One of the most numerous seabirds in the North Atlantic, with huge colonies in the High Arctic

Can be black, can be grey but it’s the same bird

Has the longest bill of any wading bird

Its speed and size make it harder for predators (and hunters) to track

One of the smallest stiff-tailed ducks in the Americas

Smell? Not so much—mostly rely on eyesight and the behavior of other vultures to find food

Crisp-feathered, fast-flying, and fearless in icy waters

Weighs about as much as a couple of slices of bread and is barely bigger than a sparrow

The “cheetahs” of the deep ocean

Symbols of open summer fields and joyful wild song

Under certain angles, the feathers can look almost black

Superb gliders and can travel hundreds of kilometers in a day, riding winds with barely a wingbeat

A heavyweight champ — elegant, yes, but you don’t want to mess with that beak

Black feathers, white cap, sleek shape — it’s the tuxedo of the bird world

Among the most athletic dolphins, known for their spectacular leaps and spins that can reach several meters high

Sometimes called the “scars in the water” thanks to their many white markings

One of the most admired warblers across the continent

Can detect fruit ripeness from several meters away—a skill that rivals that of many birds

Their “lemon” color actually changes slightly depending on light and habitat

Though they possess venomous spines near the base of their tail, they rarely use them except in self-defense

A bird that carries the rhythms of the seasons on its wings

Often mistaken for an earthworm

In winter, they’re plain grey and white, but in the Arctic summer, they turn into a glowing rusty red

May look like villains, but in truth, they’re peaceful giants of the sea

One of the lesser-known members of the dolphin family, despite its dramatic name

The “giant of the swamp”

Goofy-looking yet evolutionarily refined for life above the waves

A bird that quietly keeps the environment clean

Their skin actually darkens, just like a sunburn!

One of the few turtle species endemic to the Caribbean

They flip the script — literally!

One of the most widespread and adaptable herons in the world

Crabs make up over 90% of their diet

Their shape and style are closer to forest thrushes—just way more comfortable around people

It’s the classic white-headed, grey-backed “seagull” of postcards and cartoons

Once you’ve heard them laugh, it’s hard to forget!

These birds ride ocean breezes for miles without flapping much at all

People believed it had disappeared for centuries, but then it was found again

The smallest of falcons in the entirety of America, but you would be mistaken to take this bird lightly

One of the most dazzling waterbirds of the Americas, often described as a “swamp jewel”

Brilliant mimics, they can copy bird calls and even human-made sounds like car alarms and ringing phones!

Often get mistaken for venomous copperheads due to their similar patterns, but fear not, they are harmless!

A common sight in coastal regions throughout the Northern Hemisphere

Known for its distinctive curly tail, which it can shed to distract predators

Often seen sunning themselves on fences, walls, and tree trunks

A tiny bird with colors so bright, it looks like it was painted by an artist

Despite their size, they are surprisingly buoyant and can sit high on the water like boats

The smallest of the eight pelican species

Only males possess a unique, inflatable, balloon-like nose that they can inflate into a large red shape

Really good at climbing trees and fences because their feet have special sticky pads that help them stick to almost anything!

Most common and widely distributed swallow globally

Very active and noisy, with a loud, piercing call that sounds like “pee-wit”

The biggest of all the hammerhead sharks, with a massive head that looks like a giant, flat hammer

Popular food fish, prized for its mild flavor and firm texture

A champion swimmer and a social butterfly of the warm seas

They bob their heads up and down as they fly, which is actually how they earned the nickname “Noddy”

They don’t build their own nests – they cleverly take over burrows abandoned by prairie dogs, ground squirrels, or even tortoises!

Known for their acrobatic leaps, twisting and turning gracefully as they jump completely out of the water

Famous for its habit of standing on one leg

One of the most hunted, widespread, ancient, and well-known game birds

In the late 1800s, a single ounce of its feathers could be worth more than gold

Speed and power embodied, they rule the seas with their sleek bodies and jaw-dropping leaping prowess

Majestic giants of the sea, they peacefully glide through the ocean with mouths agape, filtering the waters for sustenance

Opportunistic predators of the open ocean, their aggressive and persistent feeding behaviour strikes fear into the hearts of their prey

Fearless and formidable, these aggressive predators command respect in the waters they roam

Gentle giants of the sea, with mouths wide open to filter the ocean’s bounty

Majestic ocean predators, embodying power, speed, and precision in their pursuit of prey

One of the largest and strongest sea turtles in the world

Its slender frame and narrow head bear a beak curved like a hawk’s, earning this marine marvel its name

Their neck vertebrae have a hinge mechanism that allows it to dart its long neck and pierce its prey quickly

An impressively acrobatic bird that can catch flying fish mid-jump

The most cosmopolitan of owls with home ranges extending across the globe

This species is found in all world oceans except the north Pacific Ocean

These petrels stylishly ride the ocean waves like they own the winds

Professional marine forecasters to optimize breeding success and prey availability

These ocean wanderers can be spotted from a distance showing awe-inspiring aerial tricks

An easily recognizable bird due to its pink body and spatulate bill

These birds seem to have lost their way to the beauty pageant

Very good at detecting storms, often the last to leave and first to arrive before and after a hurricane

The most widely dispersed wild bird

They don’t need salt, bamboo sticks, or forks to deshell a snail – they have a well-adapted bill to do the job

One of the earliest waterbirds to begin nesting in the Arctic spring, sometimes before ice fully melts

One of the most beautiful birds on Earth!

The pocket-sized falcon with an eagle’s attitude

At the speed of over 321 km/h (200 mph), this bird outraces a Formula1 car

Elegant long-legged wader, common almost worldwide

This bird holds the record of the longest distance flown by any bird in recorded history

Looks a lot like a Mallard but turned way darker

Smallest bird with eggs equal to the size of a coffee bean and powerful wings that Tinker bell would want to borrow

The red-eyed hipsters of the duck world

This invasive species is the ancestor to most of the modern ducks

Have been recorded at altitudes over 16,000 feet during migration—almost as high as small airplanes!

One of the most common raptors across North America

One of only six land-birds with a cosmopolitan distribution habituating all continents except Antarctica

‘Raccoon’ comes from ‘arakun’ meaning ‘he scratches with hands’ in Algonquin Indian

The mysterious diver of the ocean is the largest and only sea turtle without a hard shell and scales