passeriformes
Family: Coerebidae or Genus Coereba Incertae sedis
Incertae sedis
, is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is attributed by , , and similar terms.-Examples:*The fossil plant Paradinandra suecica could not be assigned to any...

The Bananaquit is a small passerine bird. It has a slender, curved bill, adapted to taking nectar from flowers and is the only member of the genus Coereba (Vieillot, 1809) and is normally placed within the family Coerebidae, although there is uncertainty whether that placement is correct (hence the assignment Genus: Coereba Incertae sedis
Incertae sedis
, is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is attributed by , , and similar terms.-Examples:*The fossil plant Paradinandra suecica could not be assigned to any...

).

Bananaquit
Bananaquit
The Bananaquit is a species of passerine bird of uncertain relation. It is tentatively placed in the tanager family, but classified as incertae sedis by other authorities such as the American Ornithologists' Union. Its classification is debated, and it is often placed in its own family: Coerebidae...

, Coereba flaveola

Tanagers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Thraupidae

The tanager

Tanager

The tanagers comprise the bird family Thraupidae, in the order Passeriformes. The family has an American distribution.There were traditionally about 240 species of tanagers, but the taxonomic treatment of this family's members is currently in a state of flux...

s are a large group of small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to the New World, mainly in the tropics. Many species are brightly coloured. They are seed eaters, but their preference tends towards fruit and nectar. Most have short, rounded wings. There are 256 species world wide and 5 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rican Tanager
Puerto Rican Tanager
The Puerto Rican Tanager is a small passerine bird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico. It is the only member of the Nesospingus genus of the tanager family....

, Nesospingus speculiferus (E)
Summer Tanager
Summer Tanager
The Summer Tanager, Piranga rubra, is a medium-sized American songbird. Formerly placed in the tanager family , it and other members of its genus are now classified in the cardinal family...

, Piranga rubra (A)
Scarlet Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
The Scarlet Tanager is a medium-sized American songbird. Formerly placed in the tanager family , it and other members of its genus are now classified in the cardinal family . The species's plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family.-Description:Adults have pale...

, Piranga olivacea (A)
Puerto Rican Spindalis
Puerto Rican Spindalis
The Puerto Rican Spindalis, Spindalis portoricensis, is a tanager 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 Rican ecosystem because of its help in seed dispersal and...

, Spindalis portoricensis (E)
Antillean Euphonia
Antillean Euphonia
The Antillean Euphonia is a bird species in the finch family, Fringillidae .It is found in all the main islands of the Lesser Antilles, and the Greater Antilles from Hispaniola eastwards....

, Euphonia musica

American sparrows, Towhees, Juncos, and Longspurs

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Emberizidae

Emberizidae

The Emberizidae are a large family of passerine birds. They are seed-eating birds with a distinctively shaped bill.In Europe, most species are called buntings. In North America, most of the species in this family are known as sparrows, but these birds are not closely related to the sparrows, the...

The Emberizidae are a large family of passerine birds. They are seed-eating birds with a distinctively shaped bill. In Europe, most species are named as buntings. In North America, most of the species in this family are known as Sparrows, but these birds are not closely related to the Old World sparrows which are in the family Passeridae. Many emberizid species have distinctive head patterns. There are species 275 world wide and 9 Puerto Rican species, 2 of which are introduced.

Yellow-faced Grassquit
Yellow-faced Grassquit
The Yellow-faced Grassquit is a passerine bird from the Central American tropics and surrounding regions. It was formerly alled with the American sparrows and placed in the Emberizidae; actually, however, it is one of the tholospizan "finches" which are specialized tanagers...

, Tiaris olivacea
Black-faced Grassquit
Black-faced Grassquit
The Black-faced Grassquit, Tiaris bicolor, is a small bird formerly placed with the Emberizidae. It is now recognized as a tanager closely related to Darwins finches...

, Tiaris bicolor
Puerto Rican Bullfinch
Puerto Rican Bullfinch
The Puerto Rican Bullfinch or Comeñame in Spanish, is a small Bullfinch tanager endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico and one of 3 species belonging to the genus Loxigilla. These were formerly considered Emberizidae....

, Loxigilla portoricensis (E)
Saffron Finch
Saffron Finch
The Saffron Finch is a tanager from South America and is common in both open and semi-open areas in lowlands outside the Amazon Basin. They have a wide distribution in Colombia, Venezuela , Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and Argentina...

, Sicalis flaveola (I)
Red-crested Cardinal
Red-crested Cardinal
The Red-crested Cardinal is a bird species in the tanager family . It was formerly placed in the Emberizidae, and notwithstanding its common name, it is not very closely related to the true cardinals .It is found in northern Argentina, Bolivia, southern Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay...

