Birds in District of Columbia in April: What to Photograph (60 Species)

60 birds were recorded seen in District of Columbia in April in our iNaturalist sample; 29 of the top 50 are at their peak this month. The list is ranked by number of research-grade observations.

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Top birds in April

American Robin756 obs.

Mallard723 obs.

European Starling562 obs.

House Sparrow474 obs.

Northern Mockingbird289 obs.

Northern Cardinal274 obs.

Common Grackle220 obs.

Mourning Dove212 obs.

Canada Goose175 obs.

Blue Jay159 obs.

Double-crested Cormorant148 obs.

Red-winged Blackbird140 obs.

All birds seen in District of Columbia in April

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	American Robin	Turdus migratorius	Thrushes	756	Apr (peak)
2	Mallard	Anas platyrhynchos	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	723	Apr (peak)
3	European Starling	Sturnus vulgaris	Starlings	562	Apr (peak)
4	House Sparrow	Passer domesticus	Old World Sparrows	474	Apr (peak)
5	Northern Mockingbird	Mimus polyglottos	Mockingbirds and Thrashers	289	Apr (peak)
6	Northern Cardinal	Cardinalis cardinalis	Cardinals and Allies	274	Apr (peak)
7	Common Grackle	Quiscalus quiscula	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	220	Apr (peak)
8	Mourning Dove	Zenaida macroura	Pigeons and Doves	212	Apr (peak)
9	Canada Goose	Branta canadensis	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	175	May (rising)
10	Blue Jay	Cyanocitta cristata	Crows, Jays, and Magpies	159	Jun (rising)
11	Double-crested Cormorant	Nannopterum auritum	Cormorants and Shags	148	Apr (peak)
12	Red-winged Blackbird	Agelaius phoeniceus	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	140	Apr (peak)
13	White-throated Sparrow	Zonotrichia albicollis	New World Sparrows	134	Apr (peak)
14	Wood Duck	Aix sponsa	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	130	Apr (peak)
15	Great Blue Heron	Ardea herodias	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	123	May (rising)
16	Osprey	Pandion haliaetus	Ospreys	118	Apr (peak)
17	Carolina Wren	Thryothorus ludovicianus	Wrens	100	Apr (peak)
18	Brown-headed Cowbird	Molothrus ater	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	88	May (rising)
19	American Goldfinch	Spinus tristis	Finches, Euphonias, and Allies	88	Aug (rising)
20	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	Polioptila caerulea	Gnatcatchers and Gnatwrens	85	Apr (peak)
21	Gray Catbird	Dumetella carolinensis	Mockingbirds and Thrashers	81	Jun (rising)
22	Yellow-rumped Warbler	Setophaga coronata	New World Warblers	81	Oct (rising)
23	Song Sparrow	Melospiza melodia	New World Sparrows	80	Mar (past peak)
24	Pileated Woodpecker	Dryocopus pileatus	Woodpeckers	72	Apr (peak)
25	Northern Flicker	Colaptes auratus	Woodpeckers	64	Apr (peak)
26	Ring-billed Gull	Larus delawarensis	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	62	Feb (past peak)
27	Red-bellied Woodpecker	Melanerpes carolinus	Woodpeckers	62	Mar (past peak)
28	Tufted Titmouse	Baeolophus bicolor	Tits, Chickadees, and Titmice	59	Mar (past peak)
29	Red-tailed Hawk	Buteo jamaicensis	Hawks, Eagles, and Kites	57	Jan (past peak)
30	Bald Eagle	Haliaeetus leucocephalus	Hawks, Eagles, and Kites	57	Mar (past peak)
31	Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	Sphyrapicus varius	Woodpeckers	56	Oct (rising)
32	Downy Woodpecker	Dryobates pubescens	Woodpeckers	56	Mar (past peak)
33	Eastern Phoebe	Sayornis phoebe	Tyrant Flycatchers	54	Apr (peak)
34	Black Vulture	Coragyps atratus	New World Vultures	51	Apr (peak)
35	Tree Swallow	Tachycineta bicolor	Swallows and Martins	50	Apr (peak)
36	House Finch	Haemorhous mexicanus	Finches, Euphonias, and Allies	50	May (rising)
37	Hermit Thrush	Catharus guttatus	Thrushes	48	Apr (peak)
38	Barred Owl	Strix varia	Typical Owls	47	Apr (peak)
39	Fish Crow	Corvus ossifragus	Crows, Jays, and Magpies	46	Apr (peak)
40	Chipping Sparrow	Spizella passerina	New World Sparrows	46	Apr (peak)
41	Turkey Vulture	Cathartes aura	New World Vultures	45	Apr (peak)
42	Eastern Towhee	Pipilo erythrophthalmus	New World Sparrows	43	Apr (peak)
43	Eastern Bluebird	Sialia sialis	Thrushes	42	Apr (peak)
44	Cedar Waxwing	Bombycilla cedrorum	Waxwings	36	May (rising)
45	Black-crowned Night Heron	Nycticorax nycticorax	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	33	May (rising)
46	White-breasted Nuthatch	Sitta carolinensis	Nuthatches	33	Feb (past peak)
47	Wild Turkey	Meleagris gallopavo	Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies	31	Apr (peak)
48	Red-shouldered Hawk	Buteo lineatus	Hawks, Eagles, and Kites	31	Jan (past peak)
49	Brown Thrasher	Toxostoma rufum	Mockingbirds and Thrashers	29	Apr (peak)
50	Wood Thrush	Hylocichla mustelina	Thrushes	28	May (rising)

Birds Seen in District of Columbia in April

Top birds in April

All birds seen in District of Columbia in April