Reference
How many bird species are in each US state (and Canadian province)
Every US state has an official list of the bird species ever recorded there, kept by a bird records committee: a group of experienced birders who check the evidence for each rare sighting. California has the most, with 696 species on its official list (September 8, 2026), then Texas with 678 and Arizona with 569. Below is the official count for every state and Canadian province, with the list’s own date and a link to the list itself.
Updated
Official bird species counts
US states and the District of Columbia first, then Canada. Counts aren’t a ranking of how good the birding is: each list follows its own rules (see why counts differ).
| Species | State or province | List’s date | Kept by | Official list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 455 | Alabama Includes 11 species known from sight records only and 4 extinct or extirpated species. | As of September 2025 | Kept by Alabama Ornithological Society Bird Records Committee | Field Checklist of Alabama Birds (September 2025) |
| 551 | Alaska Only species backed by a specimen or photo; 15 others are listed separately. | As of January 1, 2026 | Kept by University of Alaska Museum with the Alaska Bird Records Committee | Checklist of Alaska Birds, 32nd edition (2026) |
| 569 | Arizona The 2024 list page itself gives 570. | As of January 2024 | Kept by Arizona Bird Committee | ABC State Lists page |
| 428 | Arkansas Includes extinct species. | As of No date given | Kept by Arkansas Bird Records Committee (Arkansas Bird Alliance) | Birds of Arkansas (online state checklist) |
| 696 | California Includes 19 introduced species now living wild. | As of September 8, 2026 | Kept by California Bird Records Committee (Western Field Ornithologists) | Official California Checklist |
| 522 | Colorado An online list the committee keeps current. | As of Kept up to date online | Kept by Colorado Bird Records Committee (Colorado Field Ornithologists) | CBRC State Checklist (live) |
| 454 | Connecticut | As of September 17, 2026 | Kept by Avian Records Committee of Connecticut (Connecticut Ornithological Association) | Checklist of the Birds of Connecticut |
| 432 | Delaware Four species awaiting review are not counted yet. | As of July 2025 | Kept by Delaware Bird Records Committee (Delaware Ornithological Society) | Delaware State List of Bird Species |
| 348 | District of Columbia Includes one frigatebird not identified to species. | As of October 2, 2024 | Kept by Maryland/District of Columbia Records Committee (Maryland Ornithological Society) | Official List of the Birds of District of Columbia (as of 2 October 2024) |
| 545 | Florida Living species; the list also keeps 4 extinct ones (549 in all). | As of July 2024 | Kept by Florida Ornithological Society Records Committee | FOS Official State List (July 2024) |
| – | Georgia Count not yet verified. The official 2023 checklist gives no total. | Kept by Georgia Ornithological Society Checklist and Records Committee | ||
| 355 | Hawaii Covers the Hawaiian Islands including Midway Atoll, which is not part of the state (15 species seen only there). | As of 2024 | Kept by Hawaii Bird Records Committee (Western Field Ornithologists) | Second Report of the Hawaii Bird Records Committee (Western Birds 56:2-20, 2025) |
| 432 | Idaho From 2020; a newer list may exist. | As of 2020 | Kept by Idaho Bird Records Committee | Idaho Bird Checklist (IBRC, 2020) |
| 463 | Illinois Plus one pair of scrub-jays not identified to species. | As of August 2026 | Kept by Illinois Ornithological Records Committee | Illinois State List of Birds |
| 420 | Indiana Leaves out species of doubtful origin. | As of No date given | Kept by Indiana Bird Records Committee (Indiana Audubon Society) | Official IBRC Bird Checklist (Indiana Audubon birds page) |
| 432 | Iowa Includes 3 extinct species and 1 no longer found in the state. | As of No date given | Kept by Iowa Ornithologists' Union (Iowa Bird Records Committee) | Iowa Checklist (Official State Checklist) |
| 492 | Kansas Includes 2 extinct species and 1 no longer found in the state. | As of March 31, 2026 | Kept by Kansas Bird Records Committee (Kansas Ornithological Society) | Kansas Checklist, full details (updated March 31, 2026) |
| 400 | Kentucky | As of January 2025 | Kept by Kentucky Bird Records Committee (Kentucky Ornithological Society) | KBRC Official State List of Birds |
| 493 | Louisiana Leaves out 10 subspecies and forms listed separately. | As of No date given | Kept by Louisiana Bird Records Committee (Louisiana Ornithological Society) | Official Louisiana State Field Check-List (LBRC) |
| 475 | Maine Includes 3 extinct, 7 introduced and 5 provisional species. | As of September 13, 2025 | Kept by Maine Bird Records Committee | Official List of Maine Birds |
| 463 | Maryland Leaves out birds of questionable or captive origin. | As of October 2, 2024 | Kept by Maryland/District of Columbia Records Committee (Maryland Ornithological Society) | Official List of the Birds of Maryland (as of 2 October 2024) |
