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List of birds of Shenandoah National Park facts for kids

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Shenandoah National Park in Virginia is a special place where many different kinds of birds live or visit. This list tells you about the 196 bird species that have been seen in the park. It's based on information from the National Park Service (NPS).

Birds on this list are organized by their scientific groups, following the Check-list of North and Middle American Birds. This list helps us understand which birds are common and which are harder to spot.

Here's what the tags next to some bird names mean:

  • Uc (Uncommon): You might see these birds monthly in the right places and seasons. They can be common in some small areas. (52 species)
  • R (Rare): These birds are present, but you usually only see them a few times each year. (30 species)
  • O (Occasional): These birds show up in the park at least once every few years. Their numbers can change, and they might not be seen every year. (63 species)
  • I (Introduced): These are species that were brought to North America by people, either on purpose or by accident. (4 species)

Birds without a tag are generally common. They might live in the park all year, or they might just visit during migration or certain seasons.

Ducks, Geese, and Waterfowl in Shenandoah

Order: Anseriformes   Family: Anatidae

This family includes ducks, geese, and swans. These birds are built for life in the water. They have webbed feet for swimming and special feathers that shed water. Their bills are usually flat, helping them find food in the water.

New World Quail in the Park

Order: Galliformes   Family: Odontophoridae

New World quails are small, round birds that live on the ground. They look similar to quails from other parts of the world but are not closely related.

Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies

Order: Galliformes   Family: Phasianidae

This group includes pheasants and their relatives. They are ground-dwelling birds that vary in size. They often have plump bodies and broad, short wings. Many of these birds are hunted for sport or raised for food.

Grebes of Shenandoah

Order: Podicipediformes   Family: Podicipedidae

Grebes are freshwater diving birds, ranging from small to medium-large. They have special lobed toes that make them excellent swimmers and divers. Because their feet are set far back on their bodies, they are quite clumsy on land.

Pigeons and Doves

Order: Columbiformes   Family: Columbidae

Pigeons and doves are birds with sturdy bodies, short necks, and thin bills. They have a soft, fleshy area at the base of their bill called a cere.

Cuckoos in the Forest

Order: Cuculiformes   Family: Cuculidae

The cuckoo family includes cuckoos, roadrunners, and anis. These birds have different sizes, but all have slender bodies, long tails, and strong legs. Some cuckoos in other parts of the world are known for laying their eggs in other birds' nests.

Nightjars and Their Relatives

Order: Caprimulgiformes   Family: Caprimulgidae

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

Swifts in the Sky

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. Instead, they perch on vertical surfaces. Many swifts have long, swept-back wings that look like a crescent moon.

Hummingbirds of Virginia

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! Seven different hummingbird species have been seen in Virginia.

Rails, Gallinules, and Coots

Order: Gruiformes   Family: Rallidae

This large family includes rails, crakes, coots, and gallinules. They are small to medium-sized birds that live in thick plants near water, like lakes or swamps. They are often shy and hard to see. Most have strong legs and long toes, perfect for walking on soft, uneven ground.

Plovers and Lapwings

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Charadriidae

This family includes plovers, dotterels, and lapwings. They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short necks, and long, pointed wings. You can find them in open areas around the world, especially near water.

Sandpipers and Their Allies

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Scolopacidae

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

Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers

Order: Charadriiformes   Family: Laridae

Gulls are usually medium to large birds, often gray or white with black marks. They have strong bills and webbed feet. Terns are generally lighter and more graceful than gulls. They have long, narrow wings and often long tails, looking elegant in flight.

Cormorants and Shags

Order: Suliformes   Family: Phalacrocoracidae

Cormorants are medium to large water birds. They usually have dark feathers and colorful skin on their faces. Their bills are long, thin, and sharply hooked. All four of their toes are webbed, helping them swim.

Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns

Order: Pelecaniformes   Family: Ardeidae

This family includes herons, egrets, and bitterns. Herons and egrets are medium to large birds that wade in water. They have long necks and legs. Bitterns are usually shorter-necked and more secretive. These birds fly with their necks pulled back, unlike storks or ibises.

New World Vultures

Order: Accipitriformes   Family: Cathartidae

New World vultures look like Old World vultures, but they are not closely related. They both eat dead animals (scavengers). Unlike Old World vultures, which find food by sight, New World vultures have a great sense of smell to find carcasses.

Osprey: The Fish-Eating Raptor

Order: Accipitriformes   Family: Pandionidae

The osprey is a medium-large bird of prey that eats fish. It lives in many different places because it can adapt to various habitats. As long as there's water and enough food, an osprey can make a home. It is the only bird in its family.

