Birds in Orkney Islands

168 species listed · birdwatchers' records, 2019–2024

Our list for Orkney Islands has 168 bird species recorded regularly there: 30 residents, 60 summer visitors, 6 winter visitors, 61 passage migrants and 11 scarce visitors.

The list comes from 87,000 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 Orkney Islands in September

139 species on our list are recorded regularly this month. These are the ones birdwatchers record most often.

All 139 birds in September

Arriving in September: Redwing, Snow Bunting, Northern Pintail, Whooper Swan, European Robin, Fieldfare, Gadwall, Pink-footed Goose and 34 more.

Through the year

Species recorded regularly in Orkney Islands each month: most in September (139), fewest in January (41). Choose a month to see its birds.

139
Show as a table
Goldcrest
GoldcrestSmallest · 8.5cm
to
Whooper Swan
Whooper SwanLargest · 165cm
From the Goldcrest (8.5 cm) to the Whooper Swan (165 cm)42 families

All 168 birds on the list

Showing 116–138 of 168 species

Sandwich Tern

Sandwich Tern

Thalasseus sandvicensisLC

Summer visitorUncommon

Regularly Apr–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Common Scoter

Common Scoter

Melanitta nigraLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Aug–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Greater Scaup

Greater Scaup

Aythya marilaLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Sep–Apr

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Manx Shearwater

Manx Shearwater

Puffinus puffinusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Jun–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Yellow-browed Warbler

Yellow-browed Warbler

Phylloscopus inornatusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Sep–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Whinchat

Whinchat

Saxicola rubetraLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Apr–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Lesser Whitethroat

Lesser Whitethroat

Curruca currucaLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly May–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Ring Ouzel

Ring Ouzel

Turdus torquatusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Apr–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D

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Cuckoo

Cuckoo

Cuculus canorusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly May–Aug

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Garden Warbler

Garden Warbler

Sylvia borinLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly May–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Lapland Longspur

Lapland Longspur

Calcarius lapponicusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Sep–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Common Swift

Common Swift

Apus apusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Jul–Sep

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
European Pied Flycatcher

European Pied Flycatcher

Ficedula hypoleucaLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly May–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Little Tern

Little Tern

Sternula albifronsLC

Summer visitorUncommon

Regularly May–Aug

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Red-backed Shrike

Red-backed Shrike

Lanius collurioLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Jun–Sep

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Common Redstart

Common Redstart

Phoenicurus phoenicurusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Apr–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Common Sandpiper

Common Sandpiper

Actitis hypoleucosLC

Summer visitorUncommon

Regularly Apr–Sep

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Hawfinch

Hawfinch

Coccothraustes coccothraustesLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
European Storm-petrel

European Storm-petrel

Hydrobates pelagicusLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Jun–Sep

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Common Merganser

Common Merganser

Mergus merganserLC

ResidentUncommon

Regularly Jun–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Little Auk

Little Auk

Alle alleLC

ScarceUncommon
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Pochard

Pochard

Aythya ferinaVU

ResidentUncommon

Regularly Sep–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Greenshank

Greenshank

Tringa nebulariaLC

Passage migrantUncommon

Regularly Sep–Oct

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
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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

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