Uncommon Birds in Iowa
Our list for Iowa has 78 uncommon birds recorded regularly there: 5 residents, 21 summer visitors, 22 winter visitors and 30 passage migrants
Most likely in October
GBIF · Oct
Share of all bird records in Iowa in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 78, most common first
Alder FlycatcherEmpidonax alnorumPassage migrantUncommon13–17 cmRegularly May–Aug
Black TernChlidonias nigerSummer visitorUncommon22–26 cmRegularly May–Sep
Yellow-bellied FlycatcherEmpidonax flaviventrisPassage migrantUncommon13–15 cmRegularly May–Sep
Clay-colored SparrowSpizella pallidaSummer visitorUncommon13–15 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscusWinter visitorUncommon52–64 cmRegularly Sep–Apr
VeeryCatharus fuscescensSummer visitorUncommon16–19 cmRegularly May–Sep
Mourning WarblerGeothlypis philadelphiaPassage migrantUncommon10–15 cmRegularly May–Sep
Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinusResidentUncommon34–58 cmRecorded all year
Long-tailed DuckClangula hyemalisWinter visitorUncommon37–60 cmRegularly Nov–Apr
American AvocetRecurvirostra americanaSummer visitorUncommon43–51 cmRegularly Apr–Nov
Cape May WarblerSetophaga tigrinaPassage migrantUncommon12–14 cmRegularly May–Oct
Upland SandpiperBartramia longicaudaSummer visitorUncommon28–32 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Northern Saw-whet OwlAegolius acadicusWinter visitorUncommon17–21 cmRegularly Oct–Mar
White-rumped SandpiperCalidris fuscicollisPassage migrantUncommon15–18 cmRegularly Apr–Aug
Wilson's PhalaropePhalaropus tricolorPassage migrantUncommon22–24 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Eastern Screech-owlMegascops asioWinter visitorUncommon16–25 cmRecorded all year
Snowy OwlBubo scandiacusWinter visitorUncommon52–71 cmRegularly Dec–Feb
Iceland GullLarus glaucoidesWinter visitorUncommon52–60 cmRegularly Oct–Mar
Greater ScaupAythya marilaWinter visitorUncommon39–56 cmRegularly Oct–Apr
Hudsonian GodwitLimosa haemasticaPassage migrantUncommon36–42 cmRegularly Apr–May
SanderlingCalidris albaPassage migrantUncommon18–20 cmRegularly Apr–Nov
Short-billed DowitcherLimnodromus griseusPassage migrantUncommon23–32 cmRegularly May–Sep
Western KingbirdTyrannus verticalisSummer visitorUncommon20–24 cmRegularly May–Aug
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