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The birdwatching atlas

Know who is there before you go.

Every bird sanctuary, wetland and observatory with the species recorded month by month — which birds are there now, which come for the summer, which only pass through.

The richest placesTypes of placeMap

PlateJanuaryRia Formosa · Portugal

1Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
2Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
3Common ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita
4House SparrowPasser domesticus
5White WagtailMotacilla alba
6Mediterranean GullIchthyaetus melanocephalus
7Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
8Meadow PipitAnthus pratensis
9Common GreenshankTringa nebularia

The species most recorded this month · photos from Wikimedia Commons

2,770places known
1,200full guides
146countries
284,084bird species

Places to watch birds

Choose your place.

Bird observatories and sanctuaries, Ramsar wetlands, Important Bird Areas and the EU's Special Protection Areas.

Bird observatoriesRinging stations and migration watchpoints13 placesBird sanctuariesReserves set apart for birds82 placesRamsar wetlandsWetlands of international importance853 placesImportant Bird AreasAreas BirdLife counts as vital for birds45 placesSpecial Protection AreasProtected under the EU Birds Directive241 places

Or choose by the birds

From the species recorded at each place: raptors, waders, seabirds, ducks and geese, storks and cranes, flamingos, owls, threatened birds, migration hotspots.

Places for raptorsEight raptor species or more841 placesPlaces for wadersTwelve wader species or more686 placesPlaces for seabirdsEight seabird species or more622 placesPlaces for ducks & geeseTwelve duck and goose species or more616 placesPlaces for storks & cranesStorks and cranes recorded559 placesPlaces to see flamingosFlamingos recorded266 placesPlaces for owlsFour owl species or more419 placesPlaces with threatened speciesThree threatened species or more736 placesMigration hotspotsSixty migrant species or more695 places

Species richness

The richest places.

How many bird species have been recorded at each place — more than once, in open data you can check.

1Limoncocha National Biological ReserveEcuador · Ramsar wetland574 species2Lake NakuruKenya · Ramsar wetland508 species3Lake NaivashaKenya · Ramsar wetland482 species4Mabamba BayUganda · Ramsar wetland477 species5Caño Negro Wildlife RefugeCosta Rica · Ramsar wetland476 species6Victoria Falls National ParkZimbabwe · Ramsar wetland474 species7Lake ArenalCosta Rica · Ramsar wetland459 species8Lake ElmenteitaKenya · Ramsar wetland440 species9Tijuana River National Estuarine Research ReserveUnited States · Ramsar wetland428 species10Koshi Tappu Wildlife ReserveNepal · Ramsar wetland425 species

All the richest places

This month

The best places in January

Places where this is one of the months with the most species.

508spp.93Ramsar wetlandLake NakuruKenyaKenya11 threatened species · Best month389spp.91Ramsar wetlandKevladev National ParkIndiaIndia10 threatened species · Best month476spp.91Ramsar wetlandCaño Negro Wildlife RefugeCosta RicaCosta Rica9 threatened species · Best month367spp.90Ramsar wetlandTanbi Wetland ComplexGambiaGambia12 threatened species · Best month314spp.89Ramsar wetlandSihcao WetlandsTaiwanTaiwan15 threatened species · Best month305spp.89Ramsar wetlandDjoudj National Bird SanctuarySenegalSenegal10 threatened species · Best month305spp.89Ramsar wetlandPelican Island National Wildlife RefugeUnited StatesUnited States12 threatened species · Best month305spp.89Ramsar wetlandWestern Treatment PlantAustraliaAustralia15 threatened species · Best month

All the best places for January

Best rated

Worth the early start.

508spp.93Ramsar wetlandLake NakuruKenyaKenya11 threatened species · Jan–Feb, Oct–Nov474spp.93Ramsar wetlandVictoria Falls National ParkZimbabweZimbabwe12 threatened species · Oct–Dec477spp.93Ramsar wetlandMabamba BayUgandaUganda10 threatened species · Jul–Aug, Nov405spp.92bird observatoryOttenby bird observatorySwedenSweden25 threatened species · May, Sep–Oct391spp.92bird observatoryAqaba Bird ObservatoryJordanJordan14 threatened species · Mar–Apr428spp.92Ramsar wetlandTijuana River National Estuarine Research ReserveUnited StatesUnited States17 threatened species · Sep–Oct425spp.92Ramsar wetlandKoshi Tappu Wildlife ReserveNepalNepal10 threatened species · Mar–Apr

By country

Where the birds are.

Germany127Spain96Australia78India57Portugal56Japan47United Kingdom41United States38Norway32Ukraine32Canada29Mexico23Hungary20Italy20Tunisia15Turkey14Denmark13Ireland13France12Greece12Sweden12Brazil11Ecuador11Estonia10All countries

Where the numbers come from

Counted, not guessed.

Every species on Birdyas was recorded at the place by birdwatchers and scientists and published as open data: eBird observations through GBIF, only the records licensed for any use. We count them month by month and say how many there are.

All the sources and licences

  • GBIF · eBirdthe bird records, month by month
  • Wikidatanames in 7 languages, conservation status
  • Wikimedia Commonsthe photographs of each species
  • NASA POWERtemperature and rain, month by month
  • OpenStreetMapbird hides, towers, trails, places to stay

The family

Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?

Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.

beachesCoastyaFind your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit lakesLakeyasEvery lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit mountainsPeakyasEvery summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit waterfallsCascadyasEvery waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit islandsIslandyasEvery island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit riversRiveryasEvery river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit canyonsCanyonyasEvery canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit cavesCavernyasEvery cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit dark skiesDarkskyasWhere the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit
viewpointsViewyasEvery viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit
birdwatchingBirdyasEvery bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forestsForestyaEvery forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit