Birds to See in Papua New Guinea in October
18 bird species on our list for Papua New Guinea are recorded regularly in October
Of these, the most often recorded are Willie Wagtail, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Metallic Starling, Great White Egret and Blue-winged Kookaburra. New this month: Red-necked Phalarope and Little Tern.
On the move in October
GBIF · OctFrom Papua New Guinea’s bird records, 2019–2024: arriving birds are regular this month but not last; leaving birds are regular this month but not next.
Other months
All 18 birds in October
18 birds
Willie WagtailRhipidura leucophrysResidentCommon19–22 cmRecorded all year · 2.08% in Oct
Eurasian Tree SparrowPasser montanusResidentCommon13–14 cmRegularly May–Mar · 0.98% in Oct
Metallic StarlingAplonis metallicaWinter visitorCommon22–25 cmRegularly Jan–Nov · 0.89% in Oct
Great White EgretArdea albaWinter visitorCommon80–104 cmRegularly May–Dec · 0.61% in Oct
Blue-winged KookaburraDacelo leachiiWinter visitorCommon38–41 cmRegularly Apr–Nov · 0.46% in Oct
Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucosSummer visitorCommon18–20 cmRegularly Aug–Apr · 0.44% in Oct
Whistling KiteHaliastur sphenurusWinter visitorCommon50–60 cmRegularly Jun–Oct · 0.42% in Oct
Common TernSterna hirundoWinter visitorCommon31–35 cmRegularly Jun–Jan · 0.34% in Oct
Pacific Golden-PloverPluvialis fulvaPassage migrantCommon23–26 cmRegularly Sep–Apr · 0.33% in Oct
OspreyPandion haliaetusPassage migrantCommon54–58 cmRegularly Feb–Nov · 0.32% in Oct
WhimbrelNumenius phaeopusPassage migrantCommon40–46 cmRegularly Aug–May · 0.31% in Oct
Little EgretEgretta garzettaWinter visitorCommon55–65 cmRegularly May–Nov · 0.30% in Oct
Common KingfisherAlcedo atthisWinter visitorCommon16–17 cmRegularly May–Dec · 0.28% in Oct
House SparrowPasser domesticusWinter visitorCommon14–17 cmRegularly May–Nov · 0.18% in Oct
Little TernSternula albifronsPassage migrantUncommon21–25 cmRegularly Oct–Nov · 0.18% in Oct
Rock DoveColumba liviaWinter visitorUncommon31–34 cmRegularly Jun–Oct · 0.09% in Oct
Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresPassage migrantUncommon21–24 cmRegularly Sep–Nov · 0.09% in Oct
Red-necked PhalaropePhalaropus lobatusPassage migrantCommon18–19 cmRegularly Oct–Mar · 0.03% in Oct
Smallest to largest
Length, cm- Eurasian Tree Sparrow 13–14 cm
- House Sparrow 14–17 cm
- Common Kingfisher 16–17 cm
- Red-necked Phalarope 18–19 cm
- Common Sandpiper 18–20 cm
- Willie Wagtail 19–22 cm
- Ruddy Turnstone 21–24 cm
- Little Tern 21–25 cm
- Metallic Starling 22–25 cm
- Pacific Golden-Plover 23–26 cm
- Rock Dove 31–34 cm
- Common Tern 31–35 cm
- Blue-winged Kookaburra 38–41 cm
- Whimbrel 40–46 cm
- Whistling Kite 50–60 cm
- Osprey 54–58 cm
- Little Egret 55–65 cm
- Great White Egret 80–104 cm
Body length, bill to tail. Rare birds in grey.
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