State/Province Checklists

  State Birding Hot Spots
and Web Sites
( BirdWatchingUSA.com )

  Ornithological Society
Web Site
Records Committee

 Number of Species
on Checklist

Date of
Last Update

American Birding Association 1103 Nov 2017
American Ornithological Society 2143 Jul 2018
Alabama Alabama Bird Records Committee 446 Jul 2017
Alaska  University of Alaska Museum 521 Jan 2018
Arizona Arizona Bird Committee 556 Dec 2017
Arkansas Arkansas Bird Records Committee 414 Aug 2009
California California Bird Records Committee 671 Jun 2018
Colorado Colorado Bird Records Committee 501 Jul 2018
Connecticut Avian Records Committee of Connecticut
440
Jun 2017
Delaware Delaware Records Committee 417 Sep 2015
District of Columbia MD/DC Records Committee 340 Jun 2018
Florida Florida Ornith. Soc. Records Committee 524 Dec 2016
Georgia Georgia Checklist & Records Committee 423 Jan 2018
Hawaii Bishop Museum 338 Dec 2009
Idaho Idaho Birds Records Committee 409 Sep 2007
Illinois Illinois Ornithological Records Committee 444 May 2018
Indiana Indiana Bird Records Committee 420 Dec 2016
Iowa Iowa Records Committee 429 Mar 2018
Kansas Kansas Bird Records Committee 480 Feb 2018
Kentucky Kentucky Bird Records Committee 387 Dec 2017
Louisiana Louisiana Bird Records Committee 482 Aug 2016
Maine Maine Bird Records Committee 455 Apr 2018
Maryland MD/DC Records Committee 453 Jun 2018
Massachusetts Massachusetts Avian Records Committee 501 Dec 2017
Michigan Michigan Bird Records Committee 446 Aug 2017
Minnesota Minn. Ornith. Union Records Committee 443 Dec 2013
Mississippi MOS Records Committee 421 Jul 2015
Missouri Missouri Bird Records Committee 434 Aug 2017
Montana Montana Bird Records Committee 427 Apr 2012
Nebraska NOU Records Committee 463 Mar 2018
Nevada Nevada Bird Records Committee 488 Oct 2017
New Hampshire New Hampshire Bird Records Committee 399 Apr 2010
New Jersey New Jersey Bird Records Committee 478 Dec 2017
New Mexico New Mexico Bird Records Committee 544 Aug 2017
New York New York State Avian Records Committee 493 Jul 2018
North Carolina Carolina Bird Club Bird Records Committee 467 Jun 2018
North Dakota North Dakota Bird Records Committee 399 Apr 2016
Ohio Ohio Bird Records Committee 433 Jun 2016
Oklahoma Oklahoma Bird Records Committee 480 Oct 2017
Oregon Oregon Bird Records Committee 536 Jul 2017
Pennsylvania Penn. Ornithological Records Committee 433 Jun 2018
Rhode Island RIBird.org 424 Dec 2012
South Carolina Carolina Bird Club Bird Records Committee 433 Jun 2018
South Dakota South Dakota Ornithologist’s Union 438 Jan 2018
Tennessee Tennessee Bird Records Committee 409 Apr 2014
Texas Texas Bird Records Committee 649 Jul 2018
Utah Utah Bird Records Committee 463 Jan 2018
Vermont Vermont Bird Records Committee 387 Jul 2018
Virginia Virginia Avian Records Committee 477 Jun 2018
Washington Washington Bird Records Committee 518 Oct 2017
West Virginia West Virginia Bird Records Committee 363 Mar 2016
Wisconsin WSO Records Committee 437 Mar 2017
Wyoming Wyoming Bird Records Committee 445 Jul 2018
Alberta Alberta Bird Records Committee 426 Jul 2017
British Columbia 522 Sep 2018
Manitoba 403 May 2018
New Brunswick New Brunswick Bird Records Committee 417 Jul 2014
Newfoundland 410 Jun 2018
Northwest Territories ??? ???
Nova Scotia 486 Mar 2016
Nunavut ??? ???
Ontario Ontario Bird Records Committee 496 Apr 2017
Prince Edward Island PEI Bird Records Committee 370 Jun 2018
Quebec Quebec Bird Records Committee 459 Jul 2018
Saskatchewan 393 Sep 2017
Yukon Territory 328 Mar 2017

Most states and provinces do NOT list exotic birds unless they have been recognized by the American Birding Association (e.g. Monk Parakeet is on the Florida list, Rose-ringed Parakeet is not). Most do not include escaped cage birds or feral birds (e.g. Mandarin Duck or Muscovy Duck). Most do not include birds of uncertain natural occurrence or undetermined origin. Most do not add birds to a state checklist that were transported by man or that were ship-assisted. Some states have a “Hypothetical” list with extra birds that have not been properly documented.

The “Official Checklist” column shows the total species for checklists appearing on “official” state web sites. Where ??? appears, a list is present, but totals are not shown. Some of these are links to pdf files. Download a free PDF viewer. The date of the last update is also shown.

Please email any changes or corrections to Pete Thayer.

What Makes a Great State or Province Checklist?

1. The name of the state or province appears at the top of the page.
2. The date of the last update appears at the top of the page.
3. The number of species on the list appears at the top of the page.
4. The number of species that are regularly occurring, accidental, extirpated and extinct is also shown at the top of the page.
5. The American Ornithological Society supplement used to create the checklist (and the date of its release) is referenced. New common or scientific names created by the new AOS supplement are highlighted.
6. The Order and Major Family headings are shown in bold print.
7. Rare and accidental birds are clearly marked.
8. A web-based version and a pdf version (printable version) are both available.
9. Species rows are numbered 1, 2, 3… and only one species per row is shown (on the web-based version).

Very Helpful Additions:

1. A list of birds added to the official checklist within the past five years is available. (See Utah)
2. A separate list of “Review” birds is available – these birds need special documentation when seen.
3. The checklist links to or contains information on regional or seasonal abundance (i.e. rare away from the coast or expected only during fall migration)
4. A “Findability” code is included – very helpful for out of state visitors.
5. A link to the State Rare Bird Commitee web page is prominently displayed. The RBC page has member’s email addresses and annual reports.