| 524 | Massachusetts Includes extinct and introduced species. | As of January 2026 | Kept by Massachusetts Avian Records Committee | MARC Official State List |
| 466 | Michigan Includes 1 extinct, 1 probably extinct and 2 extirpated species. | As of July 7, 2025 | Kept by Michigan Bird Records Committee | Michigan Checklist (MBRC) |
| 454 | Minnesota | As of No date given | Kept by Minnesota Ornithologists' Union Records Committee | Current List of 454 Minnesota Birds (MOURC) |
| 429 | Mississippi Includes species known only from accepted sight records. | As of June 2022 | Kept by Mississippi Ornithological Society Bird Records Committee | Checklist of Birds of Mississippi (June 2022) |
| 445 | Missouri Includes 10 provisional, 5 extinct and 3 extirpated species. | As of No date given | Kept by Missouri Bird Records Committee (Missouri Birding Society) | Missouri and its Birds (Missouri Birding Society) |
| 451 | Montana | As of September 25, 2026 | Kept by Montana Bird Records Committee (Montana Bird Advocacy) | Official Montana State List |
| 472 | Nebraska Includes 4 extirpated and 2 extinct species. | As of No date given | Kept by Nebraska Ornithologists' Union (Records Committee) | Birds of Nebraska (NOU state list) |
| 496 | Nevada Plus one species pair not counted in the total. | As of May 6, 2025 | Kept by Nevada Bird Records Committee (Great Basin Bird Observatory) | Official Checklist of the Birds of Nevada |
| 428 | New Hampshire The main list; 4 hypothetical species are not counted. | As of February 28, 2023 | Kept by New Hampshire Rare Birds Committee | New Hampshire RBC State and Review List |
| 509 | New Jersey Wild birds only, including extinct species. | As of September 2026 | Kept by New Jersey Bird Records Committee | New Jersey State List (7 September 2026) |
| 559 | New Mexico Every species backed by a specimen, photo or recording. | As of March 1, 2026 | Kept by New Mexico Bird Records Committee (New Mexico Ornithological Society) | NMOS State Checklist (Checklist of New Mexico Bird Species, 2026 Mar 1) |
| 518 | New York Includes 2 extinct and 8 introduced species. | As of May 22, 2026 | Kept by New York State Avian Records Committee (New York State Ornithological Association) | Checklist of the Birds of New York State |
| 488 | North Carolina The definitive list; provisional species are listed separately. | As of 2023 annual report | Kept by North Carolina Bird Records Committee (Carolina Bird Club) | Official list of the birds of North Carolina |
| – | North Dakota Count not yet verified. The official list was not reachable when we checked. | |||
| 456 | Ohio Includes extinct species such as the Passenger Pigeon. | As of July 2026 | Kept by Ohio Bird Records Committee (Ohio Ornithological Society) | Official OOS Ohio Bird Checklist |
| 488 | Oklahoma Includes 13 sight-only species and 2 extinct ones. | As of May 2022 | Kept by Oklahoma Bird Records Committee (Oklahoma Ornithological Society) | Checklist of Oklahoma Birds, Sixth Edition (May 2022) |
| 554 | Oregon Includes 11 sight-only and 9 introduced species. | As of September 2026 | Kept by Oregon Bird Records Committee (Oregon Birding Association) | Official Checklist of Oregon Birds, updated September 2026 |
| 448 | Pennsylvania Species with physical evidence; 10 provisional ones are not counted (458 in all). | As of April 27, 2024 | Kept by Pennsylvania Ornithological Records Committee (Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology) | Official List of the Birds of Pennsylvania, 7th edition (2024) |
| – | Rhode Island Count not yet verified. The official list gives no total. | Kept by Rhode Island Avian Records Committee | ||
| 453 | South Carolina Includes 8 provisional species. | As of 2023 annual report | Kept by South Carolina Bird Records Committee (Carolina Bird Club) | Official list of the birds of South Carolina |
| 440 | South Dakota Includes some hypothetical species. | As of No date given | Kept by South Dakota Ornithologists' Union | South Dakota State Distributional Checklist |
| 434 | Tennessee Includes established introduced species. | As of December 2024 | Kept by Tennessee Bird Records Committee (Tennessee Ornithological Society) | Official List of the Birds of Tennessee (Updated December 2024) |
| 678 | Texas Includes 8 introduced and 2 extinct species. | As of June 7, 2026 | Kept by Texas Bird Records Committee (Texas Ornithological Society) | Texas State List |
| 465 | Utah Species with physical evidence or two accepted sight records. | As of February 2026 | Kept by Utah Bird Records Committee | Checklist of the Birds of Utah (Feb 2026) |
| 398 | Vermont Includes 1 extinct and 2 extirpated species. | As of August 26, 2025 | Kept by Vermont Bird Records Committee (Vermont Center for Ecostudies) | Vermont Bird Checklist (last updated 26 August 2025) |