, Paroaria coronata (I)
Grasshopper Sparrow
Grasshopper Sparrow
The Grasshopper Sparrow, Ammodramus savannarum, is a small sparrow. The Ammodramus genus of 11 species inhabit grasslands and marshes....

, Ammodramus savannarum
Lincoln's Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
The Lincoln's Sparrow, Melospiza lincolnii, is a medium-sized sparrow.Adults have dark-streaked olive-brown upperparts with a light brown breast with fine streaks, a white belly, and a white throat. They have a brown cap with a grey stripe in the middle, olive-brown wings, and a narrow tail. Their...

, Melospiza lincolnii (A)
White-throated Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
The White-throated Sparrow is a passerine bird of the American sparrow family Emberizidae.-Description:The White-throated Sparrow is a passerine bird of the American sparrow family Emberizidae...

, Zonotrichia albicollis (A)
Dark-eyed Junco
Dark-eyed Junco
The Dark-eyed Junco is the best-known species of the juncos, a genus of small grayish American sparrows. This bird is common across much of temperate North America and in summer ranges far into the Arctic...

, Junco hyemalis (A)

Cardinals, Saltators, and Grosbeaks

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Cardinalidae

The cardinals are a family of passerine birds that are robust, seed-eating birds, with strong bills. They are typically associated with open woodland. The sexes usually have distinct plumages. There are 43 species world wide and 4 species which occur in Puerto Rico.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
The Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Pheucticus ludovicianus, is a large seed-eating songbird in the cardinal family . It breeds in cool-temperate North America, migrating to tropical America in winter.-Description:...

, Pheucticus ludovicianus (A)
Blue Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak , is a medium-sized seed-eating bird in the same family as the Northern Cardinal, "tropical" or New World buntings, and "cardinal-grosbeaks" or New World grosbeaks....

, Passerina caerulea (A)
Indigo Bunting
Indigo Bunting
The Indigo Bunting, Passerina cyanea, is a small seed-eating bird in the family Cardinalidae. It is migratory, ranging from southern Canada to northern Florida during the breeding season, and from southern Florida to northern South America during the winter. It often migrates by night, using the...

, Passerina cyanea (A)
Dickcissel
Dickcissel
The Dickcissel is a small American seed-eating bird in the family Cardinalidae. It is the only member of the genus Spiza, though some sources list another supposedly extinct species...

, Spiza americana (A)

Blackbirds, Meadowlarks, Cowbirds, Grackles, and Orioles

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Icteridae

The Icterids are a group of small to medium, often colourful passerine birds restricted to the New World and include the grackle

Grackle

Grackle can refer to any of eleven black passerine birds native to North and South America. All are members of the Icterid family but belong to multiple genera.* Genus Quiscalus** Boat-tailed Grackle, Quiscalus major...

s, New World blackbird

New World blackbird

The New World blackbirds consist of 26 species of icterid birds that share the name blackbird but do not correspond with a formal taxon...

s, and New World oriole

New World oriole

New World orioles, comprising the genus Icterus, are a group of birds in the blackbird family. They are not related to Old World orioles which are in the family Oriolidae, but are strikingly similar in size, diet, behaviour and in their strongly contrasting plumage, and are a good example of...

s. Most species have black as a predominant plumage colour, often enlivened by yellow, orange or red. There are 98 species world wide and 10 species which occur in Puerto Rico, one of which is introduced.

Bobolink
Bobolink
The Bobolink is a small New World blackbird and the only member of genus Dolichonyx.-Description:Adults are 16–18 cm long with short finch-like bills. They weigh about . Adult males are mostly black, although they do display creamy napes, and white scapulars, lower backs and rumps...

, Dolichonyx oryzivorus
Yellow-shouldered Blackbird
Yellow-shouldered Blackbird
The Yellow-shouldered Blackbird , also known as La Mariquita de Puerto Rico or Capitán, is a diurnal blackbird endemic to the archipelago of Puerto Rico and one of the eleven species belonging to the Agelaius genus of the Icteridae family.-Taxonomy:The nominate form of the Yellow-shouldered...

, Agelaius xanthomus (E)
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Yellow-headed Blackbird
The Yellow-headed Blackbird is a medium-sized blackbird, and the only member of the genus Xanthocephalus....

, Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus (A)
Greater Antillean Grackle
Greater Antillean Grackle
The Greater Antillean Grackle is a grackle found throughout the Greater Antilles and the Cayman Islands as well as smaller, nearby islands. Like all Quiscalus grackles, it is a rather large, gregarious bird...

