Birds of Missouri: The Official State Checklist

All 399 birds on the list

• Acadian Flycatcher Empidonax virescens
• Alder Flycatcher
• American Avocet
• American Bittern Botaurus lentiginosus
• American Black Duck
• American Coot Fulica americana
• American Crow Corvus brachyrhynchos
• American Golden-Plover Pluvialis dominica
• American Goldfinch Spinus tristis
• American Kestrel Falco sparverius
• American Pipit
• American Redstart Setophaga ruticilla
• American Robin Turdus migratorius
• American Tree Sparrow Spizelloides arborea
• American White Pelican Pelecanus erythrorhynchos
• American Wigeon Mareca americana
• American Woodcock Scolopax minor
• Anhinga
• Anna’s hummingbird
• Bachman’s Sparrow Peucaea aestivalis
• Bachman’s warbler
• Baird’s Sandpiper
• Baird’s sparrow
• Bald Eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus
• Baltimore Oriole Icterus galbula
• Band-rumped storm-petrel
• Band-tailed pigeon
• Bank Swallow Riparia riparia
• Barn Owl Tyto furcata
• Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
• Barnacle goose
• Barred Owl Strix varia
• Barrow’s goldeneye
• Bay-breasted Warbler Setophaga castanea
• Bell’s Vireo Vireo bellii
• Belted Kingfisher Megaceryle alcyon
• Bewick’s Wren
• Black rail
• Black Scoter
• Black Tern
• Black Vulture Coragyps atratus
• Black-and-white Warbler Mniotilta varia
• Black-bellied Plover
• Black-bellied whistling-duck
• Black-billed Cuckoo
• Black-billed magpie
• Black-capped Chickadee Poecile atricapillus
• Black-crowned Night-Heron Nycticorax nycticorax
• Black-headed grosbeak
• Black-headed gull
• Black-legged kittiwake
• Black-necked Stilt Himantopus mexicanus
• Black-throated blue warbler
• Black-throated Green Warbler Setophaga virens
• Black-throated sparrow
• Blackburnian Warbler
• Blackpoll Warbler
• Blue Grosbeak Passerina caerulea
• Blue Jay Cyanocitta cristata
• Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Polioptila caerulea
• Blue-headed Vireo
• Blue-winged Teal Spatula discors
• Blue-winged Warbler
• Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus
• Bohemian waxwing
• Bonaparte’s Gull Chroicocephalus philadelphia
• Brant
• Brewer’s Blackbird
• Broad-winged Hawk Buteo platypterus
• Bronzed cowbird
• Brown Creeper Certhia americana
• Brown pelican
• Brown Thrasher Toxostoma rufum
• Brown-headed Cowbird Molothrus ater
• Brown-headed Nuthatch Sitta pusilla
• Buff-breasted Sandpiper
• Bufflehead Bucephala albeola
• Burrowing owl
• California gull
• Canada Goose Branta canadensis
• Canada Warbler
• Canvasback Aythya valisineria
• Cape May Warbler
• Carolina Chickadee Poecile carolinensis
• Carolina parakeet
• Carolina Wren Thryothorus ludovicianus
• Caspian Tern
• Cattle Egret Ardea ibis
• Cedar Waxwing Bombycilla cedrorum
• Cerulean Warbler Setophaga cerulea
• Chestnut-collared longspur
• Chestnut-sided Warbler
• Chimney Swift Chaetura pelagica
• Chipping Sparrow Spizella passerina
• Chuck-will’s-widow
• Cinnamon Teal
• Clark’s grebe
• Clark’s nutcracker
• Clay-colored Sparrow
• Cliff Swallow Petrechelidon pyrrhonota
• Common Goldeneye Bucephala clangula
• Common Grackle Quiscalus quiscula
• Common ground-dove
• Common Loon Gavia immer
• Common Merganser Mergus merganser
• Common Moorhen
• Common Nighthawk Chordeiles minor
• Common poorwill
• Common raven
• Common redpoll
• Common Tern
• Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas
• Connecticut Warbler
• Cooper’s Hawk Astur cooperii
• Dark-eyed Junco Junco hyemalis
• Dickcissel Spiza americana
• Double-crested Cormorant Nannopterum auritum
• Downy Woodpecker Dryobates pubescens
• Dunlin
• Eared Grebe
• Eastern Bluebird Sialia sialis
• Eastern Kingbird Tyrannus tyrannus
• Eastern Meadowlark Sturnella magna
• Eastern Phoebe Sayornis phoebe
• Eastern Screech-Owl Megascops asio
• Eastern Towhee Pipilo erythrophthalmus
• Eastern Whip-poor-will Antrostomus vociferus
• Eastern Wood-Pewee Contopus virens
• Eskimo curlew
