Howard County Bird Club

Official Field Checklist of Birds of Howard County, MD

See key at bottom of page. Download printable pdf

Birds are arranged in eBird phylogenetic order. Click/tap the bird name to go to the page for the species. Quickly go to the name on desktops and laptops by using  the keyboard shortcut for “find” (<Ctrl>+F in Windows, <Cmd>+F in Apple) and insert a part or all of the common name in the search box. Be sure the punctuation and spelling is correct, e.g. “Black-crowned Night-Heron,” not “… Night Heron.”

	Black-bellied Whistling-Duck	A
	Snow Goose	M,WV
	Ross’s Goose *	C
	Gtr White-fronted Goose *	C
	Pink-footed Goose *	A
	Brant *	H
	Cackling Goose	WV
•	Canada Goose	M,PR
•	Mute Swan *	C
	Trumpeter Swan	A
	Tundra Swan	M,WV
•	Wood Duck	M,SR,WV
	Blue-winged Teal	M
	Northern Shoveler	M,WV
•	Gadwall	M,WV
	Eurasian Wigeon *	A
	American Wigeon	M,WV
•	Mallard	M,PR
•	American Black Duck	M,WV
	Northern Pintail	M,WV
	Green-winged Teal	M,WV
	Canvasback	M,WV
	Redhead	M,WV
	Ring-necked Duck	M,WV
	Greater Scaup	M,WV
	Lesser Scaup	M,WV
	King Eider *	A
	Surf Scoter *	C
	White-winged Scoter *	C
	Black Scoter *	C
	Long-tailed Duck	M,WV
	Bufflehead	M,WV
	Common Goldeneye	M,WV
•	Hooded Merganser	M,WV
•	Common Merganser	M,WR
	Red-breasted Merganser	M,WV
	Ruddy Duck	M,WV
•	Northern Bobwhite *	PR
•	Wild Turkey	PR
•	Ring-necked Pheasant *	PR
	Pied-billed Grebe	M,WV
	Horned Grebe	M,WV
	Red-necked Grebe *	C
	Eared Grebe *	A
	Western Grebe *	H
•	Rock Pigeon	PR
	Eurasian Collared-Dove *	A
	White-winged Dove *	A
•	Mourning Dove	PR
•	Yellow-billed Cuckoo	M,SR
•	Black-billed Cuckoo	M,SR
	Common Nighthawk	M
	Chuck-will’s-widow *	C
•	Eastern Whip-poor-will	M,SR?
•	Chimney Swift	M,SR
	Mexican Violetear *	A
•	Ruby-throated Hummingbird	M,SR
	Rufous Hummingbird *	A
	King Rail *	C
	Clapper Rail *	A
•	Virginia Rail	M, SR
•	Sora	M
•	Common Gallinule *	C
	American Coot	M,WV
	Black Rail *	A
	Limpkin *	A
	Sandhill Crane *	C
	Black-necked Stilt *	A
	American Avocet *	C
	Black-bellied Plover	M
	American Golden-Plover	M
•	Killdeer	M,PR
	Semipalmated Plover	M
	Piping Plover *	A
	Upland Sandpiper	C
	Whimbrel*	H
	Short-billed Dowitcher *	C
	Long-billed Dowitcher *	A
•	American Woodcock	M,SR,WV
	Wilson’s Snipe	M,WV
	Wilson’s Phalarope *	A
	Red Phalarope *	A
•	Spotted Sandpiper	M,SV
	Solitary Sandpiper	M,SV
	Lesser Yellowlegs	M,SV
	Greater Yellowlegs	M,SV
	Ruddy Turnstone *	H
	Red Knot *	H
	Stilt Sandpiper *	C
	Buff-breasted Sandpiper *	C
	Sanderling	C
	Dunlin	C
	Baird’s Sandpiper *	C
	White-rumped Sandpiper *	C
	Least Sandpiper	M,SV
	Pectoral Sandpiper	M,SV
	Western Sandpiper *	C
	Semipalmated Sandpiper	M,SV
	Little Gull *	A
	Black-legged Kittiwake *	A
	Sabine’s Gull *	A
	Bonaparte’s Gull	M,WV
	Laughing Gull	M
	Ring-billed Gull	M,SV,WR
	Herring Gull	M,WR
	Great Black-backed Gull	M,WV
	Glaucous Gull *	C
	Lesser Black-backed Gull *	C
