Birds in Japan
176 species listed · birdwatchers' records, 2019–2024
Our list for Japan has 176 bird species recorded regularly there: 47 residents, 23 summer visitors, 74 winter visitors, 28 passage migrants and 4 scarce visitors.
The list comes from 2.4 million birdwatchers' records from 2019–2024, shared through the eBird Observation Dataset on GBIF. A bird is listed when it was recorded in at least 3 of the 6 years and has a Birdfact species guide, so more species occur here than are listed; the months show when it is recorded most years.
Birds to see in Japan in September
113 species on our list are recorded regularly this month. These are the ones birdwatchers record most often.

Eurasian Tree Sparrow
Resident

Grey Heron
Resident

Carrion Crow
Resident

Great White Egret
Resident

Pied Wagtail
Resident

Rock Dove
Resident

Great Cormorant
Resident

Little Egret
Resident
Arriving in September: Eurasian Teal, Eurasian Wigeon, Tufted Duck, Northern Shoveler, Vega Gull, Whooper Swan, Black-necked Grebe, Oriental Honey-buzzard and 11 more.
Through the year
Species recorded regularly in Japan each month: most in April (141), fewest in July (89). Choose a month to see its birds.
Get a monthly guide to birds in Japan
Find out which birds are visiting your area this month, with seasonal tips and garden advice
Get Your Free DigestAll 176 birds on the list
Showing 24–46 of 176 species

Eurasian Skylark
Alauda arvensisLC
Recorded all year

Grey Wagtail
Motacilla cinereaLC
Recorded all year

Great Crested Grebe
Podiceps cristatusLC
Recorded all year

Northern Shoveler
Spatula clypeataLC
Regularly Sep–Jun

Northern Pintail
Anas acutaLC
Recorded all year

Gadwall
Mareca streperaLC
Regularly Oct–Jun

Cuckoo
Cuculus canorusLC
Regularly May–Jul

Black-headed Gull
Chroicocephalus ridibundusLC
Regularly Aug–Jun
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Osprey
Pandion haliaetusLC
Recorded all year

Little Ringed Plover
Thinornis dubiusLC
Recorded all year

Coal Tit
Periparus aterLC
Recorded all year

Hawfinch
Coccothraustes coccothraustesLC
Regularly Aug–Jun

Black-crowned Night-heron
Nycticorax nycticoraxLC
Recorded all year

Eurasian Jay
Garrulus glandariusLC
Recorded all year

Greater Scaup
Aythya marilaLC
Recorded all year

Great Spotted Woodpecker
Dendrocopos majorLC
Recorded all year

Red-breasted Merganser
Mergus serratorLC
Regularly Oct–May

Greenshank
Tringa nebulariaLC
Regularly Jul–May

Common Merganser
Mergus merganserLC
Recorded all year

Whimbrel
Numenius phaeopusLC
Regularly Jan–Oct

White-tailed Sea-eagle
Haliaeetus albicillaLC
Regularly Aug–Feb

Moorhen
Gallinula chloropusLC
Recorded all year

Goldeneye
Bucephala clangulaLC
Regularly Nov–Apr
Frequently Asked Questions
Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made