Antarctica bird checklist
74 bird species in 15 families have been recorded in Antarctica, according to eBird; about 68 of them are seen regularly, and the rest are rarities, vagrants and escaped or introduced birds. Download the full list as a PDF, or tick birds off on your phone, with counts and notes, even without signal.
Species data: eBird.org, updated · How these lists are made
The most common birds in Antarctica right now
1Antarctic Tern
2Emperor Penguin
3Kelp Gull
4Snow Petrel
5Wilson's Storm-Petrel
6Pintado Petrel
7Antarctic Prion
8Black-browed Albatross
9Southern Fulmar
10Sooty Shearwater
Antarctica bird checklist
74 species · loading the checklist tools…
Ducks, Geese, and Waterfowl
- Black-necked Swan
- Crested Duck
- Yellow-billed Pintail
Sheathbills
- Snowy Sheathbill
Sandpipers and Allies
- Upland Sandpiper
- Red Phalarope
- Baird's Sandpiper
- White-rumped Sandpiper
Skuas and Jaegers
- Long-tailed Jaeger
- Parasitic Jaeger
- Pomarine Jaeger
- Chilean Skua
- Brown Skua
- South Polar Skua
Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers
- Sabine's Gull
- Brown-hooded Gull
- Franklin's Gull
- Kelp Gull
- Arctic Tern
- Antarctic Tern
Penguins
- King Penguin
- Emperor Penguin
- Adelie Penguin
- Gentoo Penguin
- Chinstrap Penguin
- Magellanic Penguin
- Macaroni Penguin
- Royal Penguin
- Western Rockhopper Penguin
- Eastern Rockhopper Penguin
Albatrosses
- Northern Royal Albatross
- Southern Royal Albatross
- Snowy Albatross
- Antipodean Albatross
- Sooty Albatross
- Light-mantled Albatross
- Gray-headed Albatross
- Salvin's Albatross
- Black-browed Albatross
Southern Storm-Petrels
- Wilson's Storm-Petrel
- Gray-backed Storm-Petrel
- Black-bellied Storm-Petrel
Shearwaters and Petrels
- Southern Giant-Petrel
- Northern Giant-Petrel
- Southern Fulmar
- Antarctic Petrel
- Pintado Petrel
- Snow Petrel
- Kerguelen Petrel
- Great-winged Petrel
- Soft-plumaged Petrel
- White-headed Petrel
- Mottled Petrel
- Atlantic Petrel
- Blue Petrel
- Fairy Prion
- Salvin's Prion
- Antarctic Prion
- Slender-billed Prion
- Gray Petrel
- White-chinned Petrel
- Westland Petrel
- Sooty Shearwater
- Short-tailed Shearwater
- Common Diving-Petrel
- South Georgia Diving-Petrel
Cormorants and Shags
- Imperial Cormorant
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns
- Western Cattle-Egret
Barn-Owls
- American Barn Owl
Falcons and Caracaras
- American Kestrel
Tyrant Flycatchers
- White-crested Elaenia
- Austral Negrito
Swallows
- Chilean Swallow
- Barn Swallow
Most common birds in Antarctica
Ranked by how recently and how widely each was reported to eBird in the 30 days to 2026-10-13, and whether it is one of Antarctica’s regular birds. The list follows the seasons: migrants rise in spring and autumn.
- Antarctic TernSterna vittata
- Emperor PenguinAptenodytes forsteri
- Kelp GullLarus dominicanus
- Snow PetrelPagodroma nivea
- Wilson's Storm-PetrelOceanites oceanicus
- Pintado PetrelDaption capense
- Antarctic PrionPachyptila desolata
- Black-browed AlbatrossThalassarche melanophris
- Southern FulmarFulmarus glacialoides
- Sooty ShearwaterArdenna grisea
- Southern Giant-PetrelMacronectes giganteus
- Slender-billed PrionPachyptila belcheri
- Arctic TernSterna paradisaea
- White-chinned PetrelProcellaria aequinoctialis
- Blue PetrelHalobaena caerulea
- Soft-plumaged PetrelPterodroma mollis
- Northern Giant-PetrelMacronectes halli
- Gentoo PenguinPygoscelis papua
- Brown SkuaStercorarius antarcticus
- Common Diving-PetrelPelecanoides urinatrix
Largest bird families in Antarctica
Among its regular birds.
- Shearwaters and Petrels24
- Albatrosses9
- Penguins8
- Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers6
- Skuas and Jaegers6
- Sandpipers and Allies4
- Southern Storm-Petrels3
- Swallows2
Reported in the last 30 days
4 species reported to eBird in Antarctica in the 30 days to 2026-10-13, most recent first:
Antarctic Tern, Emperor Penguin, Kelp Gull, Snow Petrel.
