Galveston Island is one of the top locations in the country for birding. It has a rich variety of habitats - beaches, wetlands, grasslands, woods, ponds, and bays - in a small area, and it is used by many common year-round species, as well as numerous others that visit briefly or for part of the year.

Birds visit en-route from and to Central and South America, north in the spring, south in the fall. Most pass on through after stopping for food and rest, but some spend their summers on the Island and breed locally. Galveston in fact sits astride the 95th meridian, the dead center of the trans-gulf migration route, and is just at the point in the circum Gulf route where many birds veer northward.

The Island is also an important wintering ground for numerous species that spend most of the year farther north. More than 300 bird species may be seen throughout the year somewhere on the Island. During FeatherFest, over 200 species are typical, such as common year-round birds, spring migrants and late wintering birds.

A detailed description of top birding areas, a map and seasonal checklist of species sighted are included in the Great Birding on and around Galveston Island brochure. Click here to download it (PDF).

C (Common), F (Fairly Uncommon), U (Uncommon), R (Rare), O (Occasional)

			2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010
	Totals		203	200	181	184	197	202	210
1	Black-bellied Whistling-Duck	F
2	Fulvous Whistling-Duck	C
3	Greater White-fronted Goose	U
4	Snow Goose	U
5	Canada Goose	U
6	Wood Duck	F
7	Gadwall	C
8	American Wigeon	C
9	Mallard	U
10	Mottled Duck	C
11	Blue-winged Teal	C
12	Cinnamon Teal	R
13	Northern Shoveler	C
14	Northern Pintail	U
15	Green-winged Teal	F
16	Canvasback	R
17	Redhead	U
18	Ring-necked Duck	F
19	Greater Scaup	R
20	Lesser Scaup	C
21	Surf Scoter	R
22	White-winged Scoter	R
23	Black Scoter	R
24	Long-tailed Duck	O
25	Bufflehead	U
26	Common Goldeneye	R
27	Hooded Merganser	R
28	Red-breasted Merganser	C
29	Ruddy Duck	U
30	Greater Prairie-Chicken	R
31	Northern Bobwhite	U
32	Pacific Loon	R
33	Common Loon	C
34	Pied-billed Grebe	C
35	Horned Grebe	R
36	Eared Grebe	F
37	Masked Booby	O
38	Northern Gannet	U
39	American White Pelican	C
40	Brown Pelican	C
41	Neotropic Cormorant	C
42	Double-crested Cormorant	C
43	Anhinga	C
44	Magnificent Frigatebird	R
45	American Bittern	U
46	Least Bittern	C
47	Great Blue Heron	C
48	Great Egret	C
49	Snowy Egret	C
50	Little Blue Heron	C
51	Tricolored Heron	C
52	Reddish Egret	C
53	Cattle Egret	C
54	Green Heron	C
55	Black-crowned Night-Heron	C
56	Yellow-crowned Night-Heron	F
57	White Ibis	C
58	Glossy Ibis	R
59	White-faced Ibis	F
60	Roseate Spoonbill	C
61	Black Vulture	C
62	Turkey Vulture	C
63	Osprey	U
64	Swallow-tailed Kite	R
65	White-tailed Kite	C
66	Mississippi Kite	R
67	Bald Eagle	R
68	Northern Harrier	C
69	Sharp-shinned Hawk	U
70	Cooper's Hawk	U
71	Red-shouldered Hawk	C
72	Broad-winged Hawk	U
73	Swainson's Hawk	U
74	White-tailed Hawk	R
75	Red-tailed Hawk	U
76	Crested Caracara	U
