Most commonly seen birds in California
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Stacker compiled a list of the most common birds seen near feeders in California using data from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Project FeederWatch. Birds are ranked by the percent of sites visited from Dec. 6 to Dec. 19. Ties are broken by the average group size when seen, any further ties were not broken. Data was collected at 386 count sites in California. States with less than 10 count sites were not included in rankings for each bird.
Project FeederWatch, a citizen science project where participants collect data on birds at their feeders, was founded in Ontario by Erica Dunn and the Long Point Bird Observatory in 1976. The project partnered with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology after 10 years to scale the project across the U.S. and Canada and now has over 20,000 participants.
The data Project FeederWatch collects is used by scientists to understand trends in bird populations. If you would like to participate as a FeederWatcher you can learn more about the project here.
Read on to see which birds are most commonly seen in your state.
#1. House Finch
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 80%
– Average group size: 4.34
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Nevada: 95%
— #2. New Mexico: 91%
— #3. Arizona: 90%
— #4. Utah: 89%
— #5. Tennessee: 87%
#2. Dark-eyed Junco
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 65%
– Average group size: 3.32
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Iowa: 97%
— #2. Oregon: 96%
— #2. New Jersey: 96%
— #4. Washington: 95%
— #4. Indiana: 95%
#3. White-crowned Sparrow
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 62%
– Average group size: 3.69
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Nevada: 70%
— #2. California: 62%
— #3. Arizona: 43%
— #4. New Mexico: 37%
— #5. Washington: 17%
#4. Anna’s Hummingbird
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 60%
– Average group size: 1.7
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Oregon: 70%
— #2. Washington: 69%
— #3. California: 60%
— #4. Arizona: 49%
— #5. Nevada: 5%
#5. Lesser Goldfinch
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 55%
– Average group size: 4.17
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Nevada: 80%
— #2. California: 55%
— #3. New Mexico: 47%
— #4. Arizona: 45%
— #5. Utah: 42%
#6. California Towhee
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 55%
– Average group size: 1.47
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. California: 55%
#7. Mourning Dove
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 54%
– Average group size: 3.56
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. New Jersey: 86%
— #2. Connecticut: 84%
— #3. Washington, D.C.: 82%
— #4. Pennsylvania: 81%
— #5. New York: 78%
#8. California Scrub-Jay
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 50%
– Average group size: 1.55
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Nevada: 55%
— #2. California: 50%
— #2. Oregon: 50%
— #4. Washington: 12%
#9. Oak Titmouse
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 44%
– Average group size: 1.35
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. California: 44%
— #2. Oregon: 2%
#10. Yellow-rumped Warbler
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 39%
– Average group size: 1.51
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Mississippi: 50%
— #2. Nevada: 45%
— #3. California: 39%
— #4. Louisiana: 37%
— #5. Florida: 34%
#11. Chestnut-backed Chickadee
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 35%
– Average group size: 1.99
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Washington: 69%
— #2. Oregon: 41%
— #3. California: 35%
— #4. Idaho: 2%
#12. Golden-crowned Sparrow
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 30%
– Average group size: 2.39
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Washington: 36%
— #2. California: 30%
— #3. Oregon: 29%
— #4. Nevada: 5%
— #5. Alaska: 3%
#13. White-breasted Nuthatch
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 28%
– Average group size: 1.38
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Maine: 82%
— #2. Connecticut: 80%
— #3. New Hampshire: 77%
— #3. Massachusetts: 77%
— #5. Minnesota: 72%
#14. Spotted Towhee
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 26%
– Average group size: 1.37
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Washington: 68%
— #2. Oregon: 56%
— #3. New Mexico: 46%
— #4. Utah: 32%
— #5. Nevada: 30%
#15. Bewick’s Wren
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 26%
– Average group size: 1.09
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. California: 26%
— #2. Texas: 21%
— #2. Washington: 21%
— #4. Oregon: 13%
— #5. New Mexico: 12%
#16. House Sparrow
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 24%
– Average group size: 3.25
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Washington, D.C.: 100%
— #2. Iowa: 90%
— #2. Illinois: 90%
— #4. Indiana: 79%
— #5. Wyoming: 78%
#17. American Crow
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 23%
– Average group size: 2.31
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Wyoming: 39%
— #2. Maine: 38%
— #3. Virginia: 33%
— #4. Oklahoma: 29%
— #4. Oregon: 29%
#18. Ruby-crowned Kinglet
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 22%
– Average group size: 1.12
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Mississippi: 30%
— #2. South Carolina: 28%
— #2. Georgia: 28%
— #4. California: 22%
— #5. North Carolina: 21%
#19. Song Sparrow
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 19%
– Average group size: 1.33
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. Washington: 63%
— #2. Oregon: 48%
— #3. Pennsylvania: 40%
— #4. Rhode Island: 37%
— #5. West Virginia: 36%
#20. Nuttall’s Woodpecker
– Sites visited Dec. 6 to Dec. 19: 19%
– Average group size: 1.13
– States with the highest percent of sites visited
— #1. California: 19%
