List of birds of Lakshadweep

This article lists the species of bird found in Lakshadweep. 134 species of birds have been sighted on the islands.^[1]^[2]^[3] The state bird of Lakshadweep is the brown noddy.^[4] This list's taxonomic treatment (designation and sequence of orders, families and species) and nomenclature (common and scientific names) follow the conventions of the IOC World Bird List, version 11.2.^[5] This list also uses British English throughout. Any bird names or other wording follows that convention.

The following tags have been used to highlight several categories. The commonly occurring native species do not fit within any of these categories.^[1]

(A) Accidental - also known as a rarity, it refers to a species that rarely or accidentally occurs in Lakshadweep - typically less than ten confirmed records
(I) Introduced - a species introduced to Lakshadweep as a consequence, direct or indirect, of human actions.

Ducks, geese and swans

Order: Anseriformes Family: Anatidae

Anatidae includes the ducks and most duck-like waterfowl, such as geese and swans. These birds are adapted to an aquatic existence with webbed feet, flattened bills, and feathers that are excellent at shedding water due to an oily coating.


Common Name	Binomial	Comments
Ruddy shelduck	Tadorna ferruginea
Garganey	Spatula querquedula
Northern pintail	Anas acuta
Eurasian teal	Anas crecca
Tufted duck	Aythya fuligula

Pigeons and doves

Order: Columbiformes Family: Columbidae

Pigeons and doves are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with a fleshy cere.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Rock dove	Columba livia	(I)
Oriental turtle dove	Streptopelia orientalis

Cuckoos

Order: Cuculiformes Family: Cuculidae

The family Cuculidae includes cuckoos, roadrunners and anis. These birds are of variable size with slender bodies, long tails and strong legs. Many are brood parasites.

Common name	Binomial	Comments
Jacobin cuckoo	Clamator jacobinus
Asian koel	Eudynamys scolopaceus
Grey-bellied cuckoo	Cacomantis passerinus
Common cuckoo	Cuculus canorus

Nightjars

Order: Caprimulgiformes Family: Caprimulgidae

Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal birds that usually nest on the ground. They have long wings, short legs and very short bills. Most have small feet, of little use for walking, and long pointed wings. Their soft plumage is camouflaged to resemble bark or leaves.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
European nightjar	Caprimulgus europaeus	(A)

Swifts

Order: Apodiformes Family: Apodidae

Swifts are small birds which spend the majority of their lives flying. These birds have very short legs and never settle voluntarily on the ground, perching instead only on vertical surfaces. Many swifts have long swept-back wings which resemble a crescent or boomerang.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Common swift	Apus apus
Little swift	Apus affinis

Rails, crakes and coots

Order: Gruiformes Family: Rallidae

Rallidae is a large family of small to medium-sized birds which includes the rails, crakes, coots and gallinules. Typically they inhabit dense vegetation in damp environments near lakes, swamps or rivers. In general they are shy and secretive birds, making them difficult to observe. Most species have strong legs and long toes which are well adapted to soft uneven surfaces. They tend to have short, rounded wings and to be weak fliers.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Eurasian moorhen	Gallina chloropus
Eurasian coot	Fulica atra
Watercock	Gallicrex cinerea
White-breasted waterhen	Amaurornis phoenicurus
Baillon's crake	Zapornia pusilla

Stilts and avocets

Order: Charadriiformes Family: Recurvirostridae

Recurvirostridae is a family of large wading birds, which includes the avocets and stilts. The avocets have long legs and long up-curved bills. The stilts have extremely long legs and long, thin, straight bills.

Common name	Binomial	Comments
Black-winged stilt	Himantopus himantopus

Plovers

Order: Charadriiformes Family: Charadriidae

The family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels and lapwings. They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings. They are found in open country worldwide, mostly in habitats near water.

Common name	Binomial	Comments
Pacific golden plover	Pluvialis fulva
Grey plover	Pluvialis squatarola	Vulnerable
Caspian plover	Anarhynchus asiaticus	(A)
Kentish plover	Charadrius alexandrinus
Siberian sand plover	Charadrius mongolus	Endangered
Tibetan sand plover	Charadrius atrifrons
Greater sand plover	Charadrius leschenaultii

Sandpipers and snipes

Order: Charadriiformes Family: Scolopacidae

Scolopacidae is a large diverse family of small to medium-sized shorebirds including the sandpipers, curlews, godwits, shanks, tattlers, woodcocks, snipes, dowitchers and phalaropes. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. Variation in length of legs and bills enables multiple species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food.

