Birds Name List A to Z: Bird Names by Letter
Trying to remember a bird name from just its first letter? This A to Z bird directory gives you an easy place to start.
You can browse bird names from A to Z, including backyard birds, songbirds, waterfowl, birds of prey, parrots, seabirds, and species from many parts of the world.
Each letter below links to a separate BirdSerenity guide where you can find more bird names, identification details, habitats, ranges, and useful facts.
Jump to a letter:
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
Bird Names A to Z at a Glance
Here is one easy bird example for every letter of the alphabet.
| Letter | Bird Name |
| A | American Robin |
| B | Blue Jay |
| C | Carolina Wren |
| D | Downy Woodpecker |
| E | Eastern Bluebird |
| F | Flamingo |
| G | Golden Eagle |
| H | Harpy Eagle |
| I | Indigo Bunting |
| J | Jabiru |
| K | Kestrel |
| L | Lyrebird |
| M | Mallard |
| N | Northern Cardinal |
| O | Osprey |
| P | Peregrine Falcon |
| Q | Quetzal |
| R | Red-tailed Hawk |
| S | Snowy Owl |
| T | Toucan |
| U | Ural Owl |
| V | Vermilion Flycatcher |
| W | Wood Duck |
| X | Xantus’s Hummingbird |
| Y | Yellow Warbler |
| Z | Zebra Finch |
These are only examples. Some letters have dozens of familiar bird names, while letters such as Q, X, and Z have far fewer.
Browse Bird Names by Letter
Birds That Start With A
Bird names beginning with A include the American Robin, African Grey Parrot, Atlantic Puffin, American Goldfinch, and Anna’s Hummingbird.
The letter A includes everything from small songbirds to parrots, seabirds, and birds of prey.
See the complete list of birds that start with A.
Birds That Start With B
Some familiar B birds include the Bald Eagle, Blue Jay, Barn Owl, Baltimore Oriole, and Black-capped Chickadee.
Many of these birds are well known in North America, making B one of the easier letters for backyard birdwatchers.
Browse more birds that start with B.
Birds That Start With C
Birds beginning with C include the Carolina Wren, California Condor, Common Loon, Canada Goose, and Cedar Waxwing.
They range from tiny woodland birds to large soaring species and waterbirds.
See our full guide to birds that start with C.
Birds That Start With D
Examples include the Downy Woodpecker, Diamond Dove, Dalmatian Pelican, Dunnock, and Double-crested Cormorant.
The Downy Woodpecker is one of the more familiar D birds in North American backyards, while other names on the list come from very different habitats.
Find more birds that start with D.
Birds That Start With E
The letter E gives us birds such as the Eastern Bluebird, Emu, Evening Grosbeak, Egyptian Goose, and Eurasian Eagle-Owl.
These birds vary greatly in size. An Emu is a large flightless bird, while an Eastern Bluebird is a small songbird.
Explore our list of birds that start with E.
Birds That Start With F
Bird names starting with F include the Flamingo, Field Sparrow, Frigatebird, Ferruginous Hawk, and Fulmar.
Some spend much of their lives near water, while others live in open country, forests, or grasslands.
Browse birds that start with F.
Birds That Start With G
Look under G and you will find the Golden Eagle, Great Blue Heron, Green Jay, Great Horned Owl, and Gannet.
Several are large birds that are fairly easy to recognize by their shape, size, or hunting behavior.
See more birds that start with G.
Birds That Start With H
Birds beginning with H include the Harpy Eagle, Hoopoe, House Finch, House Sparrow, and Herring Gull.
House Finches and House Sparrows may turn up around homes, while species such as the Harpy Eagle live in very different parts of the world.
Explore birds that start with H.
Birds That Start With I
Examples of I birds include the Indigo Bunting, Indian Peafowl, Ivory Gull, Inca Dove, and Ibis.
Indigo Buntings are small songbirds, while ibises are long-legged birds often associated with wetlands.
Find the complete list of birds that start with I.
Birds That Start With J
Bird names beginning with J include the Jabiru, Java Sparrow, Junco, Jackdaw, and Jacana.
Juncos are familiar to many North American birdwatchers, while jacanas are known for their very long toes, which help them move across floating vegetation.
