This is a list of the bird species recorded in Saint Lucia. The avifauna of Saint Lucia included a total of 197 species according to Bird Checklists of the World as of October 2024. Of them, five are endemic, three have been introduced by humans, and 122 are rare or accidental. There are also two subspecies endemic to the island. Six species are globally threatened.
This list is presented in the taxonomic sequence of the Check-list of North and Middle American Birds, 7th edition through the 63rd Supplement, published by the American Ornithological Society (AOS). Common and scientific names are also those of the Check-list, except that the common names of families are from the Clements taxonomy because the AOS list does not include them.
The following tags have been used to highlight several categories of occurrence.
(A) Accidental - a species that rarely or accidentally occurs in Saint Lucia (E) Endemic - a species endemic to Saint Lucia (ES) Endemic subspecies - a subspecies endemic to Saint Lucia (I) Introduced - a species introduced directly to Saint Lucia or elsewhere in the New World
Ducks, geese, and waterfowl Order: AnseriformesFamily: Anatidae
Anatidae includes the ducks and most duck-like waterfowl, such as geese and swans. These birds are adapted to an aquatic existence with webbed feet, flattened bills, and feathers that are excellent at shedding water due to an oily coating.
Black-bellied whistling-duck, Dendrocygna autumnalis (A) West Indian whistling-duck, Dendrocygna arborea Fulvous whistling-duck, Dendrocygna bicolor (A) Blue-winged teal, Spatula discors Northern shoveler, Spatula clypeata (A) Gadwall, Mareca strepera (A) American wigeon, Mareca americana (A) Northern pintail, Anas acuta (A) Green-winged teal, Anas crecca Ring-necked duck, Aythya collaris (A) Lesser scaup, Aythya affinis (A) Masked duck, Nomonyx dominicus (A) Ruddy duck, Oxyura jamaicensis (A)
Flamingos Order: PhoenicopteriformesFamily: Phoenicopteridae
Flamingos are gregarious wading birds, usually tall, found in both the Western and Eastern Hemispheres. Flamingos filter-feed on shellfish and algae. Their oddly shaped beaks are specially adapted to separate mud and silt from the food they consume and, uniquely, are used upside-down.
American flamingo, Phoenicopterus ruber
Grebes Order: PodicipediformesFamily: Podicipedidae
Grebes are small to medium-large freshwater diving birds. They have lobed toes and are excellent swimmers and divers. However, they have their feet placed far back on the body, making them quite ungainly on land.
Pied-billed grebe, Podilymbus podiceps (A)
Pigeons and doves Order: ColumbiformesFamily: Columbidae
Pigeons and doves are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with a fleshy cere.
Rock pigeon, Columba livia (I) Scaly-naped pigeon, Patagioenas squamosa White-crowned pigeon, Patagioenas leucocephala (A) Eurasian collared-dove, Streptopelia decaocto (I) Common ground dove, Columbina passerina Ruddy quail-dove, Geotrygon montana Bridled quail-dove, Geotrygon mystacea (A) White-winged dove, Zenaida asiatica (A) Zenaida dove, Zenaida aurita Eared dove, Zenaida auriculata
Cuckoos Order: CuculiformesFamily: Cuculidae
The family Cuculidae includes cuckoos, roadrunners, and anis. These birds are of variable size with slender bodies, long tails, and strong legs.
Smooth-billed ani, Crotophaga ani (A) Yellow-billed cuckoo, Coccyzus americanus (A) Mangrove cuckoo, Coccyzus minor Black-billed cuckoo, Coccyzus erythropthalmus (A)
Nightjars and allies Order: CaprimulgiformesFamily: Caprimulgidae
Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal birds that usually nest on the ground. They have long wings, short legs, and very short bills. Most have small feet, of little use for walking, and long pointed wings. Their soft plumage is camouflaged to resemble bark or leaves.
Common nighthawk, Chordeiles minor (A) Rufous nightjar, Antrostomus rufus
Swifts Order: ApodiformesFamily: Apodidae
Swifts are small birds which spend the majority of their lives flying. These birds have very short legs and never settle voluntarily on the ground, perching instead only on vertical surfaces. Many swifts have long swept-back wings which resemble a crescent or boomerang.
Black swift, Cypseloides niger (A) Lesser Antillean swift, Chaetura martinica Short-tailed swift, Chaetura brachyura (A) Alpine swift, Tachymarptis melba (A)
Hummingbirds Order: ApodiformesFamily: Trochilidae
Hummingbirds are small birds capable of hovering in mid-air due to the rapid flapping of their wings. They are the only birds that can fly backwards.
Purple-throated carib, Eulampis jugularis Green-throated carib, Eulampis holosericeus Antillean crested hummingbird, Orthorhyncus cristatus
Rails, gallinules, and coots Order: GruiformesFamily: Rallidae
Rallidae is a large family of small to medium-sized birds which includes the rails, crakes, coots, and gallinules. Typically they inhabit dense vegetation in damp environments near lakes, swamps, or rivers. In general they are shy and secretive birds, making them difficult to observe. Most species have strong legs and long toes which are well adapted to soft uneven surfaces. They tend to have short, rounded wings and to be weak fliers.
Sora, Porzana carolina (A) Common gallinule, Gallinula galeata American coot, Fulica americana (A) Purple gallinule, Porphyrio martinica (A)
Stilts and avocets Order: CharadriiformesFamily: Recurvirostridae
Recurvirostridae is a family of large wading birds which includes the avocets and stilts. The avocets have long legs and long up-curved bills. The stilts have extremely long legs and long, thin, straight bills.
Black-necked stilt, Himantopus mexicanus
Oystercatchers Order: CharadriiformesFamily: Haematopodidae
The oystercatchers are large and noisy plover-like birds, with strong bills used for smashing or prising open molluscs.
