The Complete List of Birds of Germany

Germany’s varied landscapes—from North Sea coasts and the Baltic to forests, wetlands and alpine foothills—support a rich mix of bird species and seasonal migrants. Whether you watch from a city park, a nature reserve or a quiet field, Germany offers reliable chances to spot both common residents and rare visitors.

There are 99 Birds of Germany, ranging from Barn Owl to Yellowhammer. For each species, you’ll find below the data organized as: Scientific name,Status,Where found (regions/seasons), so you can quickly check identification, conservation status and the best places or seasons to see them; see the list you’ll find below.

How can I use the Status and Where found columns to plan a birding trip in Germany?

Use Status to prioritize species (resident vs. migrant vs. rare) and the Where found (regions/seasons) column to match birds to places and times—coastal marshes for waders in spring, alpine valleys for summer breeders, or specific regions where rarities turn up; combine this with local reserve info and recent sighting reports.

Are rare or accidental species included, and how up to date is the list?

Yes—rare and accidental visitors are noted via the Status column, but distributions and sightings can change year to year; for the latest records, cross-check with regional bird clubs, recent eBird or national checklist updates alongside the list below.

Birds of Germany

Images and Descriptions

Mute Swan

Large white swan with an orange bill and black face patch. Common on lakes and rivers, highly noticeable in parks and wetlands and a long-established breeder across Germany.

Whooper Swan

Large white swan with a long neck and trumpet-like call. Winters in Germany in flocks on wetlands and coastal lagoons, notable for its bright yellow bill pattern and migratory gatherings.

Greylag Goose

Stout grey-brown goose with pink bill. Native breeder across Germany, often seen in flocks on lakes and agricultural fields and historically important as the ancestor of domestic geese.

Canada Goose

Large black-headed goose with white cheek patch. Originally introduced, now widespread and common in urban and rural waters, sometimes controversial due to population growth and impacts.

Barnacle Goose

Small black-and-white goose of Arctic origin. Regular winter visitor and occasional breeder on islands; attracts birders to the Wadden Sea and coastal roosts.

Brent Goose

Compact dark goose with pale neck patch. A scarce but regular winter visitor to Germany’s North Sea coasts and tidal flats, often in coastal feeding flocks.

Common Shelduck

Distinctive black, white, chestnut duck with bright bill. A striking coastal breeder on mudflats and saltmarshes, commonly seen in spring and summer around the Wadden Sea.

Mallard

Familiar medium duck; males with glossy green head in breeding plumage. Ubiquitous in towns and countryside, the archetypal duck of German waters and urban parks.

Northern Pintail

Elegant slim duck with long pointed tail in males. A graceful passage migrant and winter visitor in Germany’s wetlands, noticeable for its sleek profile and fast flight.

Common Pochard

Round-headed diving duck with reddish-brown male head. Winters in Germany in numbers on lakes and reservoirs and is monitored for conservation due to declines.

Tufted Duck

Black-and-white diving duck with tufted crest on males. Common on inland waters, breeds widely and is a familiar sight at freshwater sites throughout Germany.

Common Eider

Large sea-duck with bulky body; males white-and-black. Seen along Germany’s North Sea coast in winter, especially around offshore islands and rocky shores.

Common Scoter

All-dark sea duck with bulky shape. A black sea-duck that winters off Germany’s coasts; often seen in offshore flocks on rough seas.

Red-breasted Merganser

Sleek duck with thin serrated bill and shaggy crest. A diving specialist found along coasts and estuaries in winter, often seen pursuing fish.

Great Crested Grebe

Large striking grebe with ornate head plumes in breeding season. Familiar on lakes, known for elaborate courtship and floating nests across Germany.

Little Grebe

Tiny diving bird with rounded body and chestnut neck in summer. Secretive but common on small waters and reedbeds, often seen as a small brown dabbling grebe.

European Honey-buzzard

Medium raptor with long wings and slender build. Breeds in German woodlands and notable for summer migration flocks passing through the country.

Black Kite

Slender raptor with forked tail and buoyant flight. A common scavenging raptor in many parts of Germany, often seen over fields and urban areas.

