Birds in Wisconsin in April: What to Photograph (60 Species)

60 birds were recorded seen in Wisconsin in April in our iNaturalist sample; 27 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 Robin1,818 obs.

Canada Goose1,475 obs.

Red-winged Blackbird1,420 obs.

Mallard1,318 obs.

Northern Cardinal798 obs.

Wild Turkey754 obs.

Sandhill Crane751 obs.

Mourning Dove720 obs.

Song Sparrow596 obs.

Yellow-rumped Warbler596 obs.

Black-capped Chickadee593 obs.

Common Grackle588 obs.

All birds seen in Wisconsin in April

#	Species	Scientific name	Family	Obs.	Peak in state
1	American Robin	Turdus migratorius	Thrushes	1,818	Apr (peak)
2	Canada Goose	Branta canadensis	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	1,475	May (rising)
3	Red-winged Blackbird	Agelaius phoeniceus	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	1,420	May (rising)
4	Mallard	Anas platyrhynchos	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	1,318	Apr (peak)
5	Northern Cardinal	Cardinalis cardinalis	Cardinals and Allies	798	Apr (peak)
6	Wild Turkey	Meleagris gallopavo	Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies	754	May (rising)
7	Sandhill Crane	Antigone canadensis	Cranes	751	May (rising)
8	Mourning Dove	Zenaida macroura	Pigeons and Doves	720	Apr (peak)
9	Song Sparrow	Melospiza melodia	New World Sparrows	596	May (rising)
10	Yellow-rumped Warbler	Setophaga coronata	New World Warblers	596	Apr (peak)
11	Black-capped Chickadee	Poecile atricapillus	Tits, Chickadees, and Titmice	593	Apr (peak)
12	Common Grackle	Quiscalus quiscula	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	588	May (rising)
13	House Sparrow	Passer domesticus	Old World Sparrows	572	May (rising)
14	Blue-winged Teal	Spatula discors	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	552	Apr (peak)
15	American Goldfinch	Spinus tristis	Finches, Euphonias, and Allies	533	May (rising)
16	Downy Woodpecker	Dryobates pubescens	Woodpeckers	514	Apr (peak)
17	Tree Swallow	Tachycineta bicolor	Swallows and Martins	482	May (rising)
18	American White Pelican	Pelecanus erythrorhynchos	Pelicans	479	Apr (peak)
19	Northern Flicker	Colaptes auratus	Woodpeckers	440	Apr (peak)
20	White-throated Sparrow	Zonotrichia albicollis	New World Sparrows	438	Apr (peak)
21	Dark-eyed Junco	Junco hyemalis	New World Sparrows	428	Oct (rising)
22	Brown-headed Cowbird	Molothrus ater	New World Blackbirds and Orioles	408	May (rising)
23	House Finch	Haemorhous mexicanus	Finches, Euphonias, and Allies	399	May (rising)
24	Bald Eagle	Haliaeetus leucocephalus	Hawks, Eagles, and Kites	397	May (rising)
25	Wood Duck	Aix sponsa	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	393	Apr (peak)
26	Turkey Vulture	Cathartes aura	New World Vultures	380	Apr (peak)
27	Red-breasted Merganser	Mergus serrator	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	369	Apr (peak)
28	Ruby-crowned Kinglet	Corthylio calendula	Kinglets	365	Apr (peak)
29	Eastern Phoebe	Sayornis phoebe	Tyrant Flycatchers	358	Apr (peak)
30	American Coot	Fulica americana	Rails, Gallinules, and Coots	349	Apr (peak)
31	Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	Sphyrapicus varius	Woodpeckers	337	Apr (peak)
32	Bufflehead	Bucephala albeola	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	334	Apr (peak)
33	Great Blue Heron	Ardea herodias	Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns	331	Aug (rising)
34	Red-tailed Hawk	Buteo jamaicensis	Hawks, Eagles, and Kites	331	Sep (rising)
35	Red-bellied Woodpecker	Melanerpes carolinus	Woodpeckers	320	May (rising)
36	Blue Jay	Cyanocitta cristata	Crows, Jays, and Magpies	310	May (rising)
37	Killdeer	Charadrius vociferus	Plovers and Lapwings	290	May (rising)
38	European Starling	Sturnus vulgaris	Starlings	289	May (rising)
39	White-breasted Nuthatch	Sitta carolinensis	Nuthatches	280	Apr (peak)
40	Eastern Bluebird	Sialia sialis	Thrushes	270	May (rising)
41	Golden-crowned Kinglet	Regulus satrapa	Kinglets	270	Apr (peak)
42	Pied-billed Grebe	Podilymbus podiceps	Grebes	267	Apr (peak)
43	Northern Shoveler	Spatula clypeata	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	266	Apr (peak)
44	Ring-billed Gull	Larus delawarensis	Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers	260	Aug (rising)
45	Brown Creeper	Certhia americana	Treecreepers	256	Apr (peak)
46	Common Loon	Gavia immer	Loons	249	Jul (rising)
47	Hermit Thrush	Catharus guttatus	Thrushes	238	Apr (peak)
48	Great Horned Owl	Bubo virginianus	Typical Owls	209	Apr (peak)
49	Lesser Scaup	Aythya affinis	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	203	Apr (peak)
50	Ring-necked Duck	Aythya collaris	Ducks, Geese, and Swans	201	Mar (past peak)

Birds Seen in Wisconsin in April

Top birds in April

All birds seen in Wisconsin in April