77	American Kestrel	C
78	Merlin	U
79	Peregrine Falcon	U
80	Yellow Rail	R
81	Black Rail	R
82	Clapper Rail	C
83	King Rail	F
84	Virginia Rail	C
85	Sora	C
86	Purple Gallinule	C
87	Common Moorhen	C
88	American Coot	C
89	Sandhill Crane	U
90	Black-bellied Plover	C
91	American Golden-Plover	C
92	Snowy Plover	C
93	Wilson's Plover	C
94	Semipalmated Plover	C
95	Piping Plover	C
96	Killdeer	C
97	American Oystercatcher	U
98	Black-necked Stilt	C
99	American Avocet	C
100	Spotted Sandpiper	U
101	Solitary Sandpiper	U
102	Greater Yellowlegs	C
103	Willet	C
104	Lesser Yellowlegs	C
105	Upland Sandpiper	U
106	Whimbrel	C
107	Long-billed Curlew	C
108	Hudsonian Godwit	U
109	Marbled Godwit	C
110	Ruddy Turnstone	C
111	Red Knot	F
112	Sanderling	C
113	Semipalmated Sandpiper	C
114	Western Sandpiper	C
115	Least Sandpiper	C
116	White-rumped Sandpiper	C
117	Baird's Sandpiper	U
118	Pectoral Sandpiper	C
119	Dunlin	C
120	Stilt Sandpiper	F
121	Buff-breasted Sandpiper	U
122	Short-billed Dowitcher	C
123	Long-billed Dowitcher	C
124	Wilson's Snipe	C
125	Wilson's Phalarope	U
126	Laughing Gull	C
127	Franklin's Gull	R
128	Bonaparte's Gull	C
129	Ring-billed Gull	C
130	Herring Gull	C
131	Lesser Black-backed Gull	R
132	Glaucous Gull	R
133	Least Tern	C
134	Gull-billed Tern	U
135	Caspian Tern	C
136	Black Tern	C
137	Common Tern	C
138	Forster's Tern	C
139	Royal Tern	C
140	Sandwich Tern	C
141	Black Skimmer	C
142	Pomarine Jaeger	U
143	Parasitic Jaeger	R
144	Rock Dove/Pidgeon	C
145	Eurasian Collared-Dove	C
146	White-winged Dove	C
147	Mourning Dove	C
148	Inca Dove	C
149	Common Ground-Dove	R
150	Monk Parakeet	F
151	Yellow-billed Cuckoo	C
152	Black-billed Cuckoo	U
153	Groove-billed Ani	R
154	Barn Owl	C
155	Eastern Screech-Owl	C
156	Great Horned Owl	F
157	Barred Owl	F
158	Short-eared Owl	R
159	Lesser Nighthawk	R
160	Common Nighthawk	C
161	Chuck-will's-widow	F
162	Whip-poor-will	U
163	Chimney Swift	C
164	Ruby-throated Hummingbird	C
165	Black-chinned Hummingbird	R
166	Rufous Hummingbird	R
167	Belted Kingfisher	C
168	Red-headed Woodpecker	R
169	Red-bellied Woodpecker	C
170	Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	F
171	Downy Woodpecker	C
172	Red-cockaded Woodpecker	R
173	Northern Flicker	O
174	Pileated Woodpecker	F
175	Olive-sided Flycatcher	R
176	Eastern Wood-Pewee	C
177	Yellow-bellied Flycatcher	O
178	Acadian Flycatcher	C
179	Alder Flycatcher	R
180	Willow Flycatcher	R
181	Least Flycatcher	U
182	Eastern Phoebe	C
183	Vermilion Flycatcher	R
184	Ash-throated Flycatcher	R
185	Great Crested Flycatcher	C
186	Western Kingbird	U
187	Eastern Kingbird	C
188	Scissor-tailed Flycatcher	C
189	Loggerhead Shrike	C
190	White-eyed Vireo	C
191	Bell's Vireo	O
192	Yellow-throated Vireo	C
193	Blue-headed Vireo	C
194	Warbling Vireo	U
195	Philadelphia Vireo	F
196	Red-eyed Vireo	C
197	Blue Jay	C
198	American Crow	C
199	Horned Lark	U
200	Purple Martin	C
201	Tree Swallow	C
202	N. Rough-winged Swallow	C
203	Bank Swallow	C
204	Barn Swallow	C
205	Cliff Swallow	C
206	Cave Swallow	U
207	Carolina Chickadee	C