| 494 | Virginia 4 extinct species are listed separately. | As of December 2025 | Kept by Virginia Avian Records Committee (Virginia Society of Ornithology) | Official State Checklist (effective December 2025) |
| 529 | Washington Includes 13 sight-only species. | As of November 2025 | Kept by Washington Bird Records Committee (Washington Ornithological Society) | Washington State Checklist (Updated November 2025) |
| 357 | West Virginia The main list; 14 hypothetical species are not counted. | As of May 28, 2025 | Kept by West Virginia Bird Records Committee (Brooks Bird Club) | West Virginia State Bird List (May 28, 2025) |
| 457 | Wisconsin 9 hypothetical species are not counted. | As of March 23, 2025 | Kept by Wisconsin Society for Ornithology Records Committee | Checklist of Wisconsin Birds |
| – | Wyoming Count not yet verified. The official list gives no total. | Kept by Wyoming Bird Records Committee | ||
| 437 | Alberta (Canada) Species with a specimen, photo or well-documented sighting. | As of September 2025 report | Kept by Alberta Bird Record Committee (Royal Alberta Museum) | Fifteenth Report of the Alberta Bird Record Committee (September 2025) |
| 528 | British Columbia (Canada) The main list; 10 provisional species are not counted. From a 2020 report. | As of 2020 report | Kept by BC Bird Records Committee (British Columbia Field Ornithologists) | BCFO Bird Records Committee Report for 2020 (British Columbia Birds 31, 2021) |
| 403 | Manitoba (Canada) After the 2024 redpoll lump. | As of No date given | Kept by Manitoba Ornithological Records Committee (Nature Manitoba) | Nature Manitoba – Rare Bird Sightings (MORC accepted records 2003–2023) |
| 442 | New Brunswick (Canada) | As of March 25, 2025 | Kept by New Brunswick Bird Records Committee (Nature NB) | New Brunswick Bird Records Committee |
| – | Newfoundland and Labrador (Canada) Count not yet verified. We found no official province-wide list. | |||
| 301 | Northwest Territories (Canada) A government checklist; 15 unconfirmed species are not counted. | As of 2024 | Kept by Government of the Northwest Territories, Environment and Climate Change | Annotated Bird Checklist of the NWT (Manuscript Report No. 311, 2024) |
| – | Nova Scotia (Canada) Count not yet verified. The official list could not be read when we checked. | |||
| – | Nunavut (Canada) Count not yet verified. There is no official territorial list. | |||
| 511 | Ontario (Canada) Includes well-documented sight records. | As of 2024 report | Kept by Ontario Bird Records Committee (Ontario Field Ornithologists) | Ontario Bird Records Committee Report 2024 (Ontario Birds, August 2025) |
| 368 | Prince Edward Island (Canada) All species with a record on the island. | As of No date given | Kept by Nature PEI (no records committee) | Birds of PEI |
| 472 | Quebec (Canada) Wild birds only; includes 4 extinct species. | As of November 2024 | Kept by Comité d'homologation des oiseaux rares du Québec (Regroupement QuébecOiseaux) | Liste des oiseaux du Québec (novembre 2024) |
| 447 | Saskatchewan (Canada) Includes 34 hypothetical (sight-only) species; 413 are confirmed. | As of End of 2025 | Kept by Nature Saskatchewan | Saskatchewan Bird Checklist (2026) |
| 329 | Yukon (Canada) From a 2017 checklist; a newer one may exist. | As of May 2017 | Kept by Yukon Bird Club (with Canadian Wildlife Service and Yukon Environment) | Checklist of Yukon Birds (May 2017) |
Why the counts differ
A state’s count is not the number of birds you’re likely to see there. It is every species ever accepted on its official list, and each list sets its own rules:
- Records committees decide. A rare sighting joins the list only when the committee accepts the evidence. Some lists take only species backed by a photo, specimen or recording: Pennsylvania’s count of 448 leaves out 10 “provisional” species still waiting for that proof.
- Accidental species count too. One lost bird, far outside its usual range, can add a species to a state’s list for good once the committee accepts the record.
- Introduced species. Birds brought in by people count once they live wild on their own: California’s 696 include 19 of them. Some lists also keep extinct species, such as the Passenger Pigeon.
- Different dates and borders. Some lists were updated last month, others years ago, and a few cover a slightly different area: Hawaii’s list includes Midway Atoll, which isn’t part of the state.
- Names change. When one species is split into two, a state can gain one without a new sighting; when two are lumped, it loses one. Our bird name changes page lists every change since 2018.
For the whole of the US and Canada, see how many bird species are in the US and Canada.
Your own state list
Many birders keep a list for their home state alongside their life list (every species they’ve ever seen). Our guide explains what a life list is and how to start one, and our birding festivals calendar lists festivals in 38 states, a friendly way to add a few new birds.