The checklist was compiled by Madeline Richard in 1992 and updated in 1997 by Mike Boyd. The list was recently reviewed and updated by Jim Watt, Mark Cranford and Mark Chojnacki. It comprises all 306 bird species which have been recorded in the South Peel Naturalists’ Club Field Study Area, for which sufficient documented evidence has been preserved. 115 of these species nest or have been known to nest in the Club’s area.

Classification, nomenclature, and order follow the American Ornithological Union (AOU) check-list of North American Birds (7th Edition), including the 46th supplement (2005).

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Terms and Abbreviations used as follows:

Abundance Seasonal Status
C – Common P – Permanent Resident
U – Uncommon S – Summer Resident
R – Rare W – Winter Resident
E – Erratic M – Migrant
A – Accidental * – Nests or Know to Have Nested
DUCKS, GEESE & SWANS
A Greater White-fronted Goose
RM Snow Goose
RM Brant
CP* Canada Goose
CP* Mute Swan
RM Trumpeter Swan
UM Tundra Swan
US* Wood Duck
CW Gadwall
A Eurasian Wigeon
UW American Wigeon
CP* American Black Duck
CP* Mallard
UM* Blue-winged Teal
A Cinnamon Teal
UM Northern Shoveler
UM Northern Pintail
CM* Green-winged Teal
RW Canvasback
UW Redhead
RW Ring-necked Duck
A Tufted Duck
CW Greater Scaup
UM Lesser Scaup
RW King Eider
RW Harlequin Duck
RW Surf Scoter
UW White-winged Scoter
RW Black Scoter
CW Long-tailed Duck
CW Bufflehead
CW Common Goldeneye
RW Barrow’s Goldeneye
UM Hooded Merganser
UW Common Merganser
C Red-breasted Merganser
UM Ruddy Duck
PARTRIDGES, GROUSE & TURKEYS
RP* Ring-necked Pheasant
UP* Ruffed Grouse
LOONS
RM Red-throated Loon
A Pacific Loon
A Common Loon
GREBES
CM Pied-billed Grebe
CM Horned Grebe
UM* Red-necked Grebe
RM Eared Grebe
A Western Grebe
SHEARWATERS & PETRELS
A Black-capped Petrel
GANNETS
A Northern Gannet
PELICANS
E American White Pelican
CORMORANTS
CS Double-crested Cormorant
A Great Cormorant
HERONS & BITTERNS
US American Bittern
RM Least Bittern
CS* Great Blue Heron
UM Great Egret
RM Snowy Egret
A Little Blue Heron
RM Cattle Egret
US* Green Heron
US* Black-crowned Night-Heron
VULTURES
CS* Turkey Vulture
HAWKS, KITES & EAGLES
UM Osprey
UM Bald Eagle
UP* Northern Harrier
CP Sharp-shinned Hawk
UM* Cooper’s Hawk
RW Northern Goshawk
UM Red-shouldered Hawk
CM Broad-winged Hawk
CP* Red-tailed Hawk
UW Rough-legged Hawk
RM Golden Eagle
CARACARAS & FALCONS
CP* American Kestrel
RM Merlin
US* Peregrine Falcon
RM Gyrfalcon
RAILS, GALLINULES & COOTS
RM Yellow Rail
RM King Rail
US* Virginia Rail
US* Sora
UM* Common Moorhen
UP American Coot
CRANES
RM Sandhill Crane
PLOVERS
UM Black-bellied Plover
RM American Golden-Plover
CM Semipalmated Plover
CS* Killdeer
STILTS & AVOCETS
A American Avocet
SANDPIPERS & PHALAROPES
CM Greater Yellowlegs
CM Lesser Yellowlegs
UM Solitary Sandpiper
RM Willet
CS* Spotted Sandpiper
US* Upland Sandpiper
UM Whimbrel
RM Hudsonian Godwit
UM Ruddy Turnstone
RM Red Knot
UM Sanderling
UM Semipalmated Sandpiper
CM Least Sandpiper
RM White-rumped Sandpiper
RM Baird’s Sandpiper
UM Pectoral Sandpiper
RM Purple Sandpiper
CM Dunlin
UM Stilt Sandpiper
A Ruff
RM Short-billed Dowitcher
RM Wilson’s Phalarope
US* American Woodcock
UM Wilson’s Snipe
RM Red-necked Phalarope
A Red Phalarope
SKUAS, GULLS, TERNS & SKIMMERS
RM Pomarine Jaeger
RM Parasitic Jaeger
RM Franklin’s Gull
RM Little Gull
A Black-headed Gull
CM Bonaparte’s Gull
A Mew Gull
CP Ring-billed Gull
CP Herring Gull
RW Iceland Gull
RW Lesser Black-backed Gull
UW Glaucous Gull
UP Great Black-backed Gull
RM Black-legged Kittiwake
A Sabine’s Gull
CS Caspian Tern
CS* Common Tern
RM Forster’s Tern
RM* Black Tern
AUKS, MURRES & PUFFINS
A Razorbill
PIGEONS & DOVES
CP* Rock Pigeon
CP* Mourning Dove
CUCKOOS & ANIS
RS* Black-billed Cuckoo
RS* Yellow-billed Cuckoo
TYPICAL OWLS
UP* Eastern Screech Owl
UP* Great Horned Owl
EW Snowy Owl