, Quiscalus niger
Shiny Cowbird
Shiny Cowbird
The Shiny Cowbird, Molothrus bonariensis, is a passerine bird in the New World family Icteridae. It breeds in most of South America apart from the most dense jungles, mountains and deserts , the coldest southernmost regions , and on Trinidad and Tobago...

, Molothrus bonariensis
Venezuelan Troupial
Troupial
The Troupial , Icterus icterus is the national bird of Venezuela and one of about 25 or so species of "New World Orioles"...

, Icterus icterus (I)
Baltimore Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
The Baltimore Oriole is a small icterid blackbird that averages 18 cm long and weighs 34 g. This bird received its name from the fact that the male's colors resemble those on the coat-of-arms of Lord Baltimore...

, Icterus galbula (A)
Bullock's Oriole
Bullock's Oriole
The Bullock's Oriole, , 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...

, Icterus bullockii (A)
Puerto Rican Oriole
Puerto Rican Oriole
The Puerto Rican Oriole is a species of bird in the Icteridae family. It is endemic to Puerto Rico.The taxon was formerly lumped with the Cuban Oriole , Hispaniolan Oriole , and Bahama Oriole into a single species until all four were elevated to full species in 2010.Its...

, Icterus portoricensis (E)
Audubon's Oriole
Audubon's Oriole
Audubon's Oriole , is a New World passerine inhabiting the forests and thickets of southeastern Texas and the Mexican coast. It is the only species to have a black hood and yellow body. It is divided into four subspecies and two allopatric breeding ranges...

, Icterus graduacauda (A)

Fringilline Finches, Cardueline Finches, and Allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Fringillidae

Finch

Finch

The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...

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 12 tail feathers and 9 primaries. These birds have a bouncing flight with alternating bouts of flapping and gliding on closed wings, and most sing well. There are 137 species world wide and 3 species which occur in Puerto Rico, all of which are introduced.

Red Siskin
Red Siskin
The Red Siskin, Carduelis cucullata, is a small passerine bird. This finch is a resident breeding bird in tropical South America in northern Colombia and northern Venezuela...

, Carduelis cucullata (I)
Common Canary, Serinus canaria (I)
Yellow-fronted Canary
Yellow-fronted Canary
The Yellow-fronted Canary is a small passerine bird in the finch family. It is known elsewhere and in aviculture as the Green Singing Finch....

, Serinus mozambicus (I)

Sparrows

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Passeridae

Sparrow

The sparrows are a family of small passerine birds, Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, or Old World sparrows, names also used for a genus of the family, Passer...

s are small passerine birds. In general, sparrows tend to be small plump brownish or greyish birds with short tails and short powerful beaks. Sparrows are seed-eaters, and they also consume small insects. There are 35 species world wide and 1 species which occurs in Puerto Rico, which was introduced.

House Sparrow
House Sparrow
The House Sparrow is a bird of the sparrow family Passeridae, found in most parts of the world. One of about 25 species in the genus Passer, the House Sparrow occurs naturally in most of Europe, the Mediterranean region, and much of Asia...

, Passer domesticus (I)

Taxonomy

Grebes

Shearwaters and petrels

Storm-Petrels

Tropicbirds

Pelicans

Boobies

Cormorants

Frigatebirds

Bitterns, Herons, and Egrets

Ibises and spoonbills

Flamingos

Ducks, Geese, and Swans

New World vultures

Osprey

Hawks, Kites, and Eagles

Falcons

New World Quails

Junglefowls and Pheasants

Guineafowls

Limpkin

Rails, Gallinules, and Coots

Jacanas

Oystercatchers

Stilts and Avocets

Lapwings and Plovers

Sandpipers, Curlews, Stints, Godwits, Snipes, and Phalaropes

Skuas and jaegers

Gulls

Terns

Skimmers

Pigeons and doves

Cockatoos

Budgerigars, Parakeets and Parrots

Cuckoos

Barn owls

Typical owls

Potoos

Nightjars

Swifts

Hummingbirds

Water Kingfisher

Todies

Woodpeckers and Sapsuckers

Tyrant flycatchers

Swallows and martins

Waxwings

Mockingbirds and Thrashers

Thrushes

Old World flycatchers

Crows

Starlings

Weavers

Estrildid finchs

Whydahs

Vireos

New World warblers

Bananaquit

Tanagers

American sparrows, Towhees, Juncos, and Longspurs

Cardinals, Saltators, and Grosbeaks

Blackbirds, Meadowlarks, Cowbirds, Grackles, and Orioles

Fringilline Finches, Cardueline Finches, and Allies

Sparrows

See also