Red Kite

Reddish-brown kite with deeply forked tail. Once rare, now recovering and conspicuous in countryside flight displays and thermal soaring.

White-tailed Eagle

Massive sea-eagle with pale tail and powerful wings. A conservation success in Germany, returning to coasts and big rivers as a top predator and iconic species.

Common Buzzard

Stocky raptor with broad wings and variable plumage. The most common large raptor in Germany, widely seen perched or soaring over fields.

Eurasian Sparrowhawk

Small agile raptor with barred underparts and short broad wings. A stealthy predator of birds in woodlands and towns, often seen near garden feeders.

Northern Goshawk

Powerful accipiter with broad wings and long tail. A secretive forest hunter, occasionally seen crossing open areas; favored by birders for its size and agility.

Hen Harrier

Slim gray or brown harrier with long wings. A low-flying raptor of open habitats, a winter visitor to marshes and coastal wetlands in Germany.

Common Kestrel

Small falcon that hovers while hunting; reddish-brown back. Widespread and familiar over fields and roadside perches, commonly seen hovering above farmland.

Peregrine Falcon

Powerful falcon with blue-gray back and dark moustache. Recovered from declines, now nesting on city buildings and cliffs, famed for high-speed hunting stoops.

Eurasian Coot

Black waterbird with white frontal shield. Common on lakes and reedbeds, noisy and often seen swimming among vegetation and on floating nests.

Common Moorhen

Black waterbird with red frontal shield and yellow-tipped bill. Common in vegetated waters, secretive but frequently seen at pond edges and marshes.

Common Crane

Tall grey bird with red forehead patch and trumpeting calls. Spectacular migrant returning to breed in parts of Germany; notable staging flocks in wetlands.

Grey Heron

Tall grey wading bird with long neck and dagger bill. Common fisherman of rivers and marshes, often seen standing motionless at water edges.

Great Egret

Large all-white heron with S-shaped neck. A recovering species in Germany, increasingly breeding inland and notable for elegant foraging in wetlands.

Little Egret

Small white heron with black bill and yellow feet. Once rare, now a regular breeder in parts of Germany and often seen along coasts and inland waters.

Eurasian Spoonbill

White wader with spatulate bill used for sweeping. Breeds on coastal islands and large wetlands; a charismatic species of reed and mudflat habitats.

Black-winged Stilt

Tall, slender wader with long pink legs and black-and-white plumage. Rare visitor to German wetlands, sometimes recorded as vagrant and exciting for local birders.

Pied Avocet

Elegant black-and-white wader with upturned bill. A charismatic coastal breeder in Germany, easily recognised and a flagship bird of the Wadden Sea.

Northern Lapwing

Stocky plover with crest and glossy green upperparts. A once-common farmland breeder now declining; flocks are prominent in winter and migration.

Eurasian Oystercatcher

Black-and-white shorebird with long orange bill. A noisy coastal breeder in Germany, especially at the Wadden Sea, known for feeding on shellfish.

Common Ringed Plover

Small plover with orange legs and distinctive black breast band. Regular passage migrant and coastal breeder, often seen foraging on beaches and shores.

Kentish Plover

Tiny sandy-coloured plover with dark facial markings. A rare visitor to Germany, exciting when it appears on beaches or inland saline habitats.

Dunlin

Small dark-bellied sandpiper in winter, breeding plumage streaked. Common passage migrant and winter visitor on mudflats and wetlands, forming large flocks.

Ruff

Medium wader with showy breeding plumage in males. A dramatic migrant seen at wet grasslands and flooded fields during spring passage, males show elaborate displays.

Wood Sandpiper

Slender greenish-backed wader with spotted upperparts. A summer migrant passing Germany in spring and autumn, found on wet grasslands and shallow freshwater pools.

Common Redshank

Medium red-legged wader with upturned bill. Frequent migrant and coastal breeder in northern wetlands, often loud and conspicuous while feeding.

Common Greenshank

Tall greenish-legged wader with slightly upturned bill. A long-legged migrant seen on coasts and wetlands during passage, sometimes breeding in sparse numbers.