American oystercatcher, Haematopus palliatus (A)
Plovers and lapwings Order: CharadriiformesFamily: Charadriidae
The family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings. They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short thick necks, and long, usually pointed, wings. They are found in open country worldwide, mostly in habitats near water.
Black-bellied plover, Pluvialis squatarola American golden-plover, Pluvialis dominica (A) Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus (A) Semipalmated plover, Charadrius semipalmatus Wilson's plover, Charadrius wilsonia Collared plover, Charadrius collaris (A)
Sandpipers and allies Order: CharadriiformesFamily: Scolopacidae
Scolopacidae is a large diverse family of small to medium-sized shorebirds including the sandpipers, curlews, godwits, shanks, tattlers, woodcocks, snipes, dowitchers, and phalaropes. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. Variation in length of legs and bills enables multiple species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food.
Whimbrel, Numenius phaeopus Hudsonian godwit, Limosa haemastica (A) Ruddy turnstone, Arenaria interpres Red knot, Calidris canutus (A) Ruff, Calidris pugnax (A) Stilt sandpiper, Calidris himantopus (A) Sanderling, Calidris alba (A) Dunlin, Calidris alpina (A) Baird's sandpiper, Calidris bairdii (A) Least sandpiper, Calidris minutilla (A) White-rumped sandpiper, Calidris fuscicollis (A) Buff-breasted sandpiper, Calidris subruficollis (A) Pectoral sandpiper, Calidris melanotos (A) Semipalmated sandpiper, Calidris pusilla (A) Western sandpiper, Calidris mauri (A) Short-billed dowitcher, Limnodromus griseus (A) Wilson's snipe, Gallinago delicata (A) Spotted sandpiper, Actitis macularius Solitary sandpiper, Tringa solitaria (A) Lesser yellowlegs, Tringa flavipes Willet, Tringa semipalmata (A) Greater yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca Wilson's phalarope, Phalaropus tricolor (A)
Skuas and jaegers Order: CharadriiformesFamily: Stercorariidae
The family Stercorariidae are, in general, medium to large birds, typically with grey or brown plumage, often with white markings on the wings. They nest on the ground in temperate and arctic regions and are long-distance migrants.
South polar skua, Stercorarius maccormicki (A) Pomarine jaeger, Stercorarius pomarinus (A)
Gulls, terns, and skimmers Order: CharadriiformesFamily: Laridae
Laridae is a family of medium to large seabirds which includes gulls, kittiwakes, terns, and skimmers. They are typically grey or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They have longish bills and webbed feet. Terns are a group of generally medium to large seabirds typically with grey or white plumage, often with black markings on the head. Most terns hunt fish by diving but some pick insects off the surface of fresh water. Terns are generally long-lived birds, with several species known to live in excess of 30 years.
Black-legged kittiwake, Rissa tridactyla (A) Black-headed gull, Chroicocephalus ridibundus (A) Laughing gull, Leucophaeus atricilla (A) Ring-billed gull, Larus delawarensis (A) Herring gull, Larus argentatus Lesser black-backed gull, Larus fuscus (A) Brown noddy, Anous stolidus Sooty tern, Onychoprion fuscata Bridled tern, Onychoprion anaethetus Least tern, Sternula antillarum (A) Gull-billed tern, Gelochelidon nilotica (A) Caspian tern, Hydroprogne caspia (A) Roseate tern, Sterna dougallii (A) Common tern, Sterna hirundo (A) Royal tern, Thalasseus maxima Sandwich tern, Thalasseus sandvicensis (A) Black skimmer, Rynchops niger (A)
Tropicbirds Order: PhaethontiformesFamily: Phaethontidae
Tropicbirds are slender white birds of tropical oceans with exceptionally long central tail feathers. Their heads and long wings have black markings.
White-tailed tropicbird, Phaethon lepturus (A) Red-billed tropicbird, Phaethon aethereus (A)
Southern storm-petrels Order: ProcellariiformesFamily: Oceanitidae
The storm-petrels are the smallest seabirds, relatives of the petrels, feeding on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like. Until 2018, these species were included with the other storm-petrels in family Hydrobatidae.
Wilson's storm-petrel, Oceanites oceanicus (A)
Northern storm-petrels Order: ProcellariiformesFamily: Hydrobatidae
The storm-petrels are the smallest seabirds, relatives of the petrels, feeding on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.
Leach's storm-petrel, Hydrobates leucorhous (A)
Shearwaters and petrels Order: ProcellariiformesFamily: Procellariidae
Though the members of this family are similar in many respects to the southern storm-petrels, including their general appearance and habits, there are enough genetic differences to warrant their placement in a separate family.
Cory's shearwater, Calonectris diomedea (A) Great shearwater, Ardenna gravis (A) Sooty shearwater, Ardenna griseus (A) Sargasso shearwater, Puffinus lherminieri (A)
Frigatebirds Order: SuliformesFamily: Fregatidae
Frigatebirds are large seabirds usually found over tropical oceans. They are large, black and white, or completely black, with long wings and deeply forked tails. The males have coloured inflatable throat pouches. They do not swim or walk and cannot take off from a flat surface. Having the largest wingspan-to-body-weight ratio of any bird, they are essentially aerial, able to stay aloft for more than a week.
Magnificent frigatebird, Fregata magnificens
Boobies and gannets Order: SuliformesFamily: Sulidae
The sulids comprise the gannets and boobies. Both groups are medium to large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish.
Masked booby, Sula dactylatra (A) Brown booby, Sula leucogaster Red-footed booby, Sula sula (A)
Anhingas Order: SuliformesFamily: Anhingidae