Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha bird checklist

118 bird species in 30 families have been recorded in Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha, according to eBird; about 106 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 13 Oct 2026 · How these lists are made

The most common birds in Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha right now

1Brown Skua
2Antarctic Tern
3Sooty Albatross
4Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross
5Moseley's Rockhopper Penguin
6Common Waxbill
7St. Helena Plover
8Yellow Canary
9Southern Giant-Petrel
10Common Myna

The top 20, and how they are ranked

Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha bird checklist

118 species · loading the checklist tools…

Ducks, Geese, and Waterfowl

Muscovy Duck

Guineafowl

Helmeted Guineafowl

Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies

Ring-necked Pheasant
Red Junglefowl
Chukar
Red-necked Spurfowl

Pigeons and Doves

Rock Pigeon
European Turtle-Dove
Zebra Dove

Cuckoos

Yellow-billed Cuckoo

Nightjars and Allies

Common Nighthawk

Swifts

Common Swift
Little Swift

Rails, Gallinules, and Coots

Corn Crake
Tristan Moorhen
Gough Moorhen
Eurasian Moorhen
Allen's Gallinule
Purple Gallinule
Inaccessible Island Rail

Plovers and Lapwings

Black-bellied Plover
American Golden-Plover
Common Ringed Plover
St. Helena Plover

Sandpipers and Allies

Upland Sandpiper
Eurasian Whimbrel
Bar-tailed Godwit
Spotted Redshank
Ruddy Turnstone
Curlew Sandpiper
Sanderling
White-rumped Sandpiper

Skuas and Jaegers

Long-tailed Jaeger
Parasitic Jaeger
Pomarine Jaeger
Brown Skua
South Polar Skua

Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers

Franklin's Gull
Kelp Gull
Atlantic White-Tern
Brown Noddy
Black Noddy
Sooty Tern
Arctic Tern
Antarctic Tern

Tropicbirds

White-tailed Tropicbird
Red-billed Tropicbird
Red-tailed Tropicbird

Penguins

African Penguin
Moseley's Rockhopper Penguin

Albatrosses

Northern Royal Albatross
Snowy Albatross
Tristan Albatross
Sooty Albatross
Light-mantled Albatross
Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross
Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross
Gray-headed Albatross
White-capped Albatross
Black-browed Albatross

Southern Storm-Petrels

Wilson's Storm-Petrel
Gray-backed Storm-Petrel
White-faced Storm-Petrel
White-bellied Storm-Petrel
Black-bellied Storm-Petrel

Northern Storm-Petrels

Leach's Storm-Petrel
Band-rumped Storm-Petrel

Shearwaters and Petrels

Southern Giant-Petrel
Northern Giant-Petrel
Southern Fulmar
Pintado Petrel
Kerguelen Petrel
Great-winged Petrel
Trindade Petrel
Soft-plumaged Petrel
White-headed Petrel
Atlantic Petrel
Blue Petrel
Broad-billed Prion
MacGillivray's Prion
Antarctic Prion
Slender-billed Prion
Bulwer's Petrel
Gray Petrel
White-chinned Petrel
Spectacled Petrel
Cory's Shearwater
Scopoli's Shearwater
Great Shearwater
Sooty Shearwater
Little Shearwater
Subantarctic Shearwater
Common Diving-Petrel

Frigatebirds

Ascension Frigatebird

Boobies and Gannets

Red-footed Booby
Brown Booby
Masked Booby

Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns

Little Egret
Squacco Heron
Western Cattle-Egret
Great Egret
Gray Heron

Hawks, Eagles, and Kites

Black Kite

Falcons and Caracaras

Red-footed Falcon

Swallows

Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow

Starlings

European Starling
Common Myna

Thrushes and Allies

Tristan Thrush

Weavers and Allies

Red Fody

Waxbills and Allies

Java Sparrow
Common Waxbill

Finches, Euphonias, and Allies

Yellow Canary

Tanagers and Allies

Gough Island Finch
Inaccessible Island Finch
Nightingale Island Finch
Wilkins's Finch

Most common birds in Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha

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 Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha’s regular birds. The list follows the seasons: migrants rise in spring and autumn.

Brown SkuaStercorarius antarcticus
Antarctic TernSterna vittata
Sooty AlbatrossPhoebetria fusca
Atlantic Yellow-nosed AlbatrossThalassarche chlororhynchos
Moseley's Rockhopper PenguinEudyptes moseleyi
Common WaxbillEstrilda astrild
St. Helena PloverAnarhynchus sanctaehelenae
Yellow CanaryCrithagra flaviventris
Southern Giant-PetrelMacronectes giganteus
Common MynaAcridotheres tristis
Red FodyFoudia madagascariensis
Brown NoddyAnous stolidus
Zebra DoveGeopelia striata
Broad-billed PrionPachyptila vittata
Sooty TernOnychoprion fuscatus
Gough Island FinchRowettia goughensis
Tristan AlbatrossDiomedea dabbenena
Gough MoorhenGallinula comeri
Red-footed BoobySula sula
Ascension FrigatebirdFregata aquila

Largest bird families in Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha

Among its regular birds.

Shearwaters and Petrels24
Albatrosses10
Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers8
Rails, Gallinules, and Coots6
Sandpipers and Allies6
Skuas and Jaegers5
Southern Storm-Petrels5
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns5

Reported in the last 30 days

24 species reported to eBird in Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha in the 30 days to 2026-10-13, most recent first:

Brown Skua, Atlantic Yellow-nosed Albatross, Antarctic Tern, Sooty Albatross, Moseley's Rockhopper Penguin, Common Waxbill, St. Helena Plover, Yellow Canary, Atlantic White-Tern, Red Fody, Common Myna, Zebra Dove, Southern Giant-Petrel, Gough Island Finch, Brown Noddy, Gough Moorhen, Tristan Albatross, Broad-billed Prion, Ascension Frigatebird, Sooty Tern, Red-billed Tropicbird, Red-footed Booby, Masked Booby, Brown Booby.