This list of birds of Kansas includes species documented in the U.S. state of Kansas and accepted by the Kansas Ornithological Society (KOS). As of January 2022, there are 483 species included in the official list. Of them, 75 are classed as accidental, 11 are classed as hypothetical, and five have been introduced to North America. In addition to the 483, two species are extinct and one has been extirpated and are longer included in the official list. Another is not on the official list because it was not identified at the species level. All four are included here.
Only birds that are considered to have established, self-sustaining, wild populations in Kansas are included on this list. This means that birds that are considered probable escapees, although they may have been sighted flying free in Kansas, are not included.
This list is presented in the taxonomic sequence of the Check-list of North and Middle American Birds, 7th edition through the 62nd Supplement, published by the American Ornithological Society (AOS). Common and scientific names are also those of the Check-list, except that the common names of families are from the Clements taxonomy because the AOS list does not include them.
These tags are used to annotate some species:
(A) Accidental – "Fewer than ten Kansas records" per the KOS
(E) Extinct – a recent species that no longer exists
(Ex) Extirpated – a species that is no longer in Kansas, but exists elsewhere
(I) Introduced – a species established in North America as a result of human action (H) Hypothetical – a species that has had a credible sighting reported, but has not been documented with a specimen or suitable photograph (F) Fictional – birds known to be fictional but associated with Kansas tradition
Ducks, geese, and waterfowl
Order: AnseriformesFamily: Anatidae
The family Anatidae includes the ducks and most duck-like waterfowl, such as geese and swans. These birds are adapted to an aquatic existence with webbed feet, bills which are flattened to a greater or lesser extent, and feathers that are excellent at shedding water due to special oils.
Black-bellied whistling-duck, Dendrocygna autumnalis
Fulvous whistling-duck, Dendrocygna bicolor
Snow goose, Anser caerulescens
Ross's goose, Anser rossii
Greater white-fronted goose, Anser albifrons
Taiga bean-goose/tundra bean-goose, Anser fabalis/ Anser serrirostris (A) Brant, Branta bernicla Cackling goose, Branta hutchinsonii Canada goose, Branta canadensis Trumpeter swan, Cygnus buccinator Tundra swan, Cygnus columbianus Wood duck, Aix sponsa Garganey, Spatula querquedula (A) Blue-winged teal, Spatula discors Cinnamon teal, Spatula cyanoptera Northern shoveler, Spatula clypeata Gadwall, Mareca strepera Eurasian wigeon, Mareca penelope American wigeon, Mareca americana Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos American black duck, Anas rubripes Mottled duck, Anas fulvigula Northern pintail, Anas acuta Green-winged teal, Anas crecca Canvasback, Aythya valisineria Redhead, Aythya americana Ring-necked duck, Aythya collaris Tufted duck, Aythya fuligula (H) (A) Greater scaup, Aythya marila Lesser scaup, Aythya affinis King eider, Somateria spectabilis (A) Common eider, Somateria mollissima (A) Harlequin duck, Histrionicus histrionicus (A) Surf scoter, Melanitta perspicillata White-winged scoter, Melanitta deglandi Black scoter, Melanitta americana Long-tailed duck, Clangula hyemalis Bufflehead, Bucephala albeola Common goldeneye, Bucephala clangula Barrow's goldeneye, Bucephala islandica Hooded merganser, Lophodytes cucullatus Common merganser, Mergus merganser Red-breasted merganser, Mergus serrator Ruddy duck, Oxyura jamaicensis
New World quail
Order: GalliformesFamily: Odontophoridae
The New World quails are small, plump, terrestrial birds only distantly related to the quails of the Old World, but named for their similar appearance and habits.
Northern bobwhite, Colinus virginianus
Scaled quail, Callipepla squamata
Pheasants, grouse, and allies
Order: GalliformesFamily: Phasianidae
Phasianidae consists of the pheasants and their allies. These are terrestrial species, variable in size but generally plump with broad relatively short wings. Many species are gamebirds or have been domesticated as a food source for humans.
Wild turkey, Meleagris gallopavo
Ruffed grouse, Bonasa umbellus
Gunnison sage-grouse, Centrocercus minimus (Ex) Sharp-tailed grouse, Tympanuchus phasianellus Greater prairie-chicken, Tympanuchus cupido Lesser prairie-chicken, Tympanuchus pallidicinctus Ring-necked pheasant, Phasianus colchicus (I)