	Iceland Gull *	C
	Least Tern *	A
	Caspian Tern	M,SV
	Black Tern	C
	Forster’s Tern	M
	Common Tern *	C
	Red-throated Loon *	C
	Common Loon	M,WV
	Wood Stork	A
	Anhinga *	A
	Double-crested Cormorant	M,SV,WV
	American Bittern	M
	Least Bittern *	C
•	Yellow-crowned Night-Heron	SV
	Black-crowned Night-Heron	M,SV
	Little Blue Heron	M,SV
	Tricolored Heron *	A
	Snowy Egret *	C
•	Green Heron	M,SR
	Western Cattle Egret	M,SV
	Great Egret	M,SV
•	Great Blue Heron	M,PR
	White Ibis *	C
	Glossy Ibis	C
•	Black Vulture	M,PR
•	Turkey Vulture	M,PR
•	Osprey	M,SV
	Swallow-tailed Kite *	A
	Golden Eagle *	C
	Mississippi Kite *	C
	Northern Harrier	M,WV
	Sharp-shinned Hawk	M,WR
•	Cooper’s Hawk	M,PR
	American Goshawk *	M,WV
•	Bald Eagle	M,PR
•	Red-shouldered Hawk	M,PR
•	Broad-winged Hawk	M,SR
•	Red-tailed Hawk	M,PR
	Rough-legged Hawk *	M,WV
•	Barn Owl *	C
•	Eastern Screech-Owl	PR
	Snowy Owl *	A
•	Great Horned Owl	PR
•	Barred Owl	PR
	Long-eared Owl	C
	Short-eared Owl	C
	Northern Saw-whet Owl	C
•	Belted Kingfisher	PR
	Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	M,WV
•	Red-headed Woodpecker	M,WV, SR
•	Red-bellied Woodpecker	PR
•	Downy Woodpecker	PR
•	Hairy Woodpecker	PR
•	Pileated Woodpecker	PR
•	Northern Flicker	M,PR
•	American Kestrel	M,PR
	Merlin	M,WV
	Peregrine Falcon	M,WV
	Olive-sided Flycatcher	M
•	Eastern Wood-Pewee	M,SR
	Yellow-bellied Flycatcher	M
•	Acadian Flycatcher	M,SR
	Alder Flycatcher *	C
•	Willow Flycatcher	M,SR
•	Least Flycatcher	M,SV
•	Eastern Phoebe	M,SR,WV
•	Ash-throated Flycatcher	A
•	Great Crested Flycatcher	M,SR
	Western Kingbird	A
•	Eastern Kingbird	M,SR
•	White-eyed Vireo	M,SR
•	Yellow-throated Vireo	M,SR
	Blue-headed Vireo	M
	Philadelphia Vireo	M (fall)
•	Warbling Vireo	M,SR
•	Red-eyed Vireo	M,SR
	Loggerhead Shrike *	C
	Northern Shrike *	A
•	Blue Jay	M,PR
•	American Crow	PR
•	Fish Crow	PR
•	Common Raven	C,PR
•	Carolina Chickadee	PR
	Black-capped Chickadee *	C,WV
•	Tufted Titmouse	PR
•	Horned Lark	M,PR
•	Bank Swallow	M,SV
•	Tree Swallow	M,SR
•	Purple Martin	M,SR
•	N. Rough-winged Swallow	M,SR
•	Barn Swallow	M,SR
•	Cliff Swallow	M,SR
	Ruby-crowned Kinglet	M,WV
	Golden-crowned Kinglet	M,WR
•	White-breasted Nuthatch	M,PR
	Red-breasted Nuthatch	M,WV
	Brown Creeper	M,WR
•	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	M,SR
•	House Wren	M,SR
	Winter Wren	M,WR
	Sedge Wren *	C
	Marsh Wren	M
•	Carolina Wren	PR
•	European Starling	PR
•	Gray Catbird	M,SR,WV
•	Brown Thrasher	M,SR,WV
•	Northern Mockingbird	PR
•	Eastern Bluebird	PR
	Varied Thrush *	A
•	Veery	M,SR
	Gray-cheeked Thrush	M
	Bicknell’s Thrush *	A,M
	Swainson’s Thrush	M
	Hermit Thrush	M,WR
•	Wood Thrush	M,SR
•	American Robin	M,PR
•	Cedar Waxwing	M,PR
•	House Sparrow	PR
	American Pipit	M,WV
	Evening Grosbeak *	C
•	House Finch	PR
	Purple Finch	M,WV
	Common Redpoll *	C
	Red Crossbill *	C
	White-winged Crossbill *	C
	Pine Siskin	M,WV
•	American Goldfinch	PR