Common name	Binomial	Comments
Eurasian whimbrel	Numenius phaeopus
Eurasian curlew	Numenius arquata	Near-threatened
Bar-tailed godwit	Limosa lapponica	Near-threatened
Black-tailed godwit	Limosa limosa	Near-threatened
Ruddy turnstone	Arenaria interpres	Near-threatened
Curlew sandpiper	Calidris ferruginea	Vulnerable
Temminck's stint	Calidris temminckii
Sanderling	Calidris alba
Dunlin	Calidris alpina	Near-threatened
Little stint	Calidris minuta
Common snipe	Gallinago gallinago	(A)
Terek sandpiper	Xenus cinereus
Common sandpiper	Actitis hypoleucos
Green sandpiper	Tringa ochropus
Common redshank	Tringa totanus
Marsh sandpiper	Tringa stagnatilis	(A)
Wood sandpiper	Tringa glareola
Common greenshank	Tringa nebularia

Crab-plover

Order: Charadriiformes Family: Dromadidae

The crab-plover is related to the waders. It resembles a plover but with very long grey legs and a strong heavy black bill similar to a tern. It has black-and-white plumage, a long neck, partially webbed feet and a bill designed for eating crabs.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Crab-plover	Dromas ardeola	(A)

Coursers and pratincoles

Order: Charadriiformes Family: Glareolidae

Glareolidae is a family of wading birds comprising the pratincoles, which have short legs, long pointed wings and long forked tails, and the coursers, which have long legs, short wings and long, pointed bills which curve downwards.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Collared pratincole	Glareola pratincola
Oriental pratincole	Glareola maldivarum

Skuas

Order: Charadriiformes Family: Stercorariidae

The family Stercorariidae are, in general, medium to large birds, typically with grey or brown plumage, often with white markings on the wings. They nest on the ground in temperate and arctic regions and are long-distance migrants.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Pomarine jaeger	Stercorarius pomarinus

Gulls, terns and skimmers

Order: Charadriiformes Family: Laridae

Laridae is a family of medium to large seabirds, the gulls, terns, and skimmers. Gulls are typically grey or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They have stout, longish bills and webbed feet. Terns are a group of generally medium to large seabirds typically with grey or white plumage, often with black markings on the head. Most terns hunt fish by diving but some pick insects off the surface of fresh water. Terns are generally long-lived birds, with several species known to live in excess of 30 years. Skimmers are a small family of tropical tern-like birds. They have an elongated lower mandible which they use to feed by flying low over the water surface and skimming the water for small fish.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Brown noddy	Anous stolidus
Black noddy	Anous minutus	(A)
Lesser black-backed gull	Larus fuscus	(A)
Gull-billed tern	Gelochelidon nilotica
Greater crested tern	Thalasseus bergii
Lesser crested tern	Thalasseus bengalensis
Little tern	Sternula albifrons
Bridled tern	Onychoprion anaethetus
Sooty tern	Onychoprion fuscatus
Common tern	Sterna hirundo
White-cheeked tern	Sterna repressa
Whiskered tern	Chlidonias hybrida
Saunders's tern	Sternula saundersi
Caspian tern	Hydroprogne caspia

Tropicbirds

Order: Phaethontiformes Family: Phaethontidae

Tropicbirds are slender white birds of tropical oceans, with exceptionally long central tail feathers. Their heads and long wings have black markings.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Red-billed tropicbird	Phaethon aethereus
White-tailed tropicbird	Phaethon lepturus

Austral storm petrels

Order: Procellariiformes Family: Oceanitidae

The storm petrels are relatives of the petrels and are the smallest seabirds. They feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Wilson's storm petrel	Oceanites oceanicus
White-faced storm petrel	Pelagodroma marina	(A)
Black-bellied storm petrel	Fregetta tropica	(A)

Northern storm petrels

Order: Procellariiformes Family: Hydrobatidae

The northern storm petrels are relatives of the petrels and are the smallest seabirds. They feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Swinhoe's storm petrel	Hydrobates monorhis	Near-threatened