A Northern Hawk Owl
RW Barred Owl
AW Great Gray Owl
UW* Long-eared Owl
RW* Short-eared Owl
EW Boreal Owl
UW Northern Saw-whet Owl
GOATSUCKERS
CS* Common Nighthawk
UM Whip-poor-will
SWIFTS
CS* Chimney Swift
HUMMINGBIRDS
CS* Ruby-throated Hummingbird
KINGFISHERS
UP* Belted Kingfisher
WOODPECKERS
RM* Red-headed Woodpecker
RP Red-bellied Woodpecker
UM Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
CP* Downy Woodpecker
CP* Hairy Woodpecker
EW American Three-toed Woodpecker
E Black-backed Woodpecker
CS* Northern Flicker
UP* Pileated Woodpecker
TYRANT FLYCATCHERS
UM Olive-sided Flycatcher
CS* Eastern Wood-Pewee
UM Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
US* Alder Flycatcher
US* Willow Flycatcher
US* Least Flycatcher
S* Eastern Phoebe
CS* Great-crested Flycatcher
CS* Eastern Kingbird
A Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
SHRIKES
A* Loggerhead Shrike
EW Northern Shrike
VIREOS
RM White-eyed Vireo
RM Yellow-throated Vireo
US Blue-headed Vireo
US* Warbling Vireo
US Philadelphia Vireo
CS* Red-eyed Vireo
CROWS & JAYS
CP* Blue Jay
A Black-billed Magpie
CP* American Crow
E Common Raven
LARKS
UM* Horned Lark
SWALLOWS
CS* Purple Martin
CS* Tree Swallow
CS* Northern Rough-winged Swallow
CS* Bank Swallow
US* Cliff Swallow
CS* Barn Swallow
CHICKADEES & TITMICE
CP* Black-capped Chickadee
EW Boreal Chickadee
RW* Tufted Titmouse
NUTHATCHES
UP* Red-breasted Nuthatch
CP* White-breasted Nuthatch
CREEPERS
UP* Brown Creeper
WRENS
UP* Carolina Wren
A Bewick’s Wren
CS House Wren
US Winter Wren
RS Sedge Wren
US* Marsh Wren
KINGLETS
CM Golden-crowned Kinglet
CM* Ruby-crowned Kinglet
GNATCATCHERS
UM* Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
THRUSHES
US* Eastern Bluebird
A Townsend’s Solitaire
CM* Veery
CM Gray-cheeked Thrush
CM Swainson’s Thrush
CM Hermit Thrush
CM* Wood Thrush
CP* American Robin
A Varied Thrush
MOCKINGBIRDS & THRASHERS
CS* Gray Catbird
CP* Northern Mockingbird
CS* Brown Thrasher
STARLINGS
CP* European Starling
PIPITS
UM American Pipit
WAXWINGS
E Bohemian Waxwing
UP* Cedar Waxwing
WOOD-WARBLERS
UM Blue-winged Warbler
UM Golden-winged Warbler
CM Tennessee Warbler
UM Orange-crowned Warbler
CM Nashville Warbler
UM Northern Parula
CS* Yellow Warbler
CM Chestnut-sided Warbler
CM Magnolia Warbler
UM Cape May Warbler
CM Black-throated Blue Warbler
CM Yellow-rumped Warbler
A Black-throated Gray Warbler
CM Black-throated Green Warbler
CM Blackburnian Warbler
A Yellow-throated Warbler
UM* Pine Warbler
RM Prairie Warbler
CM Palm Warbler
CM Bay-breasted Warbler
UM Blackpoll Warbler
RM Cerulean Warbler
CM Black-and-white Warbler
CM* American Redstart
RM Prothonotary Warbler
CM* Ovenbird
CM* Northern Waterthrush
RM Louisiana Waterthrush
RM Kentucky Warbler
RM Connecticut Warbler
RM* Mourning Warbler
UM* Common Yellowthroat
RM Hooded Warbler
CM Wilson’s Warbler
CM Canada Warbler
RM* Yellow-breasted Chat
TANAGERS
CM* Scarlet Tanager
A Western Tanager
EMBERIZIDS
US* Eastern Towhee
A Spotted Towhee
UW American Tree Sparrow
CS* Chipping Sparrow
RM* Clay-coloured Sparrow
CS* Field Sparrow
CS* Vesper Sparrow
CS* Savannah Sparrow
US* Grasshopper Sparrow
A* Henslow’s Sparrow
UM Fox Sparrow
CP* Song Sparrow
UM Lincoln’s Sparrow
US Swamp Sparrow
CP White-throated Sparrow
A Harris’s Sparrow
UM White-crowned Sparrow
CW Dark-eyed Junco
UM Lapland Longspur
EW Snow Bunting
CARDINALS & ALLIES
CP* Northern Cardinal
CS* Rose-breasted Grosbeak
CS* Indigo Bunting
A Dickcissel
BLACKBIRDS
CS* Bobolink
CS* Red-winged Blackbird
CS* Eastern Meadowlark
RM* Western Meadowlark
A Yellow-headed Blackbird
UM* Rusty Blackbird
CS* Common Grackle
CS* Brown-headed Cowbird
RM* Orchard Oriole
CS* Baltimore Oriole
FINCHES
EW Pine Grosbeak
EW Purple Finch
CP* House Finch
EW Red Crossbill
EW White-winged Crossbill
EW Common Redpoll
EW Hoary Redpoll
EW Pine Siskin
CP* American Goldfinch
EW Evening Grosbeak
OLD WORLD SPARROWS
CP* House Sparrow