• Eurasian Collared-Dove Streptopelia decaoctoInvasive
• Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus
• Eurasian wigeon
• European Starling Sturnus vulgarisInvasive
• Evening grosbeak Coccothraustes vespertinus
• Ferruginous hawk
• Field Sparrow Spizella pusilla
• Fish Crow
• Forster’s Tern Sterna forsteri
• Fox Sparrow Passerella iliaca
• Franklin’s Gull
• Fulvous whistling-duck
• Gadwall Mareca strepera
• Garganey
• Glossy ibis
• Golden Eagle
• Golden-crowned Kinglet Regulus satrapa
• Golden-crowned sparrow
• Golden-winged Warbler
• Grasshopper Sparrow Ammodramus savannarum
• Gray Catbird Dumetella carolinensis
• Gray jay
• Gray-cheeked Thrush
• Great Black-backed gull
• Great Blue Heron Ardea herodias
• Great Crested Flycatcher Myiarchus crinitus
• Great Egret Ardea alba
• Great Horned Owl Bubo virginianus
• Great-tailed Grackle Quiscalus mexicanus
• Greater Prairie-Chicken Tympanuchus cupido
• Greater Roadrunner Geococcyx californianus
• Greater Scaup Aythya marila
• Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons
• Greater Yellowlegs Tringa melanoleuca
• Green Heron Butorides virescens
• Green violetear
• Green-tailed towhee
• Green-winged Teal Anas crecca
• Groove-billed ani
• Gyrfalcon
• Hairy Woodpecker Dryobates villosus
• Harlequin duck
• Harris’s hawk
• Harris’s Sparrow Zonotrichia querula
• Henslow’s Sparrow Centronyx henslowii
• Hermit Thrush
• Hermit warbler
• Herring Gull Larus smithsonianus
• Hooded Merganser Lophodytes cucullatus
• Hooded Warbler Setophaga citrina
• Horned Grebe Podiceps auritus
• Horned Lark Eremophila alpestris
• House Finch Haemorhous mexicanus
• House Sparrow Passer domesticus
• House Wren Troglodytes aedon
• Hudsonian Godwit
• Iceland Gull
• Inca dove
• Indigo Bunting Passerina cyanea
• Ivory-billed woodpecker
• Kentucky Warbler Geothlypis formosa
• Killdeer Charadrius vociferus
• King Rail Rallus elegans
• Kirtland’s warbler
• Lapland Longspur
• Lark bunting
• Lark Sparrow Chondestes grammacus
• Laughing gull
• Lazuli bunting
• Least Bittern Botaurus exilis
• Least Flycatcher
• Least Sandpiper
• Least Tern Sternula antillarum
• LeConte’s Sparrow Ammodramus leconteii
• Lesser Black-backed Gull
• Lesser goldfinch
• Lesser Scaup Aythya affinis
• Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes
• Lewis’s woodpecker
• Lincoln’s Sparrow Melospiza lincolnii
• Little Blue Heron Egretta caerulea
• Little gull
• Loggerhead Shrike Lanius ludovicianus
• Long-billed curlew
• Long-billed Dowitcher
• Long-eared Owl Asio otus
• Long-tailed Duck
• Long-tailed jaeger
• Louisiana Waterthrush Parkesia motacilla
• Magnificent frigatebird
• Magnolia Warbler
• Mallard Anas platyrhynchos
• Marbled Godwit
• Marsh Wren
• McCown’s longspur
• Merlin Falco columbarius
• Mississippi Kite Ictinia mississippiensis
• Mottled duck
• Mountain bluebird
• Mourning Dove Zenaida macroura
• Mourning Warbler
• Mute Swan Cygnus olorNonnative
• Nashville Warbler
• Nelson’s Sparrow
• Neotropic cormorant
• Northern Bobwhite Colinus virginianus
• Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis
• Northern Flicker Colaptes auratus
• Northern goshawk
• Northern Harrier Circus hudsonius
• Northern Mockingbird Mimus polyglottos
• Northern Parula Setophaga americana
• Northern Pintail Anas acuta
• Northern Rough-winged Swallow Stelgidopteryx serripennis
• Northern Saw-whet Owl Aegolius acadicus
• Northern Shoveler Spatula clypeata
• Northern shrike
• Northern Waterthrush
• Olive-sided Flycatcher
• Orange-crowned Warbler
• Orchard Oriole Icterus spurius
• Osprey Pandion haliaetus
• Ovenbird Seiurus aurocapilla
• Pacific loon
• Painted Bunting Passerina ciris
• Palm Warbler
• Parasitic jaeger
• Passenger pigeon
• Pectoral Sandpiper Calidris melanotos
• Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus
• Philadelphia Vireo
• Pied-billed Grebe Podilymbus podiceps
• Pileated Woodpecker Dryocopus pileatus
• Pine grosbeak
• Pine Siskin