Petrels, shearwaters and diving petrels

Order: Procellariiformes Family: Procellariidae

The procellariids are the main group of medium-sized "true petrels", characterised by united nostrils with medium septum and a long outer functional primary.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Barau's petrel	Pterodroma baraui	Endangered
Flesh-footed shearwater	Ardenna carneipes	Near-threatened
Jouanin's petrel	Bulweria fallax	Near-threatened

Frigatebirds

Order: Suliformes Family: Fregatidae

Frigatebirds are large seabirds usually found over tropical oceans. They are large, black-and-white or completely black, with long wings and deeply forked tails. The males have coloured inflatable throat pouches. They do not swim or walk and cannot take off from a flat surface. Having the largest wingspan-to-body-weight ratio of any bird, they are essentially aerial, able to stay aloft for more than a week.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Lesser frigatebird	Fregata ariel	(A)

Gannets and boobies

Order: Suliformes Family: Sulidae

The sulids comprise the gannets and boobies. Both groups are medium to large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Masked booby	Sula dactylatra
Brown booby	Sula leucogaster

Cormorants and shags

Order: Suliformes Family: Phalacrocoracidae

Phalacrocoracidae is a family of medium to large coastal, fish-eating seabirds that includes cormorants and shags. Plumage colouration varies, with the majority having mainly dark plumage, some species being black-and-white and a few being colourful.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Great cormorant	Phalacrocorax carbo

Ibises and spoonbills

Order: Pelecaniformes Family: Threskiornithidae

Threskiornithidae is a family of large terrestrial and wading birds which includes the ibises and spoonbills. They have long, broad wings with 11 primary and about 20 secondary feathers. They are strong fliers and despite their size and weight, very capable soarers.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Glossy ibis	Plegadis falcinellus

Herons and bitterns

Order: Pelecaniformes Family: Ardeidae

The family Ardeidae contains the bitterns, herons and egrets. Herons and egrets are medium to large wading birds with long necks and legs. Bitterns tend to be shorter necked and more wary. Members of Ardeidae fly with their necks retracted, unlike other long-necked birds such as storks, ibises and spoonbills.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Eurasian bittern	Botaurus stellaris	(A)
Yellow bittern	Botaurus sinensis
Cinnamon bittern	Botaurus cinnamomeus
Black bittern	Botaurus flavicollis
Black-crowned night heron	Nycticorax nycticorax
Striated heron	Butorides striata
Indian pond heron	Ardeola grayii
Eastern cattle egret	Ardea coromandus
Grey heron	Ardea cinerea
Purple heron	Ardea purpurea
Great egret	Ardea alba
Medium egret	Ardea intermedia
Little egret	Egretta garzetta
Western reef heron	Egretta gularis

Osprey

Order: Accipitriformes Family: Pandionidae

The family Pandionidae contains usually only one species, the osprey. The osprey is a medium-large raptor which is a specialist fish-eater with most taxonomic authorities consider a worldwide distribution.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Osprey	Pandion haliaetus

Hawks, eagles and kites

Order: Accipitriformes Family: Accipitridae

Accipitridae is a family of birds of prey, which includes hawks, eagles, kites, harriers and Old World vultures. These birds have powerful hooked beaks for tearing flesh from their prey, strong legs, powerful talons and keen eyesight.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Black-winged kite	Elanus caeruleus
Crested honey buzzard	Pernis ptilorhynchus
Shikra	Tachyspiza badia
Black kite	Milvus migrans
Brahminy kite	Haliastur indus
White-bellied sea eagle	Icthyophaga leucogaster

Barn owls

Order: Strigiformes Family: Tytonidae

Barn owls are medium to large owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long strong legs with powerful talons.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Eastern barn owl	Tyto javanica

Owls

Order: Strigiformes Family: Strigidae

The typical owls are small to large solitary nocturnal birds of prey. They have large forward-facing eyes and ears, a hawk-like beak and a conspicuous circle of feathers around each eye called a facial disk.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Pallid scops owl	Otus brucei	(A)
Brown wood owl	Strix leptogrammica	Extirpated