Eurasian Curlew

Large long-billed wader with curved bill and haunting call. A notable migrant and former breeder whose numbers have declined, still seen on coastal mudflats.

Whimbrel

Medium wader with downcurved bill and striped head. Regular passage migrant in spring and autumn along coasts and wetlands, often found in mixed flocks.

Black-headed Gull

Small gull with chocolate-brown head in summer. The commonest small gull in Germany, breeding in colonies on lakes and coastal sites.

Herring Gull

Large grey-and-white gull with pink legs. Widespread coastal and urban gull, often seen scavenging in harbors and cities across Germany.

Lesser Black-backed Gull

Dark-backed gull with yellow bill and pale head. A coastal breeder in Germany, also frequent around inland lakes and urban areas.

Great Black-backed Gull

Very large gull with heavy bill and dark back. The largest gull in Germany, primarily coastal and impressive in size and power.

Sandwich Tern

Slender tern with black cap and shaggy crest. A coastal breeder on islands and sandbanks, diving for fish in coastal waters.

Common Tern

Graceful white tern with forked tail and red bill. A familiar summer breeder on inland and coastal waters, nesting on islands and rafts.

Black Tern

Small dark tern with buoyant flight. A migrant and summer visitor to marshes and flooded meadows, often seen quartering over reedbeds.

Little Tern

Tiny white tern with yellow bill tip and black cap. A vulnerable coastal breeder in Germany, nesting on open sandy beaches and river shingle.

European Turtle Dove

Delicate mottled dove with soft calls. A declining summer migrant and breeder in Germany, notable for steep population declines and conservation concern.

Common Wood Pigeon

Large grey pigeon with white neck patch. Abundant and familiar in parks, farmland and woodlands, often seen in flocks.

Stock Dove

Slender grey pigeon with glossy neck and pale face. A woodland-loving dove that nests in tree cavities and is common in open forested landscapes.

Eurasian Collared Dove

Pale dove with black neck collar, expanded rapidly. Introduced in Europe historically, now a widespread and conspicuous urban breeder in Germany.

Feral Pigeon

Variable grey pigeon of urban areas descended from rock doves. Ubiquitous in built-up areas, often seen around squares, parks, and railway stations.

Common Cuckoo

Medium slender bird with grey tones and barred underparts. Famous brood parasite arriving in spring; its distinctive call signals spring for many German birders.

Eurasian Scops Owl

Small grey-brown ear-tufted owl. A rare vagrant to Germany, recognized by small size and high-pitched calls when recorded.

Tawny Owl

Compact brown-grey owl with dark eyes. A familiar nocturnal forest owl, often heard rather than seen, common in wooded areas across Germany.

Long-eared Owl

Slim owl with long ear-tufts and streaked plumage. Secretive via dense cover, but regular breeder in suitable wooded and reedbed habitats.

Short-eared Owl

Medium owl with streaked pale face, diurnal hunting. A striking open-country owl usually seen low over marshes in winter and migration.

Barn Owl

White heart-shaped face and ghostly flight. A nocturnal farmland specialist nesting in buildings and cavities, loved for its silent hunting.

Common Swift

Dark, crescent-winged bird spending most of life airborne. A summer visitor breeding in towns across Germany, spectacular in fast aerial displays over cities.

Common Kingfisher

Small bright bird with electric blue back and orange belly. A spectacular fish-eating bird of clean waters, often seen perched over streams and canals.

European Bee-eater

Colorful chestnut, green and yellow bird with curved bill. A stunning Mediterranean species that appears in summer; occasional breeding records excite birders.

European Roller

Bright blue and russet bird with chunky bill. A rare and spectacular vagrant to Germany, highly sought after when it appears in southern provinces.

Hoopoe

Distinctive pink-buff bird with crest and long bill. A charismatic migrant and occasional breeder in warmer parts of Germany, known for its crest and probing bill.

Green Woodpecker

Large green woodpecker with red cap and loud laughter-like call. Often feeds on ants on the ground and common in parkland and woodland throughout Germany.

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Black-and-white woodpecker with red belly patch. A familiar and vocal woodpecker tapping in forests and suburban parks across Germany.