• Pine Warbler Setophaga pinus
• Piping Plover
• Pomarine jaeger
• Prairie falcon
• Prairie Warbler Setophaga discolor
• Prothonotary Warbler Protonotaria citrea
• Purple Finch Haemorhous purpureus
• Purple gallinule
• Purple Martin Progne subis
• Red Knot
• Red phalarope
• Red-bellied Woodpecker Melanerpes carolinus
• Red-breasted Merganser
• Red-breasted Nuthatch Sitta canadensis
• Red-cockaded woodpecker
• Red-eyed Vireo Vireo olivaceus
• Red-headed Woodpecker Melanerpes erythrocephalus
• Red-necked grebe
• Red-necked Phalarope
• Red-shouldered Hawk Buteo lineatus
• Red-tailed Hawk Buteo jamaicensis
• Red-throated loon
• Red-winged Blackbird Agelaius phoeniceus
• Redhead Aythya americana
• Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis
• Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris
• Ring-necked Pheasant Phasianus colchicus
• Rock Pigeon Columba livia
• Rock wren
• Rose-breasted Grosbeak Pheucticus ludovicianus
• Roseate spoonbill
• Ross’s Goose Anser rossii
• Rough-legged Hawk
• Ruby-crowned Kinglet Corthylio calendula
• Ruby-throated Hummingbird Archilochus colubris
• Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis
• Ruddy Turnstone
• Ruff
• Ruffed Grouse Bonasa umbellus
• Rufous Hummingbird
• Rusty Blackbird Euphagus carolinus
• Sabine’s gull
• Sage thrasher
• Sanderling
• Sandhill Crane Antigone canadensis
• Savannah Sparrow Passerculus sandwichensis
• Say’s phoebe
• Scarlet Tanager Piranga olivacea
• Scissor-tailed Flycatcher Tyrannus forficatus
• Sedge Wren
• Semipalmated Plover
• Semipalmated Sandpiper
• Sharp-shinned Hawk Accipiter striatus
• Short-billed Dowitcher
• Short-eared Owl Asio flammeus
• Slaty-backed gull
• Smith’s Longspur
• Snow bunting
• Snow Goose Anser caerulescens
• Snowy Egret Egretta thula
• Snowy owl Bubo scandiacus
• Snowy plover
• Solitary Sandpiper
• Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia
• Sooty tern
• Sora Porzana carolina
• Spotted Sandpiper Actitis macularius
• Spotted Towhee
• Sprague’s Pipit
• Stilt Sandpiper
• Summer Tanager Piranga rubra
• Surf Scoter
• Swainson’s Hawk
• Swainson’s Thrush
• Swainson’s Warbler Limnothlypis swainsonii
• Swallow-tailed kite
• Swamp Sparrow Melospiza georgiana
• Tennessee Warbler
• Townsend’s solitaire
• Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor
• Tricolored heron
• Trumpeter Swan Cygnus buccinator
• Tufted Titmouse Baeolophus bicolor
• Tundra Swan Cygnus columbianus
• Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura
• Upland Sandpiper Bartramia longicauda
• Varied thrush
• Veery
• Vermilion flycatcher
• Vesper Sparrow Pooecetes gramineus
• Violet-green swallow
• Virginia Rail Rallus limicola
• Warbling Vireo Vireo gilvus
• Western Grebe
• Western Kingbird
• Western Meadowlark Sturnella neglecta
• Western Sandpiper
• Western tanager
• Whimbrel
• White ibis
• White-breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis
• White-crowned Sparrow Zonotrichia leucophrys
• White-eyed Vireo Vireo griseus
• White-faced ibis
• White-rumped Sandpiper
• White-tailed kite
• White-throated Sparrow Zonotrichia albicollis
• White-throated swift
• White-winged crossbill
• White-winged dove
• White-winged Scoter
• Whooping crane
• Wild Turkey Meleagris gallopavo
• Willet
• Willow Flycatcher
• Wilson’s Phalarope
• Wilson’s Snipe Gallinago delicata
• Wilson’s Warbler
• Winter Wren
• Wood Duck Aix sponsa
• Wood stork
• Wood Thrush Hylocichla mustelina
• Worm-eating Warbler Helmitheros vermivorum
• Yellow Rail
• Yellow Warbler Setophaga aestiva
• Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
• Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Sphyrapicus varius
• Yellow-billed Cuckoo
• Yellow-billed loon
• Yellow-breasted Chat Icteria virens
• Yellow-crowned Night-Heron Nyctanassa violacea
• Yellow-headed Blackbird
• Yellow-rumped Warbler Setophaga coronata
• Yellow-throated Vireo Vireo flavifrons
• Yellow-throated Warbler Setophaga dominica