Hoopoes

Order: Bucerotiformes Family: Upupidae

Hoopoes have black, white and orangey-pink colouring with a large erectile crest on their head. There is one species which occurs in India.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Eurasian hoopoe	Upupa epops

Bee-eaters

Order: Coraciiformes Family: Meropidae

The bee-eaters are a group of near passerine birds in the family Meropidae. Most species are found in Africa but others occur in southern Europe, Madagascar, Australia and New Guinea. They are characterised by richly coloured plumage, slender bodies and usually elongated central tail feathers. All are colorful and have long downturned bills and pointed wings, which give them a swallow-like appearance when seen from afar.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Blue-cheeked bee-eater	Merops persicus
European bee-eater	Merops apiaster	(A)

Kingfishers

Order: Coraciiformes Family: Alcedinidae

Kingfishers are medium-sized birds with large heads, long, pointed bills, short legs and stubby tails.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Common kingfisher	Alcedo atthis
White-throated kingfisher	Halcyon smyrnensis

Rollers

Order: Coraciiformes Family: Coraciidae

Rollers resemble crows in size and build, but are more closely related to the kingfishers and bee-eaters. They share the colourful appearance of those groups with blues and browns predominating. The two inner front toes are connected at the base, but the outer toe is not.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Indian roller	Coracias benghalensis
European roller	Coracias garrulus

Kestrels and falcons

Order: Falconiformes Family: Falconidae

Falconidae is a family of diurnal birds of prey. They differ from hawks, eagles and kites in that they kill with their beaks instead of their talons.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Common kestrel	Falco tinnunculus
Peregrine falcon	Falco peregrinus

Old World parakeets

Order: Psittaciformes Family: Psittaculidae

Characteristic features of parrots include a strong curved bill, an upright stance, strong legs, and clawed zygodactyl feet. Many parrots are vividly coloured, and some are multi-coloured. In size they range from 8 cm (3.1 in) to 1 m (3.3 ft) in length. Old World parrots are found from Africa east across south and southeast Asia and Oceania to Australia and New Zealand.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Rose-ringed parakeet	Psittacula krameri

Pittas

Order: Passeriformes Family: Pittidae

Pittas are medium-sized by passerine standards and are stocky, with fairly long, strong legs, short tails and stout bills. Many are brightly coloured. They spend the majority of their time on wet forest floors, eating snails, insects and similar invertebrates.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Indian pitta	Pitta brachyura	(A)

Orioles, figbirds and turnagra

Order: Passeriformes Family: Oriolidae

The Old World orioles are colourful passerine birds. They are not related to the New World orioles.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Indian golden oriole	Oriolus kundoo

Drongos

Order: Passeriformes Family: Dicruridae

The drongos are mostly black or dark grey in colour, sometimes with metallic tints. They have long forked tails, and some Asian species have elaborate tail decorations. They have short legs and sit very upright when perched, like a shrike. They flycatch or take prey from the ground.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Ashy drongo	Dicrurus leucophaeus

Shrikes

Order: Passeriformes Family: Laniidae

Shrikes are passerine birds known for their habit of catching other birds and small animals and impaling the uneaten portions of their bodies on thorns. A typical shrike's beak is hooked, like a bird of prey.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Brown shrike	Lanius cristatus

Crows and ravens

Order: Passeriformes Family: Corvidae

The family Corvidae includes crows, ravens, jays, choughs, magpies, treepies, nutcrackers and ground jays. Corvids are above average in size among the Passeriformes, and some of the larger species show high levels of intelligence.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
House crow	Corvus splendens	(I)

Larks

Order: Passeriformes Family: Alaudidae

Larks are small terrestrial birds with often extravagant songs and display flights. Most larks are fairly dull in appearance. Their food is insects and seeds.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Mongolian short-toed lark	Calandrella dukhunensis	(A)

Reed warblers and allies

Order: Passeriformes Family: Acrocephalidae

The members of this family are usually rather large for "warblers". Most are rather plain olivaceous brown above with much yellow to beige below. They are usually found in open woodland, reedbeds, or tall grass. The family occurs mostly in southern to western Eurasia and surroundings, but it also ranges far into the Pacific, with some species in Africa.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Blyth's reed warbler	Acrocephalus dumetorum	(A)

