Reference
How many bird species are in South Carolina?
South Carolina has 453 bird species on its official list (South Carolina Bird Records Committee, 2023 annual report), the 30th highest count of the 46 states with a verified count. It combines 445 definitive species and 8 provisional ones, and it is kept by the same club as North Carolina's list.
Updated
South Carolina bird list at a glance
| Official count | 453 species |
|---|---|
| List’s date | 2023 annual report |
| Kept by | South Carolina Bird Records Committee (Carolina Bird Club) |
| Definitive | 445 species |
| Provisional | 8 species |
| Among US states | 30th highest of the 47 US lists (50 states and DC) with a verified count |
| Official list | Official list of the birds of South Carolina |
What does South Carolina’s count include?
- 445 definitive species and 8 provisional ones, as of the committee's 2023 annual report.
- Extinct species and established introduced species.
- Not counted: 26 supplemental entries, such as unproven species, birds of questionable origin and introduced species that never became established.
Why do other sources give a different number?
A state’s count is every species ever accepted on its official list, so a figure from another year, or one that counts something else, won’t match:
- 445. The definitive species alone, without the 8 provisional ones.
Every state’s list follows its own rules: see why the counts differ from state to state.
How do you count your own South Carolina list?
Your state list is every species you’ve seen in the state. If you log your sightings in eBird, it lets you filter your life list by place, a state included (eBird’s My eBird help page, updated March 28, 2025), and the data download you can ask for gives the state of every sighting: our guide shows how to download your own eBird data. On paper, count the species you’ve seen in South Carolina; what is a life list? explains how birders keep their lists.
If you’d like your whole life list in print, Birdfolio turns it into a hardcover book, each species beside a classic painting.
South Carolina’s state bird
Carolina Wren
South Carolina’s state bird is the Carolina Wren. South Carolina Code § 1-1-630.
This picture is plate 78 of Audubon’s The Birds of America.
Source: South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 1, Chapter 1 (South Carolina Legislature), read October 3, 2026. See the state birds of all 50 states, each with its painting.
Birding festivals in South Carolina
Our birding festivals calendar lists one festival in South Carolina, with dates from its own website:
- Hammock Coast Birding Festival, Pawleys Island / Georgetown County: February 4–7, 2027
In winter you can also join a Christmas Bird Count near you; our guide explains how.
More about bird counts
- How many bird species are in each state: all 50 states, DC and Canada, each from its official list.
- Bird lists of nearby states: North Carolina.
- State birds of all 50 states, each with its classic painting.
- How many bird species are in the US and Canada, and how birders count them.
- Bird splits and lumps: when one species becomes two, state lists change too.