Western Sahara bird checklist
267 bird species in 60 families have been recorded in Western Sahara, according to eBird; about 231 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 Western Sahara right now
1Ruddy Turnstone
2Dunlin
3Common Ringed Plover
4Common Tern
5Common Sandpiper
6Western Yellow Wagtail
7Lesser Black-backed Gull
8Brown-necked Raven
9House Sparrow
10Manx Shearwater
Western Sahara bird checklist
267 species · loading the checklist tools…
Ducks, Geese, and Waterfowl
- Brant
- Ruddy Shelduck
- Common Shelduck
- Garganey
- Northern Shoveler
- Mallard
- Northern Pintail
- Green-winged Teal
- Marbled Duck
- Common Pochard
- Ring-necked Duck
- Lesser Scaup
- Common Scoter
Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies
- Common Quail
- Barbary Partridge
Pigeons and Doves
- Rock Pigeon
- European Turtle-Dove
- Eurasian Collared-Dove
- African Collared-Dove
- Laughing Dove
- Namaqua Dove
Sandgrouse
- Spotted Sandgrouse
- Crowned Sandgrouse
Bustards
- African Houbara
Cuckoos
- Great Spotted Cuckoo
Nightjars and Allies
- Red-necked Nightjar
- Eurasian Nightjar
- Egyptian Nightjar
- Golden Nightjar
Swifts
- Common Swift
- Plain Swift
- Pallid Swift
- Little Swift
Rails, Gallinules, and Coots
- Spotted Crake
- Eurasian Moorhen
- Eurasian Coot
- Allen's Gallinule
Thick-knees
- Eurasian Thick-knee
Stilts and Avocets
- Black-winged Stilt
- Pied Avocet
Oystercatchers
- Eurasian Oystercatcher
Plovers and Lapwings
- Black-bellied Plover
- Eurasian Dotterel
- Common Ringed Plover
- Little Ringed Plover
- Northern Lapwing
- Kentish Plover
Sandpipers and Allies
- Hudsonian Whimbrel
- Eurasian Whimbrel
- Eurasian Curlew
- Bar-tailed Godwit
- Black-tailed Godwit
- Common Snipe
- Red Phalarope
- Common Sandpiper
- Green Sandpiper
- Marsh Sandpiper
- Wood Sandpiper
- Common Redshank
- Spotted Redshank
- Common Greenshank
- Ruddy Turnstone
- Red Knot
- Ruff
- Curlew Sandpiper
- Temminck's Stint
- Sanderling
- Dunlin
- Little Stint
Pratincoles and Coursers
- Cream-colored Courser
- Collared Pratincole
Skuas and Jaegers
- Long-tailed Jaeger
- Parasitic Jaeger
- Pomarine Jaeger
- Great Skua
Auks, Murres, and Puffins
- Atlantic Puffin
- Razorbill
Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers
- Black-legged Kittiwake
- Sabine's Gull
- Slender-billed Gull
- Black-headed Gull
- Audouin's Gull
- Mediterranean Gull
- Kelp Gull
- Yellow-legged Gull
- Great Black-backed Gull
- Lesser Black-backed Gull
- Little Tern
- Gull-billed Tern
- Caspian Tern
- Whiskered Tern
- Black Tern
- White-winged Tern
- Arctic Tern
- Common Tern
- Roseate Tern
- Sandwich Tern
- Lesser Crested Tern
- West African Crested Tern
Flamingos
- Greater Flamingo
Grebes
- Little Grebe
- Eared Grebe
Tropicbirds
- Red-billed Tropicbird
Southern Storm-Petrels
- Wilson's Storm-Petrel
- White-faced Storm-Petrel
Northern Storm-Petrels
- European Storm-Petrel
- Leach's Storm-Petrel
- Band-rumped Storm-Petrel
Shearwaters and Petrels
- Bulwer's Petrel
- Cory's Shearwater
- Scopoli's Shearwater
- Cape Verde Shearwater
- Great Shearwater
- Sooty Shearwater
- Manx Shearwater
Storks
- Black Stork
- White Stork
Boobies and Gannets
- Northern Gannet
- Red-footed Booby
- Brown Booby
Cormorants and Shags
- Great Cormorant
Ibises and Spoonbills
- Glossy Ibis
- Eurasian Spoonbill
Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns
- Little Bittern
- Black-crowned Night Heron
- Little Egret
- Western Reef-Heron
- Squacco Heron
- Western Cattle-Egret
- Great Egret
- Gray Heron
- Purple Heron
Osprey
- Osprey
Hawks, Eagles, and Kites
- Egyptian Vulture
- European Honey-buzzard
- Hooded Vulture
- Eurasian Griffon
- Short-toed Snake-Eagle
- Booted Eagle
- Golden Eagle
- Bonelli's Eagle
- Eurasian Sparrowhawk
- Western Marsh Harrier
- Hen Harrier
- Pallid Harrier
- Montagu's Harrier
- Black Kite
- Long-legged Buzzard
Barn-Owls
- Western Barn Owl
Owls
- Eurasian Scops-Owl
- Pharaoh Eagle-Owl
- Little Owl
- Long-eared Owl
- Short-eared Owl
Hoopoes
- Common Hoopoe
Bee-eaters
- White-throated Bee-eater
- Blue-cheeked Bee-eater
- European Bee-eater
Rollers
- Abyssinian Roller
Woodpeckers
- Eurasian Wryneck
Falcons and Caracaras
- Lesser Kestrel
- Eurasian Kestrel
- Lanner Falcon
- Peregrine Falcon
Old World Orioles
- Eurasian Golden Oriole
Bushshrikes and Allies
- Black-crowned Tchagra
Shrikes
- Great Gray Shrike
- Woodchat Shrike
Crows, Jays, and Magpies
- Maghreb Magpie
- Pied Crow
- Brown-necked Raven
Larks
- Greater Hoopoe-Lark
- Thick-billed Lark
- Bar-tailed Lark
- Desert Lark
- Black-crowned Sparrow-Lark
- Thekla's Lark
- Crested Lark
- Horned Lark
- Temminck's Lark
