kids encyclopedia robot

List of birds of Prince Edward Island facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
This page is about birds of the Canadian province. For birds of the South African sub-Antarctic islands, see List of birds of the Prince Edward Islands.
Cyanocitta-cristata-004
The blue jay is the provincial bird of Prince Edward Island.

Welcome to the amazing world of birds found on Prince Edward Island (PEI)! This beautiful Canadian province is home to many different bird species. In 2014, the PEI Department of Agriculture and Forestry published a list showing 369 types of birds seen here.

Not all birds are seen all the time. Some are very common, while others are rare visitors. Here's what the special tags next to some bird names mean:

  • (A) Accidental: These birds have been seen only 9 times or less in a whole century! They are very rare visitors.
  • (O) Occasional: You might see these birds 1 to 9 times every ten years. They are still quite rare.
  • (H) Hypothetical: These birds have been reported, but their sightings are not fully confirmed.
  • (I) Introduced: These birds were brought to Prince Edward Island by people and now live and breed here.
  • (INA) Introduced to North America: These birds were brought to North America by people, but not directly to PEI.

This list follows the scientific order from the Check-list of North and Middle American Birds. We use common names and scientific names from that list, but with Canadian English spelling.

Ducks, Geese, and Swans

Birds of Sweden 2016 52
A mallard duck.
Redhead duck (Aythya americana, male)
A redhead duck.
Blue-winged Teal
A blue-winged teal.

Order: Anseriformes   Family: Anatidae

This family includes ducks, geese, and swans. These birds are experts at living in water. They have webbed feet for swimming and special feathers that shed water easily.

Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies

Wild Turkey -91 100- (26823792789)
A wild turkey.

Order: Galliformes   Family: Phasianidae

This group includes pheasants and grouse. They are mostly ground-dwelling birds. Many are hunted for sport or raised for food.

Grebes

Black-necked Grebe Schwarzhalstaucher
An eared grebe.

Order: Podicipediformes   Family: Podicipedidae

Grebes are small to medium-sized diving birds that live in fresh water. They have special lobed toes that help them swim and dive very well. They are not very good at walking on land.

Pigeons and Doves

Zenaida macroura2
A mourning dove.

Order: Columbiformes   Family: Columbidae

Pigeons and doves are plump birds with short necks and small, thin beaks. They eat seeds, fruits, and plants. A cool fact about them is that they make "crop milk" in their throats to feed their babies.

Cuckoos

Black-billed-cuckoo2
A black-billed cuckoo.

Order: Cuculiformes   Family: Cuculidae

This family includes cuckoos and roadrunners. These birds have slender bodies, long tails, and strong legs.

Nightjars and Allies

Order: Caprimulgiformes   Family: Caprimulgidae

Nightjars are medium-sized birds that are active at night. They usually nest on the ground. They have long wings and very short bills. Their soft feathers help them blend in with tree bark or leaves.

Swifts

Order: Apodiformes   Family: Apodidae

Swifts are small birds that spend most of their lives flying. They have very short legs and almost never land on the ground. They often perch on vertical surfaces. Many swifts have long, swept-back wings.

Hummingbirds

Archilochus colubris (Male)
A ruby-throated hummingbird.

Order: Apodiformes   Family: Trochilidae

Hummingbirds are tiny birds famous for hovering in mid-air. They flap their wings incredibly fast. They are the only birds that can fly backward!

Rails, Gallinules, and Coots

American coot (20598)
An American coot.

Order: Gruiformes   Family: Rallidae

This is a large family of small to medium-sized birds like rails and coots. They usually live in thick plants near lakes, swamps, or rivers. They are often shy and hard to spot. Most have strong legs and long toes for walking on soft ground.

Cranes

Order: Gruiformes   Family: Gruidae

Cranes are large birds with long legs and long necks. When they fly, their necks are stretched out, unlike herons. They are known for their fancy and loud "dances" during mating season.

Stilts and Avocets

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Recurvirostridae

This family includes avocets and stilts, which are large wading birds. Avocets have long legs and bills that curve upwards. Stilts have extremely long legs and thin, straight bills.

Oystercatchers

American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) in flight
An American oystercatcher.

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Haematopodidae

Oystercatchers are large, noticeable, and noisy birds. They have strong beaks that they use to smash or pry open shellfish like molluscs.

Plovers and Lapwings

Charadrius-melodus-004
A piping plover.

