Birds in Florida in December: What to Photograph (60 Species)

60 birds were recorded seen in Florida in December in our iNaturalist sample; 6 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 December

White Ibis4,966 obs.

Anhinga4,331 obs.

Great Blue Heron4,164 obs.

Great Egret3,717 obs.

Little Blue Heron3,277 obs.

Red-shouldered Hawk3,025 obs.

Palm Warbler2,737 obs.

Brown Pelican2,676 obs.

Tricolored Heron2,588 obs.

Osprey2,517 obs.

Double-crested Cormorant2,406 obs.

Wood Stork2,403 obs.

All birds seen in Florida in December

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	White Ibis	Eudocimus albus	Ibises and Spoonbills	4,966	Mar (past peak)
2	Anhinga	Anhinga anhinga	Darters	4,331	Jan (past peak)
3	Great Blue Heron	Ardea herodias	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	4,164	Mar (past peak)
4	Great Egret	Ardea alba	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	3,717	Jan (past peak)
5	Little Blue Heron	Egretta caerulea	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	3,277	Jan (past peak)
6	Red-shouldered Hawk	Buteo lineatus	Hawks, Eagles, and Kites	3,025	Jan (past peak)
7	Palm Warbler	Setophaga palmarum	New World Warblers	2,737	Jan (past peak)
8	Brown Pelican	Pelecanus occidentalis	Pelicans	2,676	Mar (past peak)
9	Tricolored Heron	Egretta tricolor	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	2,588	Mar (past peak)
10	Osprey	Pandion haliaetus	Ospreys	2,517	Mar (past peak)
11	Double-crested Cormorant	Nannopterum auritum	Cormorants and Shags	2,406	Mar (past peak)
12	Wood Stork	Mycteria americana	Storks	2,403	Jan (past peak)
13	Snowy Egret	Egretta thula	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	2,238	Jan (past peak)
14	Laughing Gull	Leucophaeus atricilla	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	2,052	Mar (past peak)
15	Turkey Vulture	Cathartes aura	New World Vultures	1,849	Jan (past peak)
16	Common Gallinule	Gallinula galeata	Rails, Gallinules, and Coots	1,840	Apr (past peak)
17	Boat-tailed Grackle	Quiscalus major	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	1,801	Mar (past peak)
18	Northern Mockingbird	Mimus polyglottos	Mockingbirds and Thrashers	1,774	Apr (past peak)
19	Eastern Phoebe	Sayornis phoebe	Tyrant Flycatchers	1,674	Dec (peak)
20	Ring-billed Gull	Larus delawarensis	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	1,613	Jan (past peak)
21	Sanderling	Calidris alba	Sandpipers and Allies	1,528	Dec (peak)
22	Sandhill Crane	Antigone canadensis	Cranes	1,486	Mar (past peak)
23	Roseate Spoonbill	Platalea ajaja	Ibises and Spoonbills	1,446	Jan (past peak)
24	Red-bellied Woodpecker	Melanerpes carolinus	Woodpeckers	1,420	Apr (past peak)
25	Green Heron	Butorides virescens	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	1,412	Apr (past peak)
26	Royal Tern	Thalasseus maximus	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	1,369	Jan (past peak)
27	Black Vulture	Coragyps atratus	New World Vultures	1,261	Mar (past peak)
28	Limpkin	Aramus guarauna	Limpkins	1,218	Mar (past peak)
29	Bald Eagle	Haliaeetus leucocephalus	Hawks, Eagles, and Kites	1,218	Jan (past peak)
30	Pied-billed Grebe	Podilymbus podiceps	Grebes	1,187	Jan (past peak)
31	Ruddy Turnstone	Arenaria interpres	Sandpipers and Allies	1,179	Dec (peak)
32	American Kestrel	Falco sparverius	Falcons and Caracaras	1,119	Dec (peak)
33	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	Polioptila caerulea	Gnatcatchers and Gnatwrens	1,116	Jan (past peak)
34	Willet	Tringa semipalmata	Sandpipers and Allies	1,093	Apr (past peak)
35	American Coot	Fulica americana	Rails, Gallinules, and Coots	1,041	Jan (past peak)
36	Loggerhead Shrike	Lanius ludovicianus	Shrikes	1,019	Jan (past peak)
37	Belted Kingfisher	Megaceryle alcyon	Kingfishers	994	Dec (peak)
38	Yellow-rumped Warbler	Setophaga coronata	New World Warblers	984	Feb (past peak)
39	Blue-winged Teal	Spatula discors	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	945	Jan (past peak)
40	Northern Cardinal	Cardinalis cardinalis	Cardinals and Allies	919	Apr (past peak)
41	Hooded Merganser	Lophodytes cucullatus	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	901	Dec (peak)
42	Yellow-crowned Night Heron	Nyctanassa violacea	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	894	May (past peak)
43	American White Pelican	Pelecanus erythrorhynchos	Pelicans	893	Jan (past peak)
44	Mourning Dove	Zenaida macroura	Pigeons and Doves	873	Apr (past peak)
45	Western Cattle-Egret	Ardea ibis	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	862	Mar (past peak)
46	Pine Warbler	Setophaga pinus	New World Warblers	855	Jan (past peak)
47	Purple Gallinule	Porphyrio martinica	Rails, Gallinules, and Coots	796	Mar (past peak)
48	Glossy Ibis	Plegadis falcinellus	Ibises and Spoonbills	778	Mar (past peak)
49	Black-crowned Night Heron	Nycticorax nycticorax	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	755	Mar (past peak)
50	Pileated Woodpecker	Dryocopus pileatus	Woodpeckers	669	Apr (past peak)

Birds Seen in Florida in December

Top birds in December

All birds seen in Florida in December