Rare Birds in North Carolina
Our list for North Carolina has 77 rare birds recorded regularly there: 10 residents, 10 summer visitors, 29 winter visitors, 27 passage migrants and 1 scarce visitor
Most likely in October
GBIF · OctShare of all bird records in North Carolina in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 77, most common first
Horned LarkEremophila alpestrisResidentRare16–20 cmRecorded all year
Virginia RailRallus limicolaWinter visitorRare20–27 cmRecorded all year
Gull-billed TernGelochelidon niloticaSummer visitorRare33–42 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Long-tailed DuckClangula hyemalisWinter visitorRare37–60 cmRegularly Nov–Mar
Red-cockaded WoodpeckerLeuconotopicus borealisResidentRare20–23 cmRecorded all year
Red CrossbillLoxia curvirostraResidentRare15–17 cmRecorded all year
Pomarine JaegerStercorarius pomarinusPassage migrantRare46–51 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Manx ShearwaterPuffinus puffinusWinter visitorRare30–38 cmRegularly Dec–Sep
Atlantic PuffinFratercula arcticaPassage migrantRare28–34 cmRegularly Feb–Mar
Common MerganserMergus merganserWinter visitorRare58–68 cmRegularly Nov–Sep
Greylag GooseAnser anserResidentRare75–90 cmRecorded all year
Little AukAlle allePassage migrantRare18–21 cmRegularly Jan–Mar
EiderSomateria mollissimaWinter visitorRare50–71 cmRegularly Nov–Jul
Ross's GooseAnser rossiiWinter visitorRare57–64 cmRegularly Nov–Mar
Sand MartinRiparia ripariaSummer visitorRare12–14 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Sandhill CraneAntigone canadensisWinter visitorRare80–122 cmRegularly Nov–May
DickcisselSpiza americanaSummer visitorRare14–16 cmRegularly May–Feb
GoldeneyeBucephala clangulaWinter visitorRare40–51 cmRegularly Nov–Mar
Upland SandpiperBartramia longicaudaPassage migrantRare28–32 cmRegularly Apr–Sep
Leach's Storm-petrelHydrobates leucorhousPassage migrantRare18–21 cmRegularly May–Aug
American BitternBotaurus lentiginosusWinter visitorRare58–85 cmRegularly Aug–Jun
Long-tailed JaegerStercorarius longicaudusPassage migrantRare48–58 cmRegularly May–Sep
White-rumped SandpiperCalidris fuscicollisSummer visitorRare15–18 cmRegularly May–Nov
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