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Charadriidae

This family includes plovers. They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies and short, thick necks. They are found in open areas around the world, often near water.

Sandpipers and Allies

Limosa limosa (flying)-2
A black-tailed godwit.
Phalaropus fulicarius 10
A red phalarope.
Calidris fuscicollis, Sandy Lake, Alberta 2
A white-rumped sandpiper.

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Scolopacidae

This is a large and varied family of shorebirds, including sandpipers, curlews, and snipes. Most of these birds eat small bugs they find in mud or soil. Their different leg and bill lengths allow many species to feed in the same places without competing for food.

Skuas and Jaegers

Parasitic Jaeger
A parasitic jaeger.

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Stercorariidae

Skuas and jaegers are medium to large birds, often grey or brown. They look like big, dark gulls but have a hooked bill. They are strong and agile flyers.

Auks, Murres, and Puffins

Atlantic Puffins, Scotland
An Atlantic puffin.

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Alcidae

Alcids look a bit like penguins because of their black and white colors and upright stance. However, they can fly! Auks live in the open sea and only come to land to nest.

Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers

Black Skimmer RWD4
A black skimmer.
Larus delawarensis20
A ring-billed gull.

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Laridae

This family includes gulls and terns. They are medium to large seabirds, usually grey or white with black markings. They have strong bills and webbed feet.

Loons

Gavia stellata -Iceland -swimming-8
A red-throated loon.

Order: Gaviiformes   Family: Gaviidae

Loons are aquatic birds, about the size of a large duck. They are mostly grey or black with spear-shaped bills. Loons are excellent swimmers and flyers, but they are clumsy on land because their legs are set far back on their bodies.

Shearwaters and Petrels

Order: Procellariiformes   Family: Procellariidae

These are medium-sized "true petrels." They have nostrils that are joined together and long outer wing feathers.

Boobies and Gannets

Order: Suliformes   Family: Sulidae

This family includes gannets and boobies. Both are medium-large coastal seabirds that dive headfirst into the water to catch fish.

  • Northern gannet, Morus bassanus

Cormorants and Shags

Order: Suliformes   Family: Phalacrocoracidae

Cormorants are medium to large water birds, usually dark in color. They have long, thin, hooked bills and webbed feet.

Pelicans

Order: Pelecaniformes   Family: Pelecanidae

Pelicans are very large water birds with a special pouch under their beak. Like other birds in their group, they have four webbed toes.

Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns

Order: Pelecaniformes   Family: Ardeidae

This family includes herons, egrets, and bitterns. Herons and egrets are medium to large wading birds with long necks and legs. Bitterns are usually shorter-necked and more secretive. These birds fly with their necks pulled back.

Ibises and Spoonbills

Order: Pelecaniformes   Family: Threskiornithidae

This family includes ibises and spoonbills. They have long, wide wings and long necks and legs. Ibises have bills that curve downwards, while spoonbills have straight, flattened bills.

New World Vultures

Order: Cathartiformes   Family: Cathartidae

New World vultures are scavengers, meaning they eat dead animals. Unlike some other vultures, they have a good sense of smell to find carcasses.

Osprey

Order: Accipitriformes   Family: Pandionidae

Ospreys are birds of prey that eat fish. They have a large, strong hooked beak to tear meat, powerful legs, sharp talons, and excellent eyesight.

Hawks, Eagles, and Kites

Order: Accipitriformes   Family: Accipitridae

This family includes hawks and eagles. These birds of prey have very large, strong hooked beaks for tearing meat, powerful legs, sharp talons, and keen eyesight.

Owls

Order: Strigiformes   Family: Strigidae

Typical owls are solitary birds of prey that are active at night. They have large eyes that face forward, good hearing, a hawk-like beak, and a circle of feathers around each eye called a facial disk.

Kingfishers

Order: Coraciiformes   Family: Alcedinidae

Kingfishers are medium-sized birds with large heads, long, pointed bills, short legs, and stubby tails.

Woodpeckers

Order: Piciformes   Family: Picidae

Woodpeckers are small to medium-sized birds with chisel-like beaks. They have stiff tails and long tongues to catch insects. Many woodpeckers tap loudly on tree trunks with their beaks.

Falcons and Caracaras

Order: Falconiformes   Family: Falconidae

This family includes falcons. They are different from hawks and eagles because they kill their prey with their beaks, not their talons (claws).