Browse birds that start with J.
Birds That Start With K
The letter K includes the Kestrel, Kingfisher, Kākāpō, Killdeer, and King Eider.
These names cover birds with very different lifestyles, from fish-catching kingfishers to the flightless Kākāpō of New Zealand.
See more birds that start with K.
Birds That Start With L
Birds beginning with L include the Laysan Albatross, Limpkin, Lyrebird, Lapwing, and Lark.
Some L birds are known for their calls and songs, while others are better recognized by their unusual shape or behavior.
Explore birds that start with L.
Birds That Start With M
M has plenty of familiar bird names, including the Macaw, Mallard, Magpie, Mockingbird, and Mandarin Duck.
This letter includes parrots, waterfowl, songbirds, and several birds commonly found close to people.
Browse our complete list of birds that start with M.
Birds That Start With N
Birds beginning with N include the Northern Cardinal, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Gannet, Northern Jacana, and Nightjar.
Many bird names beginning with N use “Northern” to separate a species from a related bird with a different geographic name.
See more birds that start with N.
Birds That Start With O
O birds include the Osprey, Ostrich, Oriole, Ovenbird, and Oystercatcher.
The group ranges from the huge, flightless Ostrich to much smaller songbirds such as the Ovenbird.
Explore birds that start with O.
Birds That Start With P
Birds beginning with P include the Peregrine Falcon, Puffin, Pileated Woodpecker, Peacock, and Pelican.
This is another letter with plenty of recognizable names, including birds from forests, coastlines, lakes, grasslands, and cities.
Browse birds that start with P.
Birds That Start With Q
Q is one of the harder letters in the bird alphabet.
Bird names beginning with Q include Quail, Quetzal, Quelea, and several species whose names begin with “Queen” or “Queensland.”
See the full list of birds that start with Q.
Birds That Start With R
The letter R includes the Robin, Red-tailed Hawk, Ruffed Grouse, Roadrunner, and Rose-ringed Parakeet.
A useful thing to remember is that “robin” can refer to different birds depending on the region. The American Robin and European Robin, for example, are not the same species.
Explore more birds that start with R.
Birds That Start With S
Bird names beginning with S include the Snowy Owl, Sandhill Crane, Secretary Bird, Starling, and Swan.
S has a long mix of familiar bird names, ranging from backyard visitors to large wetland and grassland species.
See our list of birds that start with S.
Birds That Start With T
Examples of T birds include the Toucan, Tern, Turaco, Thrush, and Tawny Frogmouth.
Terns are closely tied to water, while toucans and turacos are better known from warmer forest habitats.
Browse all birds that start with T.
Birds That Start With U
There are fewer familiar bird names beginning with U, but the letter still has some interesting examples.
They include the Umbrellabird, Ural Owl, Upland Sandpiper, Ultramarine Flycatcher, and Unicolored Jay.
See more birds that start with U.
Birds That Start With V
Bird names beginning with V include the Vermilion Flycatcher, Violet-green Swallow, Veery, Vulture, and Verdin.
Some names refer to a single species, while broader names such as vulture can refer to many related species.
Browse birds that start with V.
Birds That Start With W
W birds include the Wood Duck, Whooping Crane, Western Tanager, Wagtail, and Waxwing.
Many more bird names begin with “White,” “Western,” or “Wood,” giving W a much larger list than you might first expect.
See the complete guide to birds that start with W.
Birds That Start With X
X is probably the hardest letter when trying to name birds from memory.
Examples include Xantus’s Hummingbird, Xinjiang Ground-Jay, and Xavier’s Greenbul.
Because relatively few English bird names begin with X, the list is much shorter than letters such as B, C, or S.
Explore birds that start with X.
Birds That Start With Y
Many Y bird names begin with “Yellow” because the color appears in their common names.
Examples include the Yellow Warbler, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Yellowhammer, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Yellow-eyed Penguin.
Browse more birds that start with Y.
Birds That Start With Z
Z finishes the bird alphabet with species such as the Zebra Finch, Zebra Dove, Zone-tailed Hawk, and Zenaida Dove.
Like X and Q, there are fewer common English bird names beginning with Z, but the letter still includes species from several bird families.
See our complete list of birds that start with Z.
