Svalbard bird checklist

124 bird species in 32 families have been recorded in Svalbard, according to eBird; about 108 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 Svalbard right now

1Black-legged Kittiwake
2Purple Sandpiper
3Glaucous Gull
4Parasitic Jaeger
5Northern Fulmar
6Great Skua
7Black Guillemot
8Arctic Tern
9King Eider
10Thick-billed Murre

The top 20, and how they are ranked

Svalbard bird checklist

124 species · loading the checklist tools…

Ducks, Geese, and Waterfowl

Bar-headed Goose
Snow Goose
Graylag Goose
Greater White-fronted Goose
Tundra Bean-Goose
Pink-footed Goose
Brant
Barnacle Goose
Canada Goose
Mute Swan
Tundra Swan
Whooper Swan
Ruddy Shelduck
Common Shelduck
Northern Shoveler
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Tufted Duck
Greater Scaup
Steller's Eider
Spectacled Eider
King Eider
Common Eider
Velvet Scoter
Common Scoter
Long-tailed Duck
Common Goldeneye
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser

Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies

Rock Ptarmigan

Swifts

Common Swift

Rails, Gallinules, and Coots

Eurasian Coot

Cranes

Common Crane

Oystercatchers

Eurasian Oystercatcher

Plovers and Lapwings

Black-bellied Plover
European Golden-Plover
Pacific Golden-Plover
Common Ringed Plover

Sandpipers and Allies

Eurasian Whimbrel
Black-tailed Godwit
Common Snipe
Wilson's Phalarope
Red Phalarope
Red-necked Phalarope
Common Sandpiper
Wood Sandpiper
Common Redshank
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot
Ruff
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
Sanderling
Dunlin
Purple Sandpiper
Little Stint
White-rumped Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper

Skuas and Jaegers

Long-tailed Jaeger
Parasitic Jaeger
Pomarine Jaeger
Great Skua

Auks, Murres, and Puffins

Atlantic Puffin
Black Guillemot
Razorbill
Dovekie
Thick-billed Murre
Common Murre

Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers

Ross's Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
Ivory Gull
Sabine's Gull
Black-headed Gull
Common Gull
European Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Glaucous Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Iceland Gull
White-winged Tern
Arctic Tern

Grebes

Horned Grebe

Loons

Red-throated Loon
Arctic Loon
Common Loon
Yellow-billed Loon

Shearwaters and Petrels

Northern Fulmar
Great Shearwater
Sooty Shearwater

Boobies and Gannets

Northern Gannet

Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns

Gray Heron

Hawks, Eagles, and Kites

Black Kite
White-tailed Eagle

Owls

Snowy Owl
Short-eared Owl

Hoopoes

Common Hoopoe

Falcons and Caracaras

Merlin
Gyrfalcon

Crows, Jays, and Magpies

Hooded Crow

Larks

Horned Lark

Swallows

Barn Swallow

Sylviid Warblers and Allies

Eurasian Blackcap
Greater Whitethroat

Starlings

European Starling
Rosy Starling

Thrushes and Allies

Redwing
Eurasian Blackbird
Fieldfare
Ring Ouzel

Old World Flycatchers

European Robin
Bluethroat
Black Redstart
Northern Wheatear

Waxwings

Bohemian Waxwing

Wagtails and Pipits

Western Yellow Wagtail
White Wagtail
Meadow Pipit

Finches, Euphonias, and Allies

Brambling
Redpoll

Longspurs and Snow Buntings

Lapland Longspur
Snow Bunting

Old World Buntings

Rustic Bunting

Most common birds in Svalbard

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 Svalbard’s regular birds. The list follows the seasons: migrants rise in spring and autumn.

Black-legged KittiwakeRissa tridactyla
Purple SandpiperCalidris maritima
Glaucous GullLarus hyperboreus
Parasitic JaegerStercorarius parasiticus
Northern FulmarFulmarus glacialis
Great SkuaStercorarius skua
Black GuillemotCepphus grylle
Arctic TernSterna paradisaea
King EiderSomateria spectabilis
Thick-billed MurreUria lomvia
DovekieAlle alle
Pomarine JaegerStercorarius pomarinus
Snow BuntingPlectrophenax nivalis
Ivory GullPagophila eburnea
Barnacle GooseBranta leucopsis
Atlantic PuffinFratercula arctica
Red-throated LoonGavia stellata
BrantBranta bernicla
Common EiderSomateria mollissima
Common MurreUria aalge

Largest bird families in Svalbard

Among its regular birds.

Ducks, Geese, and Waterfowl29
Sandpipers and Allies16
Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers10
Auks, Murres, and Puffins6
Skuas and Jaegers4
Loons4
Plovers and Lapwings4
Old World Flycatchers4

Reported in the last 30 days

19 species reported to eBird in Svalbard in the 30 days to 2026-10-13, most recent first:

Black-legged Kittiwake, Purple Sandpiper, Glaucous Gull, Parasitic Jaeger, Northern Fulmar, Great Skua, Thick-billed Murre, Black Guillemot, King Eider, Arctic Tern, Ivory Gull, Dovekie, Pomarine Jaeger, Snow Bunting, Barnacle Goose, Atlantic Puffin, Red-throated Loon, Brant, Common Eider.