Tyrant Flycatchers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Tyrannidae

Tyrant flycatchers are songbirds found in North and South America. They look a bit like other flycatchers but are stronger. Most of them eat insects.

Vireos

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Vireonidae

Vireos are small to medium-sized songbirds, mostly found in the Americas. They are usually greenish and have heavier bills than some other small birds.

Shrikes

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Laniidae

Shrikes are songbirds known for catching small animals and sometimes sticking them on thorns. Their beak is hooked, like a bird of prey.

  • Northern shrike, Lanius borealis

Crows, Jays, and Magpies

Corvus corax along road
A common raven.

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Corvidae

This family includes crows, ravens, and jays. These birds are larger than average songbirds, and some of the bigger species are very smart.

Tits, Chickadees, and Titmice

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Paridae

These are mainly small, stocky woodland birds with short, strong bills. They can adapt well to different places and eat a mix of seeds and insects.

Larks

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Alaudidae

Larks are small ground birds known for their often fancy songs and display flights. Most larks have plain colors. They eat insects and seeds.

Swallows

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Hirundinidae

Swallows are built for catching food in the air. They have slender bodies, long pointed wings, and a short bill with a wide mouth. Their feet are better for perching than walking.

Kinglets

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Regulidae

Kinglets are a small family of very tiny insect-eating birds. Adult kinglets have colorful crowns on their heads, which is how they got their name.

Waxwings

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Bombycillidae

Waxwings are songbirds with soft, silky feathers. They have unique red tips on some wing feathers that look like sealing wax. They live in northern forests and eat insects in summer and berries in winter.

Nuthatches

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Sittidae

Nuthatches are small woodland birds. They have a special ability to climb down trees headfirst, which most other birds cannot do. They have large heads, short tails, and strong bills and feet.

Treecreepers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Certhiidae

Treecreepers are small woodland birds, brown on top and white underneath. They have thin, curved bills that they use to pull insects out of tree bark. They use their stiff tail feathers to support themselves on tree trunks.

Wrens

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Troglodytidae

Wrens are small and often hard to see, but they have very loud songs. They have short wings and thin, curved bills. Many species hold their tails straight up. All wrens eat insects.

Mockingbirds and Thrashers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Mimidae

This family includes mockingbirds and thrashers. These birds are famous for their amazing ability to copy the songs of other birds and many other sounds they hear. They are usually grey and brown.

Starlings

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Sturnidae

Starlings are small to medium-sized songbirds with strong feet. They fly strongly and often gather in large groups. They prefer open areas and eat insects and fruit. Many have dark feathers with a metallic shine.

Thrushes and Allies

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Turdidae

Thrushes are a group of songbirds that are plump and have soft feathers. They are small to medium-sized and eat insects or a mix of foods, often feeding on the ground. Many have beautiful songs.

Old World Sparrows

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Passeridae

Old World sparrows are small songbirds. They are generally plump, brownish or greyish birds with short tails and strong beaks. Sparrows mainly eat seeds, but they also eat small insects.

Wagtails and Pipits

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Motacillidae

This family includes wagtails and pipits. They are slender ground-feeding insect-eaters found in open areas.

Finches and Allies

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Fringillidae

Finches are seed-eating songbirds. They are small to medium-sized and have strong, often cone-shaped beaks. They fly with a bouncing motion and most sing well.

Longspurs and Snow Buntings

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Calcariidae

This group of songbirds was once thought to be New World sparrows, but they are different. They are usually found in open grassy areas.

New World Sparrows

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Passerellidae

These species are known as sparrows, but they are not closely related to the Old World sparrows. Many of them have unique patterns on their heads.

Yellow-breasted Chat

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Icteriidae

This bird was once grouped with the wood-warblers, but scientists decided it needed its own family in 2017.

Troupials and Allies

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Icteridae

This group includes grackles, New World blackbirds, and orioles. Most species are black, often with bright yellow, orange, or red colors.

New World Warblers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Parulidae

Wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful songbirds found in the Americas. Most live in trees, but some live more on the ground. Most members of this family eat insects.

Cardinals and Allies

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Cardinalidae

Cardinals are a family of strong, seed-eating birds with powerful bills. They usually live in open woodlands. Males and females often have different feather colors.

|

See also

  • List of birds
  • Lists of birds by region
kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
List of birds of Prince Edward Island Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.