Birds people confuse

Turkey vulture or Black vulture?

Turkey vulture Not stated

No confirmed photo of Black vulture

Black vulture Not stated

Black vulture: grayish-black head, shorter tail, a white patch near the wing tips (seen from below), and wings held nearly horizontal when soaring, with frequent flapping (Missouri). Tennessee and NPS Everglades say the same: black head, white patch at the wing tips, wings held flat. Turkey vulture: red head (adults), two-toned wings held in a V, rarely flaps. Note: juvenile turkey vultures also have dark heads.

Turkey vulture or Eagle?

Turkey vulture Not stated

Eagle Not stated

An eagle holds its wings flat and they are uniformly black; a turkey vulture's are held in a slight V and are two-toned.

Red-tailed hawk or Red-shouldered hawk?

Red-tailed hawk Not stated

No confirmed photo of Red-shouldered hawk

Red-shouldered hawk Not stated

A red-tail's rust-colored, broad, short tail distinguishes it from the smaller red-shouldered hawk (North Carolina). Tennessee: the red-shouldered hawk has a black and white banded tail and appears more uniformly colored.

Northern cardinal or Summer tanager?

Northern cardinal Not stated

Summer tanager Not stated

MDC: the adult male summer tanager is entirely rosy red, slightly darker on wings and tail, and is a summer resident; the adult male northern cardinal has a crest and a black area around its large red bill and is present year-round. TWRA says the summer tanager is the only other all-red songbird in Tennessee.

Photos show typical adults; individuals vary. Never get close to compare.

When birds are active in Missouri

Records of birds in Missouri peak in March to June and September to October. They show when people record birds, not how many there are (about month bars).

• Ruby-throated hummingbirds arrive around April 20 and are gone by October 10. MDC

About this list

The species list comes from "Seasonal List of the Standard Birds of Missouri", "Unusual Birds" and "Former Missouri Birds" in Enjoying Missouri Birds (MDC, W00002) (Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), Copyright 1997-2023). 1 more entry comes from other official sources named on each card.

Venom does not apply to birds.

"Nonnative" and "Invasive" follow the wording of the source list. See invasive species in Missouri.