Birds in Missouri
Our list for Missouri has 194 bird species recorded regularly there: 43 residents, 37 summer visitors, 50 winter visitors, 61 passage migrants and 3 scarce visitors
The list comes from 8.2 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.
- Species on our list
- 194
- In October
- 141
- Common
- 69
- Busiest month
- May
What's special about Missouri
vs United StatesThe birds recorded far more often here than across United States, as a share of all bird records. These are the ones Missouri is worth visiting for.
Eurasian Tree Sparrow41×Resident · 0.73% of records here, 0.02% across United States
Dickcissel5.9×Summer visitor · 0.50% of records here, 0.08% across United States
Red-headed Woodpecker4.2×Resident · 1.00% of records here, 0.24% across United States
Ross's Goose3.6×Winter visitor · 0.08% of records here, 0.02% across United States
Greater White-fronted Goose3.3×Winter visitor · 0.25% of records here, 0.07% across United States
Pectoral Sandpiper2.9×Passage migrant · 0.22% of records here, 0.08% across United States
Barred Owl2.8×Resident · 0.47% of records here, 0.17% across United States
American Golden-Plover2.7×Passage migrant · 0.05% of records here, 0.02% across United States
This month: October
GBIF · OctMost likely
Arriving now
Share of all bird records in Missouri in October, 2019–2024. “Arriving now” are the birds whose share rises most from last month. Each month links to that month’s page.
Near you this week
The birds most likely around your town or postcode right now, from the same records, for a square about 9 km across.
The bird calendar for Missouri
Month by monthWhen each bird is around, through the year. The darker the square, the closer that month is to the bird’s busiest. Filter by summer or winter visitors to see the seasons turn over.
| Bird | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Cardinal | ||||||||||||
| Blue Jay | ||||||||||||
| Mourning Dove | ||||||||||||
| Red-bellied Woodpecker | ||||||||||||
| American Robin | ||||||||||||
| Tufted Titmouse | ||||||||||||
| Downy Woodpecker | ||||||||||||
| American Crow | ||||||||||||
| Common Starling | ||||||||||||
| Turkey Vulture | ||||||||||||
| House Finch | ||||||||||||
| White-breasted Nuthatch | ||||||||||||
| Canada Goose | ||||||||||||
| Red-winged Blackbird | ||||||||||||
| House Sparrow | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Bluebird | ||||||||||||
| Northern Flicker | ||||||||||||
| Red-tailed Hawk | ||||||||||||
| Common Grackle | ||||||||||||
| Great Blue Heron | ||||||||||||
| Song Sparrow | ||||||||||||
| Mallard | ||||||||||||
| Ruby-throated Hummingbird | ||||||||||||
| Barn Swallow | ||||||||||||
| Bald Eagle | ||||||||||||
| Pileated Woodpecker | ||||||||||||
| Northern Mockingbird | ||||||||||||
| Yellow-rumped Warbler | ||||||||||||
| Red-headed Woodpecker | ||||||||||||
| Chipping Sparrow |
The year in Missouri
Records by month| January | 489,794 |
|---|---|
| February | 518,733 |
| March | 670,242 |
| April | 1,258,403 |
| May | 1,610,030 |
| June | 619,277 |
| July | 495,858 |
| August | 455,946 |
| September | 541,806 |
| October | 551,604 |
| November | 471,908 |
| December | 495,057 |
May has the most records (1.6 million). Records follow birdwatchers as well as birds: a busy month means more people out looking, as well as more birds passing through.
