Rare Birds in California
Our list for California has 99 rare birds recorded regularly there: 20 residents, 15 summer visitors, 28 winter visitors, 34 passage migrants and 2 scarce visitors
Most likely in October
GBIF · Oct
Share of all bird records in California in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 99, most common first
Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcanSummer visitorRare32–36 cmRegularly Mar–Dec
Painted BuntingPasserina cirisPassage migrantRare12–14 cmRegularly Aug–Dec
Northern Saw-whet OwlAegolius acadicusResidentRare17–21 cmRecorded all year
BobolinkDolichonyx oryzivorusPassage migrantRare16–20 cmRegularly May–Nov
GarganeySpatula querquedulaPassage migrantRare37–41 cmRegularly Nov–Mar
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreusWinter visitorRare62–68 cmRegularly Nov–Apr
Mandarin DuckAix galericulataWinter visitorRare41–49 cmRecorded all year
King EiderSomateria spectabilisPassage migrantRare46–64 cmRegularly Dec
Swan GooseAnser cygnoidesResidentRare81–94 cmRecorded all year
Trumpeter SwanCygnus buccinatorWinter visitorRare139–157 cmRegularly Nov–Mar
OvenbirdSeiurus aurocapillaSummer visitorRare12–15 cmRegularly May–Feb
ChukarAlectoris chukarResidentRare32–38 cmRecorded all year
Prothonotary WarblerProtonotaria citreaPassage migrantRare13–14 cmRegularly May–Oct
Scarlet TanagerPiranga olivaceaPassage migrantRare16–19 cmRegularly Jun–Dec
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusWinter visitorRare52–64 cmRegularly Jul–Apr
Least FlycatcherEmpidonax minimusPassage migrantRare12–14 cmRegularly Jun–Mar
Buff-breasted SandpiperCalidris subruficollisPassage migrantRare18–20 cmRegularly Sep–Oct
Flammulated OwlPsiloscops flammeolusSummer visitorRare15–17 cmRegularly May–Aug
Bar-tailed GodwitLimosa lapponicaPassage migrantRare37–41 cmRegularly Jul–Oct
Tufted DuckAythya fuligulaWinter visitorRare40–47 cmRegularly Nov–Apr
Gray CatbirdDumetella carolinensisResidentRare20–24 cmRegularly May–Mar
Pied WagtailMotacilla albaPassage migrantRare17–19 cmRegularly Sep–Apr
Manx ShearwaterPuffinus puffinusSummer visitorRare30–38 cmRegularly Mar–Dec
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