Birds in Hawaii in May: What to Photograph (58 Species)

58 birds were recorded seen in Hawaii in May in our iNaturalist sample; 5 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 May

Red-crested Cardinal981 obs.

Common Myna803 obs.

Zebra Dove764 obs.

Western Cattle-Egret584 obs.

Black-crowned Night Heron552 obs.

Saffron Finch458 obs.

Hawaiian Goose408 obs.

House Sparrow390 obs.

White-rumped Shama351 obs.

Spotted Dove347 obs.

Warbling White-eye321 obs.

Red-vented Bulbul263 obs.

All birds seen in Hawaii in May

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	Red-crested Cardinal	Paroaria coronata	Tanagers and Allies	981	Jun (rising)
2	Common Myna	Acridotheres tristis	Starlings	803	Mar (past peak)
3	Zebra Dove	Geopelia striata	Pigeons and Doves	764	Dec (rising)
4	Western Cattle-Egret	Ardea ibis	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	584	Dec (rising)
5	Black-crowned Night Heron	Nycticorax nycticorax	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	552	Mar (past peak)
6	Saffron Finch	Sicalis flaveola	Tanagers and Allies	458	Jan (past peak)
7	Hawaiian Goose	Branta sandvicensis	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	408	Dec (rising)
8	House Sparrow	Passer domesticus	Old World Sparrows	390	Aug (rising)
9	White-rumped Shama	Copsychus malabaricus	Old World Flycatchers, Robins, and Chats	351	May (peak)
10	Spotted Dove	Spilopelia chinensis	Pigeons and Doves	347	Mar (past peak)
11	Warbling White-eye	Zosterops japonicus	White-eyes, Yuhinas, and Allies	321	Mar (past peak)
12	Red-vented Bulbul	Pycnonotus cafer	Bulbuls	263	Apr (past peak)
13	ʻApapane	Himatione sanguinea	Finches, Euphonias, and Allies	262	Mar (past peak)
14	Northern Cardinal	Cardinalis cardinalis	Cardinals and Allies	258	Mar (past peak)
15	Yellow-billed Cardinal	Paroaria capitata	Tanagers and Allies	245	Jul (rising)
16	House Finch	Haemorhous mexicanus	Finches, Euphonias, and Allies	239	Apr (past peak)
17	Common Waxbill	Estrilda astrild	Waxbills and Allies	233	Jan (past peak)
18	Java Sparrow	Padda oryzivora	Waxbills and Allies	231	Dec (rising)
19	Laysan Albatross	Phoebastria immutabilis	Albatrosses	219	Dec (rising)
20	Red-footed Booby	Sula sula	Boobies and Gannets	204	Dec (rising)
21	Wandering Tattler	Tringa incana	Sandpipers and Allies	113	Jan (past peak)
22	Chukar	Alectoris chukar	Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies	77	Sep (rising)
23	Scaly-breasted Munia	Lonchura punctulata	Waxbills and Allies	73	Feb (past peak)
24	Red-whiskered Bulbul	Pycnonotus jocosus	Bulbuls	73	Mar (past peak)
25	Indian Peafowl	Pavo cristatus	Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies	64	Mar (past peak)
26	Pacific Golden-Plover	Pluvialis fulva	Plovers and Lapwings	59	Mar (past peak)
27	Rosy-faced Lovebird	Agapornis roseicollis	Old World Parrots	46	Jan (past peak)
28	Ruddy Turnstone	Arenaria interpres	Sandpipers and Allies	43	Jan (past peak)
29	Wild Turkey	Meleagris gallopavo	Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies	31	Mar (past peak)
30	Ring-necked Pheasant	Phasianus colchicus	Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies	25	Mar (past peak)
31	Northern Mockingbird	Mimus polyglottos	Mockingbirds and Thrashers	25	Dec (rising)
32	Mallard	Anas platyrhynchos	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	20	Mar (past peak)
33	American Barn Owl	Tyto furcata	Barn Owls	14	May (peak)
34	Red-masked Parakeet	Psittacara erythrogenys	New World and African Parrots	10	Jan (past peak)
35	California Quail	Callipepla californica	New World Quails	8	Mar (past peak)
36	Snow Goose	Anser caerulescens	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	8	Dec (rising)
37	Common Gallinule	Gallinula galeata	Rails, Gallinules, and Coots	7	Jun (rising)
38	Laughing Gull	Leucophaeus atricilla	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	7	Jan (past peak)
39	Black Tern	Chlidonias niger	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	6	May (peak)
40	Northern Shoveler	Spatula clypeata	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	5	Nov (rising)
41	Mourning Dove	Zenaida macroura	Pigeons and Doves	4	Mar (past peak)
42	Sanderling	Calidris alba	Sandpipers and Allies	4	Dec (rising)
43	Black-necked Stilt	Himantopus mexicanus	Stilts and Avocets	4	Mar (past peak)
44	White-faced Ibis	Plegadis chihi	Ibises and Spoonbills	3	Jan (past peak)
45	Magnificent Frigatebird	Fregata magnificens	Frigatebirds	3	May (peak)
46	Western Meadowlark	Sturnella neglecta	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	3	Dec (rising)
47	Red-crowned Amazon	Amazona viridigenalis	New World and African Parrots	3	Jan (past peak)
48	Least Tern	Sternula antillarum	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	3	Sep (rising)
49	Osprey	Pandion haliaetus	Ospreys	2	Oct (rising)
50	Wilson's Phalarope	Phalaropus tricolor	Sandpipers and Allies	2	May (peak)

Birds Seen in Hawaii in May

Top birds in May

All birds seen in Hawaii in May