By family
12 of 27How common
More of United States
- Birds in California232 species
- Birds in New York232 species
- Birds in Massachusetts228 species
- Birds in Texas227 species
All 194 birds, A to Z
- Alder Flycatcher
- American Avocet
- American Bittern
- American Black Duck
- American Crow
- American Golden-Plover
- American Herring Gull
- American Redstart
- American Robin
- American Tree Sparrow
- Baird's Sandpiper
- Bald Eagle
- Baltimore Oriole
- Barn Swallow
- Barred Owl
- Bay-breasted Warbler
- Black Tern
- Black-billed Cuckoo
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Black-necked Grebe
- Black-throated Blue Warbler
- Black-throated Green Warbler
- Blackpoll Warbler
- Blue Jay
Show all 194 birds
- Blue-headed Vireo
- Bobolink
- Bonaparte's Gull
- Broad-winged Hawk
- Buff-breasted Sandpiper
- Cackling Goose
- Canada Goose
- Cape May Warbler
- Cattle Egret
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chestnut-sided Warbler
- Chipping Sparrow
- Cinnamon Teal
- Clay-colored Sparrow
- Common Grackle
- Common Loon
- Common Merganser
- Common Pheasant
- Common Starling
- Common Tern
- Common Yellowthroat
- Dickcissel
- Downy Woodpecker
- Dunlin
- Eastern Bluebird
- Eastern Screech-owl
- Eurasian Collared Dove
- Eurasian Teal
- Eurasian Tree Sparrow
- Evening Grosbeak
- Fish Crow
- Forster's Tern
- Fox Sparrow
- Franklin's Gull
- Gadwall
- Glaucous Gull
- Glossy Ibis
- Golden Eagle
- Goldeneye
- Gray Catbird
- Gray-cheeked Thrush
- Great Black-backed Gull
- Great Blue Heron
- Great Crested Flycatcher
- Great Horned Owl
- Great White Egret
- Greater Roadrunner
- Greater Scaup
- Greater White-fronted Goose
- Greater Yellowlegs
- Grey Plover
- Greylag Goose
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Hermit Thrush
- Hooded Merganser
- Horned Grebe
- Horned Lark
- House Finch
- House Sparrow
- Hudsonian Godwit
- Iceland Gull
- Lapland Longspur
- Lark Sparrow
- Least Flycatcher
- Least Sandpiper
- Lesser Black-backed Gull
- Lesser Yellowlegs
- Lincoln's Sparrow
- Long-billed Dowitcher
- Long-tailed Duck
- Magnolia Warbler
- Mallard
- Mandarin Duck
- Marbled Godwit
- Marsh Wren
- Merlin
- Mountain Bluebird
- Mourning Dove
- Mourning Warbler
- Muscovy Duck
- Mute Swan
- Nashville Warbler
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Northern Pintail
- Northern Saw-whet Owl
- Northern Shoveler
- Northern Waterthrush
- Northern Yellow Warbler
- Orange-crowned Warbler
- Osprey
- Ovenbird
- Pacific Loon
- Painted Bunting
- Palm Warbler
- Pectoral Sandpiper
- Peregrine Falcon
- Philadelphia Vireo
- Pied-billed Grebe
- Pileated Woodpecker
- Pine Siskin
- Piping Plover
- Prothonotary Warbler
- Purple Martin
- Red Crossbill
- Red-bellied Woodpecker
- Red-breasted Merganser
- Red-headed Woodpecker
- Red-necked Grebe
- Red-necked Phalarope
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-throated Loon
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Ring-billed Gull
- Rock Dove
- Rose-breasted Grosbeak
- Ross's Goose
- Rough-legged Hawk
- Ruby-crowned Kinglet
- Ruby-throated Hummingbird
- Ruddy Duck
- Ruddy Turnstone
- Ruff
- Sabine's Gull
- Sand Martin
- Sanderling
- Sandhill Crane
- Say's Phoebe
- Scarlet Tanager
- Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
- Semipalmated Plover
- Semipalmated Sandpiper
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Short-billed Dowitcher
- Short-eared Owl
- Snow Bunting
- Snow Goose
- Solitary Sandpiper
- Song Sparrow
- Stilt Sandpiper
- Surf Scoter
- Swainson's Thrush
- Swamp Sparrow
- Swan Goose
- Tennessee Warbler
- Trumpeter Swan
- Tufted Titmouse
- Tundra Swan
- Turkey Vulture
- Upland Sandpiper
- Veery
- Vesper Sparrow
- Virginia Rail
- Western Kingbird
- Western Meadowlark
- Western Sandpiper
- Whimbrel
- White-breasted Nuthatch
- White-crowned Sparrow
- White-rumped Sandpiper
- White-winged Dove
- Wild Turkey
- Willet
- Willow Flycatcher
- Wilson's Phalarope
- Wood Duck
- Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
- Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Questions
4What birds is Missouri known for?
Compared with the rest of United States, Missouri stands out for Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Dickcissel, Red-headed Woodpecker and Ross's Goose. Each is recorded at least 3.5 times as often here as across United States, as a share of all bird records (2019–2024).
How many birds are on Birdfact's list for Missouri?
194 species, each recorded regularly in Missouri (in at least 3 of the 6 years 2019–2024): 43 residents, 37 summer visitors, 50 winter visitors, 61 passage migrants and 3 scarce visitors. The list includes only birds with a Birdfact species guide, so more species occur in Missouri, and rarer vagrants are not listed.
What birds can I see in Missouri in October?
141 species on our list for Missouri are recorded regularly in October. Of these, the most often recorded are Blue Jay, Northern Cardinal, Red-bellied Woodpecker, American Crow and Downy Woodpecker.
What are the most common birds in Missouri?
Of the birds on our list, the ones birdwatchers record most often in Missouri are Northern Cardinal, Blue Jay, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker and Red-bellied Woodpecker.
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