208	Tufted Titmouse	C
209	Red-breasted Nuthatch	R
210	Brown-headed Nuthatch	C
211	Brown Creeper	R
212	Carolina Wren	C
213	Bewick's Wren	R
214	House Wren	C
215	Sedge Wren	C
216	Marsh Wren	C
217	Golden-crowned Kinglet	R
218	Ruby-crowned Kinglet	C
219	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	C
220	Eastern Bluebird	F
221	Veery	U
222	Gray-cheeked Thrush	U
223	Swainson's Thrush	C
224	Hermit Thrush	U
225	Wood Thrush	C
226	American Robin	C
227	Gray Catbird	C
228	Northern Mockingbird	C
229	Brown Thrasher	F
230	European Starling	C
231	American Pipit	C
232	Sprague's Pipit	R
233	Cedar Waxwing	C
234	Blue-winged Warbler	C
235	Golden-winged Warbler	U
236	Tennessee Warbler	C
237	Orange-crowned Warbler	C
238	Nashville Warbler	C
239	Northern Parula	C
240	Yellow Warbler	C
241	Chestnut-sided Warbler	C
242	Magnolia Warbler	C
243	Cape May Warbler	R
244	Black-throated Blue Warbler	R
245	Yellow-rumped Warbler	C
246	Blk-throated Green Warbler	C
247	Blackburnian Warbler	U
248	Yellow-throated Warbler	U
249	Pine Warbler	R
250	Prairie Warbler	R
251	Palm Warbler	U
252	Bay-breasted Warbler	C
253	Blackpoll Warbler	C
254	Cerulean Warbler	U
255	Black-and-white Warbler	C
256	American Redstart	C
257	Prothonotary Warbler	C
258	Worm-eating Warbler	C
259	Swainson's Warbler	U
260	Ovenbird	C
261	Northern Waterthrush	C
262	Louisiana Waterthrush	C
263	Kentucky Warbler	C
264	Mourning Warbler	R
265	Common Yellowthroat	C
266	Hooded Warbler	C
267	Wilson's Warbler	U
268	Canada Warbler	U
269	Yellow-breasted Chat	F
270	Summer Tanager	C
271	Scarlet Tanager	C
272	Western Tanager	R
273	Eastern Towhee	R
274	Spotted Towhee	O
275	Chipping Sparrow	F
276	Clay-colored Sparrow	R
277	Field Sparrow	U
278	Vesper Sparrow	U
279	Lark Sparrow	R
280	Savannah Sparrow	C
281	Grasshopper Sparrow	R
282	Henslow's Sparrow	R
283	Le Conte's Sparrow	F
284	Nelson's Sharp-tailed Spar	C
285	Seaside Sparrow	C
286	Song Sparrow	U
287	Lincoln's Sparrow	C
288	Swamp Sparrow	C
289	White-throated Sparrow	C
290	Harris's Sparrow	R
291	White Crowned Sparrow	U
292	Northern Cardinal	C
293	Rose-breasted Grosbeak	C
294	Blue Grosbeak	C
295	Indigo Bunting	C
296	Painted Bunting	F
297	Dickcissel	C
298	Bobolink	R
299	Red-winged Blackbird	C
300	Eastern Meadowlark	C
301	Western Meadowlark	R
302	Yellow-headed Blackbird	R
303	Common Grackle	C
304	Boat-tailed Grackle	F
305	Great-tailed Grackle	C
306	Bronzed Cowbird	U
307	Brown-headed Cowbird	C
308	Orchard Oriole	C
309	Baltimore Oriole	C
310	Purple Finch	R
311	House Finch	U
312	Pine Siskin	R
313	American Goldfinch	C
314	House Sparrow	C
	Other bird observations
315	Woodstork
316	Burrowing Owl
317	Reddish Egret white morph

For Further Information

Email: NatureTourismGalv@juno.com
Phone: 832.459.5533 or 1.888.425.4753
Mail: Galveston FeatherFest, P.O. Box 1468
Galveston, TX 77553-1468

FeatherFest is a project of the Galveston Island Nature Tourism Council which supports nature tourism and education, and promotes the value of area natural habitats.
www.GalvestonNatureTourism.org