Lesser Spotted Woodpecker

Small black-and-white woodpecker with tiny size. A declining and secretive species of old trees; a conservation concern in parts of Germany.

Eurasian Nuthatch

Blue-grey upperparts and orange underparts; climbs down trees head-first. Common in mature woodlands and gardens, active and vocal around nest sites.

Eurasian Treecreeper

Small streaky bird creeping up trunks with thin curved bill. Secretive and tiny, adheres to tree trunks while feeding on insects and nesting in bark crevices.

Common Starling

Glossy black bird with speckled plumage and varied song. Once abundant, forms large murmurations and nesting colonies; numbers have declined in recent decades.

Common Blackbird

Familiar songster; male glossy black with yellow bill. A ubiquitous garden bird in Germany, singing from songposts and abundant in both towns and countryside.

Song Thrush

Brown-backed thrush with spotted breast and melodious song. A common yet declining singer in gardens and woodlands, loved for repetitive musical phrases.

Mistle Thrush

Large thrush with spotted breast and loud ringing song. Often sings from high perches and is more conspicuous in open landscapes and parks.

Fieldfare

Grey-backed thrush with mottled underparts and loud chatter. A plentiful winter visitor forming flocks in countryside and gardens, often feeding on fruit and berries.

Redwing

Small thrush with pale eyebrow and red flanks. A winter migrant arriving in large numbers to feed on berries and insects in hedgerows and gardens.

Ring Ouzel

Dark thrush with white crescent on chest. A scarce passage migrant and upland breeder in some regions, noted for autumn and spring movements.

Common Chaffinch

Colorful finch with blue-grey head and reddish underparts in males. Ubiquitous and vocal, a common garden visitor and woodland singer across Germany.

Brambling

Partridge-sized finch with orange breast in males. A northern finch that visits Germany in winter, often flocking with other finches at feeders and birch woods.

European Greenfinch

Chunky greenish finch with yellow wing flashes. Frequent visitor to feeders and gardens, singing from perches and common across rural and urban areas.

European Goldfinch

Small colourful finch with red face and yellow wing bars. Attractive and common at seed feeders and thistles, a favourite with birdwatchers in Germany.

Eurasian Siskin

Small green-and-yellow finch with forked tail. Migratory and irruptive, appearing at feeders in winter in varying numbers depending on seed crops.

Common Linnet

Slim streaky finch with reddish breast in males. Common in open habitats and hedgerows, singing flocks in farmland and coastal areas.

Common Redpoll

Small streaky finch with red forehead. A northern finch that appears irregularly in winter in Germany during irruption years, feeding on birch and alder seeds.

Eurasian Bullfinch

Plump finch with black cap and pinkish underparts in males. A shy species of woodland edges and orchards, often feeding on buds in spring.

Yellowhammer

Streaky bunting with bright yellow head and song. A typical farmland bird, its vivid yellow head and repetitive song are characteristic of rural Germany.

Corn Bunting

Large streaky bunting with heavy beak and rattling song. A declining farmland specialist but still present in arable landscapes, notable for its insect-like singing display.

Rock Bunting

Striped bunting of southern origin with chestnut and grey tones. A rare vagrant to Germany, usually recorded in mountainous southern regions and exciting for observers.

House Sparrow

Small chunky brown-and-grey bird living alongside people. Common in urban and rural settlements but has declined in some towns, notable for living close to humans.

Eurasian Tree Sparrow

Small brown-and-black sparrow with cheek spot. More rural than house sparrow, common in villages and farmsteads across Germany, often nesting in buildings.

White Wagtail

Slender black-and-white bird with wagging tail. A familiar, agile wagtail of open ground and urban areas, often feeding on insects near water and streets.

Grey Wagtail

Slender yellow underparts with long tail. Prefers running water and is often seen darting along rocky streams and urban river corridors.

Meadow Pipit

Small streaky songbird on the ground with high warbling song. Common in open grassy habitats and coastal dunes, often seen in flighty flocks.

Rock Pipit

Olive-brown pipit adapted to coastal rocks. A coastal specialist in winter, commonly found around rocky shores and harbors feeding among algae and pebbles.

Other Birds by Country