List of birds of Nightingale Islands

This is a list of the bird species recorded on the Nightingale Islands. The avifauna of the Nightingale Islands include a total of 49 species. The islands are part of the Tristan da Cunha group in the South Atlantic and are administered by the United Kingdom.

This list's taxonomic treatment (designation and sequence of orders, families and species) and nomenclature (common and scientific names) follow the conventions of The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World, 20212 edition. The family accounts at the beginning of each heading reflect this taxonomy, as do the species counts found in each family account. Introduced and accidental species are included in the total counts for the Nightingale Islands.

The following tags have been used to highlight several categories. The commonly occurring native species do not fall into any of these categories.


 * (A) Accidental - a species that rarely or accidentally occurs on the Nightingale Islands.
 * (E) Endemic - a species endemic to the Nightingale Islands.

Rails, gallinules, and coots
Order: GruiformesFamily: 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.


 * Purple gallinule, Porphyrio martinica (A)

Sandpipers and allies
Order: CharadriiformesFamily: 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.


 * Upland sandpiper, Bartramia longicauda (A)

Skuas and jaegers
Order: CharadriiformesFamily: 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.


 * Brown skua, Stercorarius antarcticus
 * Parasitic jaeger, Stercorarius parasiticus (A)
 * Long-tailed jaeger, Stercorarius longicaudus (A)

Gulls, terns, and skimmers
Order: CharadriiformesFamily: 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.


 * Kelp gull, Larus dominicanus (A)
 * Brown noddy, Anous stolidus
 * Arctic tern, Sterna paradisaea (A)
 * Antarctic tern, Sterna vittata

Penguins
Order: SphenisciformesFamily: Spheniscidae

The penguins are a group of flightless aquatic birds living almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. Most penguins feed on krill, fish, squid, and other forms of marine life caught while swimming underwater.


 * Macaroni penguin, Eudyptes chrysolophus (A)
 * Moseley's rockhopper penguin, Eudyptes moseleyi

Albatrosses
Order: ProcellariiformesFamily: Diomedeidae

The albatrosses are among the largest of flying birds, and the great albatrosses from the genus Diomedea have the largest wingspans of any extant birds.


 * Yellow-nosed albatross, Thalassarche chlororhynchos
 * Gray-headed albatross, Thalassarche chrysostoma
 * White-capped albatross, Thalassarche cauta
 * Black-browed albatross, Thalassarche melanophris
 * Sooty albatross, Phoebetria fusca
 * Light-mantled albatross, Phoebetria palpebrata
 * Wandering albatross, Diomedea exulans

Southern storm-petrels
Order: ProcellariiformesFamily: Oceanitidae

The southern 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.


 * Wilson's storm-petrel, Oceanites oceanicus
 * Gray-backed storm-petrel, Garrodia nereis (A)
 * White-faced storm-petrel, Pelagodroma marina
 * White-bellied storm-petrel, Fregetta grallaria
 * Black-bellied storm-petrel, Fregetta tropica

Northern storm-petrels
Order: ProcellariiformesFamily: Hydrobatidae

Though the members of this family are similar in many respects to the southern storm-petrels, including their general appearance and habits, there are enough genetic differences to warrant their placement in a separate family.


 * Leach's storm-petrel, Hydrobates leucorhous

Shearwaters and petrels
Order: ProcellariiformesFamily: 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.


 * Southern giant-petrel, Macronectes giganteus
 * Northern giant-petrel, Macronectes halli
 * Southern fulmar, Fulmarus glacialoides
 * Cape petrel, Daption capense
 * Kerguelen petrel, Aphrodroma brevirostris
 * Great-winged petrel, Pterodroma macroptera
 * Soft-plumaged petrel, Pterodroma mollis
 * Atlantic petrel, Pterodroma incerta
 * Broad-billed prion, Pachyptila vittata
 * Antarctic prion, Pachyptila desolata
 * Slender-billed prion, Pachyptila belcheri
 * Gray petrel, Procellaria cinerea
 * White-chinned petrel, Procellaria aequinoctialis
 * Spectacled petrel, Procellaria conspicillata
 * Cory's shearwater, Calonectris diomedea (A)
 * Great shearwater, Ardenna gravis
 * Sooty shearwater, Ardenna grisea
 * Subantarctic shearwater, Puffinus elegans
 * Tropical shearwater, Puffinus bailloni
 * Common diving-petrel, Pelecanoides urinatrix

Herons, egrets, and bitterns
Order: PelecaniformesFamily: 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.


 * Great egret, Ardea alba (A)

Thrushes and allies
Order: PasseriformesFamily: Turdidae

The thrushes are a group of passerine birds that occur mainly in the Old World. They are plump, soft plumaged, small to medium-sized insectivores or sometimes omnivores, often feeding on the ground. Many have attractive songs.


 * Tristan thrush, Turdus eremita

Tanagers
Order: PasseriformesFamily: Thraupidae

The tanagers are a large group of small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to the New World, mainly in the tropics. Many species are brightly colored. As a family they are omnivorous, but individual species specialize in eating fruits, seeds, insects, or other types of food. Most have short, rounded wings.


 * Nightingale Island finch, Nesospiza questi
 * Wilkins's finch, Nesospiza wilkinsi