Swallows and martins

Order: Passeriformes Family: Hirundinidae

The family Hirundinidae is adapted to aerial feeding. They have a slender streamlined body, long pointed wings and a short bill with a wide gape. The feet are adapted to perching rather than walking, and the front toes are partially joined at the base.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Barn swallow	Hirundo rustica
Sand martin	Riparia riparia

Leaf warblers and allies

Order: Passeriformes Family: Phylloscopidae

Leaf warblers are a family of small insectivorous birds found mostly in Eurasia and ranging into Wallacea and Africa. The species are of various sizes, often green-plumaged above and yellow below, or more subdued with grayish-green to grayish-brown colors.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Greenish warbler	Phylloscopus trochiloides
Common chiffchaff	Phylloscopus collybita

White-eyes

Order: Passeriformes Family: Zosteropidae

The white-eyes are small and mostly undistinguished, their plumage above being generally some dull colour like greenish-olive, but some species have a white or bright yellow throat, breast or lower parts, and several have buff flanks. As their name suggests, many species have a white ring around each eye.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Indian white-eye	Zosterops palpebrosus

Starlings and rhabdornis

Order: Passeriformes Family: Sturnidae

Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds. Their flight is strong and direct and they are very gregarious. Their preferred habitat is fairly open country. They eat insects and fruit. Plumage is typically dark with a metallic sheen.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Rosy starling	Pastor roseus

Old world flycatchers

Order: Passeriformes Family: Muscicapidae

Old World flycatchers are a large group of small passerine birds native to the Old World. They are mainly small arboreal insectivores. The appearance of these birds is highly varied, but they mostly have weak songs and harsh calls.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Asian brown flycatcher	Muscicapa dauurica
Spotted flycatcher	Muscicapa striata
Pied bushchat	Saxicola caprata

Wagtails and pipits

Order: Passeriformes Family: Motacillidae

Motacillidae is a family of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. They include the wagtails, longclaws and pipits. They are slender, ground feeding insectivores of open country.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Forest wagtail	Dendronanthus indicus
Western yellow wagtail	Motacilla flava
Grey wagtail	Motacilla cinerea
White wagtail	Motacilla alba	(A)
Paddyfield pipit	Anthus rufulus
Tree pipit	Anthus trivialis
Red-throated pipit	Anthus cervinus

Finches and euphonias

Order: Passeriformes Family: Fringillidae

Finches are seed-eating passerine birds, that are small to moderately large and have a strong beak, usually conical and in some species very large. All have twelve tail feathers and nine primaries. These birds have a bouncing flight with alternating bouts of flapping and gliding on closed wings, and most sing well.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Common rosefinch	Carpodacus erythrinus

Buntings

Order: Passeriformes Family: Emberizidae

The emberizids are a large family of passerine birds. They are seed-eating birds with distinctively shaped bills. Many emberizid species have distinctive head patterns.


Common name	Binomial	Comments
Black-headed bunting	Emberiza melanocephala

References

^ ^a ^b "Lakshadweep bird checklist - Avibase - Bird Checklists of the World". avibase.bsc-eoc.org. Retrieved 2025-05-06.
^ "Bird List - Lakshadweep, India - eBird". ebird.org. 2025-05-04. Retrieved 2025-05-06.
^ "Birds of Lakshadweep". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2025-05-06.
^ "States/UTs Symbols -National Identity Elements of India - Know India: National Portal of India". web.archive.org. 2013-11-12. Archived from the original on 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2025-05-06.
^ "IOC World Bird List – Version 14.2". www.worldbirdnames.org. Retrieved 2025-05-06.

[:0-1] "Lakshadweep bird checklist - Avibase - Bird Checklists of the World". avibase.bsc-eoc.org. Retrieved 2025-05-06.

[2] "Bird List - Lakshadweep, India - eBird". ebird.org. 2025-05-04. Retrieved 2025-05-06.

[3] "Birds of Lakshadweep". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2025-05-06.

[4] "States/UTs Symbols -National Identity Elements of India - Know India: National Portal of India". web.archive.org. 2013-11-12. Archived from the original on 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2025-05-06.

[5] "IOC World Bird List – Version 14.2". www.worldbirdnames.org. Retrieved 2025-05-06.

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