  • Osprey, Pandion haliaetus (O)

Hawks, Eagles, and Kites

Order: Accipitriformes   Family: Accipitridae

This family includes hawks, eagles, kites, and harriers. These birds of prey have strong, hooked beaks to tear meat from their prey. They also have powerful legs, sharp talons, and excellent eyesight.

Owls of Shenandoah

Order: Strigiformes   Family: Strigidae

Typical owls are solitary birds of prey, active at night. They have large eyes that face forward and big ears. Their beaks are like a hawk's, and they have a circle of feathers around each eye called a facial disk.

Kingfishers

Order: Coraciiformes   Family: Alcedinidae

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

Woodpeckers in the Park

Order: Piciformes   Family: Picidae

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

Falcons and Caracaras

Order: Falconiformes   Family: Falconidae

This family includes falcons and caracaras, which are birds of prey active during the day. They are different from hawks and eagles because they kill their prey with their beaks, not their talons.

Tyrant Flycatchers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Tyrannidae

Tyrant flycatchers are songbirds found across North and South America. They look a bit like flycatchers from other parts of the world but are stronger and have sturdier bills. Most of them eat insects.

Vireos and Their Relatives

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Vireonidae

Vireos are small to medium-sized songbirds found only in the Americas. They are usually greenish and look like wood-warblers, but they have heavier bills.

Shrikes

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Laniidae

Shrikes are songbirds known for a unique habit: they catch other birds and small animals and impale them on thorns or barbed wire. Their beaks are hooked, similar to birds of prey.

  • Northern shrike, Lanius borealis (O)

Crows, Jays, and Magpies

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Corvidae

This family includes crows, ravens, and jays. Corvids are larger than most songbirds. Some of the bigger species are very intelligent.

Tits, Chickadees, and Titmice

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Paridae

The Paridae family consists mainly of small, stocky woodland birds with short, strong bills. Some have crests on their heads. They are adaptable birds that eat a mix of seeds and insects.

Larks

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Alaudidae

Larks are small birds that live on the ground. They are known for their often fancy songs and display flights. Most larks have a rather plain appearance. They eat insects and seeds.

Swallows in Flight

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Hirundinidae

The swallow family is built for catching food while flying. They have slender bodies, long, pointed wings, and short bills with wide mouths. Their feet are better for perching than for walking.

Kinglets

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Regulidae

Kinglets are a family of very small 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 birds with soft, silky feathers. They have unique red tips on some of their wing feathers that look like sealing wax. These birds live in northern forests and eat insects in summer and berries in winter.

Nuthatches: Head-First Climbers

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. Nuthatches 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, pointed, downward-curved bills. They use these bills to pull insects out of tree bark. Like woodpeckers, they use their stiff tail feathers to support themselves on tree trunks.

Gnatcatchers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Polioptilidae

These delicate birds move restlessly through leaves, looking for insects. Gnatcatchers are mostly soft bluish-gray and have the long, sharp bill typical of insect-eaters. Many species have distinct black head patterns and long, black-and-white tails that they often hold upright.

Wrens and Their Loud Songs

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Troglodytidae

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

Mockingbirds and Thrashers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Mimidae

This family includes thrashers, mockingbirds, and catbirds. These birds are famous for their singing, especially their amazing ability to copy the sounds of other birds and outdoor noises. They usually have dull gray and brown feathers.

Starlings

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Sturnidae

Starlings are small to medium-sized songbirds with strong feet. They fly strongly and directly, and most live in large groups. They prefer open areas and eat insects and fruit. Many species 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 birds that eat insects or a mix of foods. They often feed on the ground, and many have beautiful songs.

Old World Sparrows

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Passeridae

Old World sparrows are small songbirds. They are generally plump, brownish or grayish birds with short tails and strong, short 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 small songbirds with medium to long tails. They are slender birds that feed on insects on the ground in open areas.

Finches, Euphonias, and Allies

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Fringillidae

Finches are songbirds that eat seeds. They are small to moderately large and have strong, often cone-shaped beaks. They fly with a bouncing motion, flapping their wings and then gliding. Most finches sing well.

Longspurs and Snow Buntings

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Calcariidae

This group of songbirds used to be considered part of the New World sparrows. However, they are different in several ways and are usually found in open, grassy areas.

New World Sparrows

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Passerellidae

These birds are often called 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 thought to be a wood-warbler, but experts were unsure. In 2017, it was placed in its own family.

Troupials and Allies

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Icteridae

This group of small to medium-sized songbirds is found only in the Americas. It includes grackles, New World blackbirds, and orioles. Most species have black as their main feather color, often with bright yellow, orange, or red.

New World Warblers

Order: Passeriformes   Family: Parulidae

Wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful songbirds found only in the Americas. Most live in trees, but some, like the Ovenbird, spend more time on the ground. Most birds in 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. The males and females often have different colored feathers.

See also

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List of birds of Shenandoah National Park Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.