- Greater Short-toed Lark
- Dunn's Lark
- Mediterranean Short-toed Lark
Cisticolas and Allies
- Cricket Longtail
- Zitting Cisticola
Reed Warblers and Allies
- Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
- Western Olivaceous Warbler
- Melodious Warbler
- Sedge Warbler
- Common Reed Warbler
Grassbirds and Allies
- Savi's Warbler
- Common Grasshopper Warbler
Swallows
- Plain Martin
- Bank Swallow
- Pale Crag-Martin
- Barn Swallow
- Western House-Martin
- European Red-rumped Swallow
Bulbuls
- Common Bulbul
Leaf Warblers
- Wood Warbler
- Western Bonelli's Warbler
- Yellow-browed Warbler
- Willow Warbler
- Common Chiffchaff
- Iberian Chiffchaff
Bush Warblers and Allies
- Scrub Warbler
Sylviid Warblers and Allies
- Eurasian Blackcap
- Garden Warbler
- Lesser Whitethroat
- Western Orphean Warbler
- African Desert Warbler
- Tristram's Warbler
- Sardinian Warbler
- Western Subalpine Warbler
- Greater Whitethroat
- Spectacled Warbler
Laughingthrushes and Allies
- Fulvous Chatterer
Starlings
- Rosy Starling
Thrushes and Allies
- Song Thrush
- Eurasian Blackbird
- Fieldfare
- Ring Ouzel
Old World Flycatchers
- Spotted Flycatcher
- Rufous-tailed Scrub-Robin
- European Robin
- Common Nightingale
- Bluethroat
- European Pied Flycatcher
- Moussier's Redstart
- Common Redstart
- Black Redstart
- Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush
- Blue Rock-Thrush
- Whinchat
- European Stonechat
- Northern Wheatear
- Atlas Wheatear
- Isabelline Wheatear
- Desert Wheatear
- Western Black-eared Wheatear
- Red-rumped Wheatear
- Black Wheatear
- White-crowned Wheatear
- Mourning Wheatear
Old World Sparrows
- House Sparrow
- Spanish Sparrow
- Desert Sparrow
- Sudan Golden Sparrow
Wagtails and Pipits
- Western Yellow Wagtail
- Citrine Wagtail
- White Wagtail
- Richard's Pipit
- Blyth's Pipit
- Tawny Pipit
- Meadow Pipit
- Tree Pipit
- Olive-backed Pipit
- Red-throated Pipit
Finches, Euphonias, and Allies
- Trumpeter Finch
- Eurasian Linnet
- European Goldfinch
- European Serin
Longspurs and Snow Buntings
- Snow Bunting
Old World Buntings
- Corn Bunting
- Ortolan Bunting
- House Bunting
- Reed Bunting
Most common birds in Western Sahara
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 Western Sahara’s regular birds. The list follows the seasons: migrants rise in spring and autumn.
- Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpres
- DunlinCalidris alpina
- Common Ringed PloverCharadrius hiaticula
- Common TernSterna hirundo
- Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucos
- Western Yellow WagtailMotacilla flava
- Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
- Brown-necked RavenCorvus ruficollis
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Manx ShearwaterPuffinus puffinus
- SanderlingCalidris alba
- Great SkuaStercorarius skua
- Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensis
- Greater Hoopoe-LarkAlaemon alaudipes
- Black WheatearOenanthe leucura
- Little TernSternula albifrons
- Laughing DoveSpilopelia senegalensis
- Caspian TernHydroprogne caspia
- Yellow-legged GullLarus michahellis
- Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
Largest bird families in Western Sahara
Among its regular birds.
- Sandpipers and Allies21
- Old World Flycatchers21
- Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers20
- Larks11
- Hawks, Eagles, and Kites11
- Wagtails and Pipits9
- Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns9
- Ducks, Geese, and Waterfowl9
Reported in the last 30 days
58 species reported to eBird in Western Sahara in the 30 days to 2026-10-13. The 40 most recently reported:
Manx Shearwater, Ruddy Turnstone, Black Wheatear, Brown-necked Raven, Common Sandpiper, Common Tern, Common Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Western Yellow Wagtail, Great Skua, Greater Hoopoe-Lark, House Sparrow, Laughing Dove, Lesser Black-backed Gull, Little Tern, Sanderling, Sandwich Tern, Thekla's Lark, Eurasian Whimbrel, Yellow-legged Gull, Caspian Tern, Cory's Shearwater, Gray Heron, Great Cormorant, Greater Flamingo, Slender-billed Gull, Eurasian Oystercatcher, Eurasian Spoonbill, Little Egret, Barn Swallow, Northern Wheatear, Osprey, Bar-tailed Godwit, Black-bellied Plover, Peregrine Falcon, Red-rumped Wheatear, Common Greenshank, Common Redshank, Audouin's Gull, Western Olivaceous Warbler, …
Get to know some of them
Sanderling
Sandwich Tern
Laughing Dove
Caspian Tern
Great Cormorant
Gray Heron
Barn Swallow
Eurasian Oystercatcher
Eurasian Spoonbill
Little Egret
Black-bellied Plover
Bar-tailed Godwit
Northern Wheatear
Osprey
Common Greenshank
Common Redshank