Which Letters Have the Most Bird Names?
There is no simple fixed number because bird naming depends on which taxonomic list and common names are being used.
Letters such as B, C, G, M, S, and W can produce long lists because many bird names begin with common descriptive words such as black, brown, great, mountain, spotted, western, and white.
Letters such as Q, X, and Z are much harder.
That difference makes an A to Z list useful if you are doing a school alphabet activity, bird quiz, crossword, naming game, or simply trying to remember a bird’s name.
Common Names vs Scientific Bird Names
The lists in this directory are organized mainly by a bird’s English common name, not by its scientific name.
For example, the American Robin appears under A because “American” is part of its common name. Its scientific name, Turdus migratorius, would place it under T if we were sorting by scientific names.
Common names can also vary between regions and bird authorities. That is why a species may sometimes be known by another name in a different country or older field guide.
For identification, the scientific name is useful because it points to the exact species even when common names vary.
Looking for a Bird but Don’t Know Its Name?
The first letter is only one way to narrow down a bird.
If you saw an unknown bird outside, start with what you can actually observe:
- overall size and body shape
- bill shape
- main plumage colors
- wing or tail patterns
- habitat
- behavior
- where you saw it
- time of year
Color alone can be misleading because males, females, young birds, and adults can look different. Lighting and worn feathers can also change how a bird appears.
If color is your strongest clue, browse our Birds by Color guides.
For birds regularly seen near homes, feeders, gardens, and yards, visit our Backyard Birds guides.
If two birds look almost identical, our Bird Comparisons can help you check the differences.
Browse More Bird Guides
The alphabet is useful when you already know part of a bird’s name. You can also browse BirdSerenity by bird type or topic.
Bird Species Guides
Want to learn about one bird in more detail?
Visit our Bird Species Guides for identification, habitat, behavior, diet, range, and other species-specific information.
Birds by Color
Trying to identify a red, yellow, blue, black, white, brown, or orange bird?
Start with Birds by Color and then compare size, bill shape, markings, habitat, and location.
Backyard Birds
If the bird appeared around your home, garden, feeder, or nearby park, browse our Backyard Birds section.
Bird Comparisons
Some birds are easy to confuse at first glance.
Our Bird Comparisons focus on visible differences that can help separate similar species.
Bird Symbolism
If you’re searching for the traditional or modern meaning associated with a particular bird, visit our Bird Symbolism guides.
FAQs About Bird Names A to Z
What are some bird names from A to Z?
One example for each letter is American Robin, Blue Jay, Carolina Wren, Downy Woodpecker, Eastern Bluebird, Flamingo, Golden Eagle, Harpy Eagle, Indigo Bunting, Jabiru, Kestrel, Lyrebird, Mallard, Northern Cardinal, Osprey, Peregrine Falcon, Quetzal, Red-tailed Hawk, Snowy Owl, Toucan, Ural Owl, Vermilion Flycatcher, Wood Duck, Xantus’s Hummingbird, Yellow Warbler, and Zebra Finch.
Are there birds for every letter of the alphabet?
Yes. Bird names can be found for all 26 letters, although some letters have far more examples than others. Q, X, and Z are among the harder letters.
What bird starts with A?
American Robin, American Goldfinch, African Grey Parrot, Atlantic Puffin, and Anna’s Hummingbird are examples. You can find more in our birds that start with A guide.
What bird starts with Q?
Quail, Quetzal, and Quelea are examples of bird names beginning with Q. See more birds that start with Q.
What bird starts with X?
Xantus’s Hummingbird and Xinjiang Ground-Jay are two examples. X is one of the least common first letters for English bird names. Browse our birds that start with X list for more.
What bird starts with Z?
Zebra Finch, Zebra Dove, Zone-tailed Hawk, and Zenaida Dove all begin with Z. Our birds that start with Z guide covers more examples.
Are these bird names only from North America?
No. The A to Z directory contains birds from different parts of the world. Some are common North American species, while others live in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, or oceanic regions.
Why do some bird names begin with colors or directions?
Common bird names often describe a visible feature or geographic relationship. Names such as Red-tailed Hawk refer to appearance, while Northern Cardinal and Western Tanager use directional words as part of their established common names.