	Lapland Longspur *	C
	Snow Bunting *	C
	Grasshopper Sparrow	M,SR
	Lark Sparrow *	A
•	Chipping Sparrow	M,SR,WV
	Clay-colored Sparrow *	C
•	Field Sparrow	M,PR
	Lark Sparrow *	A
	American Tree Sparrow	M,WR
	Fox Sparrow	M,WR
	Dark-eyed Junco	M,WR
	White-crowned Sparrow	M,WR
	Harris’s Sparrow *	A
	White-throated Sparrow	M,WR
•	Vesper Sparrow	M,SR
	LeConte’s Sparrow *	A
	Nelson’s Sparrow *	M
•	Savannah Sparrow	M,WR,SR?
	Henslow’s Sparrow *	C
•	Song Sparrow	M,PR
	Lincoln’s Sparrow	M
	Swamp Sparrow	M,WR
•	Eastern Towhee	M,PR
•	Yellow-breasted Chat	M,SR
	Yellow-headed Blackbird *	A
	Bobolink	M
•	Eastern Meadowlark	PR
•	Orchard Oriole	M,SR
•	Baltimore Oriole	M,SR
•	Red-winged Blackbird	M,PR
•	Brown-headed Cowbird	M,PR
	Rusty Blackbird	M,WV
	Brewer’s Blackbird *	A
•	Common Grackle	M,PR
•	Ovenbird	M,SR
•	Worm-eating Warbler	M,SR
•	Louisiana Waterthrush	M,SR
	Northern Waterthrush	M
	Golden-winged Warbler	M
•	Blue-winged Warbler	M,SR
•	Black-and-white Warbler	M,SR
•	Prothonotary Warbler	M,SR
	Tennessee Warbler	M
	Orange-crowned Warbler	M,WV
	Nashville Warbler	M
	Connecticut Warbler	M (fall)
	Mourning Warbler	M
•	Kentucky Warbler	M,SR
•	Common Yellowthroat	M,SR
•	Hooded Warbler	M,SR
•	American Redstart	M,SR
	Cape May Warbler	M
•	Cerulean Warbler	M,SR
•	Northern Parula	M,SR
	Magnolia Warbler	M
	Bay-breasted Warbler	M
	Blackburnian Warbler	M
•	Yellow Warbler	M,SR
	Chestnut-sided Warbler	M
	Blackpoll Warbler	M
	Black-throated Blue Warbler	M
	Palm Warbler	M
•	Pine Warbler	M,SR
	Yellow-rumped Warbler	M,WV
•	Yellow-throated Warbler	M,SR
•	Prairie Warbler	M,SR
	Black-throated Green Warbler	M
	Canada Warbler	M
	Wilson’s Warbler	M
	Summer Tanager	M,SV
•	Scarlet Tanager	M,SR
	Western Tanager	A
•	Northern Cardinal	PR
	Rose-breasted Grosbeak	M
•	Blue Grosbeak	M,SR
•	Indigo Bunting	M,SR
	Painted Bunting *	A
•	Dickcissel *	M,SV,WV

 

• Breeding evidence (may be a single record)

* Asterisk indicates written details or a photograph are required.

PR – Permanent Resident

SR – Summer Resident

SV – Summer Visitor

WR – Winter Resident

WV – Winter Visitor

M – Migrant’

C – Casual – (at least 6 records; highly irregular occurrence)

A – Accidental – (1-5 records with photo or specimen; 3-5 without)

H – Hypothetical – (1-2 records without a photograph, specimen, or Maryland/District of Columbia Records Committee acceptance)

[For C, A, or H categories, use the Contact Us tab at the top of the howardbirds.website page on the web]

 

Hybrids Brewster’s Warbler * Lawrence’s Warbler *	Extirpated Ruffed Grouse Passenger Pigeon Bewick’s Wren
Historical Record: Bachman’s Sparrow – record 1955
Spring – March-May Summer – June-July	Autumn – August-November Winter – December-February

Compiled by the Howard County Bird Club, a chapter of the Maryland Ornithological Society based on almost 60 years of records. [eBird phylogenetic order] Revised 1/2024