35 Winter Birds in Louisiana

Winter in Louisiana is mostly a rumor. One cold front blows through, everyone pulls out the big gumbo pot, and by Thursday it's 72 degrees again (as someone who grew up shoveling New England driveways, I find this deeply unfair). That's exactly why the winter birds in Louisiana are such a good show. Instead of a short list of tough locals hanging on until spring, you get a flood of arrivals: ducks and geese by the thousands, sparrows in the rice country, warblers in the wax myrtles, and hummingbirds that were supposed to be in Mexico.

The state bird is a local, though. The Brown Pelican was named Louisiana's state bird in 1966, and it's a year-round resident of the coast, so yes, you can see it in winter. You just have to go to the water, because it's not coming to your sunflower feeder.

Types of Winter Birds in Louisiana

There are 3 types of winter birds in Louisiana you'll see on this list:

Resident Louisiana Birds – species that live here all year and make up most of the backyard feeder crowd
Winter Migrants / Visitors – birds that breed farther north or west and spend the cold months here, from kinglets, warblers, and sparrows to hummingbirds, cranes, and huge flocks of waterfowl. Refuges like Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge, whose 16,000-acre pool is managed as a sanctuary for wintering ducks and geese, are where the big numbers gather
Irruptive Species – birds like the Purple Finch that show up in good numbers some winters and barely at all in others, depending on seed crops up north

Each entry covers ID, male vs female, calls, where to find the bird in Louisiana, and its feeder favorites if it visits feeders. If you're wondering how a bird from Saskatchewan ends up in a Lafayette backyard, here's where birds go in the winter.

1. Northern Cardinal

Family – Cardinalidae
Species – Cardinalis cardinalis
Primary Activity Time – Dawn and Dusk
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Northern Cardinal is the most dependable feeder bird in the region. In Project FeederWatch's South Central rankings, it was seen at nearly 94% of counting sites, more than any other species. It's a seed eater with a thick, cone-shaped bill that makes short work of sunflower hulls.

Males are bright red with a black face around a reddish-orange bill. Females are a soft tan-brown with red tinges on the crest, wings, and tail, plus the same bright bill. If you're only seeing the brown ones, congratulations, you have cardinals. They just didn't dress up.

The Northern Cardinal song is a string of loud, clear whistles, often written as cheer-cheer-cheer or birdie-birdie-birdie, and females sing too. The call is a sharp, metallic chip.

In Louisiana winters, cardinals are everywhere there's thick cover: suburban hedges, bayou edges, thickets, and wooded neighborhoods from Shreveport to Houma. For more on keeping them around, see Cardinals in Winter: Where They Go, What They Eat, and How to Attract Them.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, safflower, cracked corn on a platform

2. Carolina Chickadee

Family – Paridae
Species – Poecile carolinensis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Carolina Chickadee is Louisiana's only chickadee, and in winter it's the unofficial organizer of the woods. Kinglets, warblers, titmice, and woodpeckers all tag along with chickadee flocks, so if you find one, stop and look around.

It's a tiny gray bird with a black cap, a black bib, and white cheeks. Males and females look the same.

The Carolina Chickadee call is a quick, buzzy chick-a-dee-dee-dee, and its song is a four-note whistle that sounds like fee-bee fee-bay.

In Louisiana winters, look for it statewide in woodlands, parks, and yards with mature trees. Chickadees take one seed at a time and fly off to eat or stash it, so a couple of birds can look like a crowd.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, suet, shelled peanuts

3. Tufted Titmouse

Family – Paridae
Species – Baeolophus bicolor
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Tufted Titmouse is the chickadee's crested sidekick. It eats insects, seeds, and nuts, and like chickadees, it hides extra food in bark crevices for later, which is more meal prep than I manage most weeks.

It's soft gray above and white below with peach-colored flanks, big dark eyes, and a pointed gray crest. Males and females look alike.

The Tufted Titmouse song is a loud, whistled peter-peter-peter, and its scolding call sounds a lot like a hoarse chickadee.

In Louisiana winters, titmice are common in deciduous and mixed woods and in shady neighborhoods across most of the state.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, shelled peanuts, suet

4. Carolina Wren

Family – Troglodytidae
Species – Thryothorus ludovicianus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Carolina Wren has the most Louisiana scientific name on this list: ludovicianus means "of Louisiana." It's a small, loud insect-eater that pokes through brush piles, porch corners, and hanging plants looking for spiders and bugs.

It's warm reddish-brown above and buffy below, with a long white eyebrow stripe and a tail it often cocks upward. Males and females look alike, and pairs stay together on their territory all year.

The Carolina Wren song is a loud, rolling teakettle-teakettle-teakettle that seems much too big for the bird. Males do the singing, while pairs also trade chatters and scolds.

In Louisiana winters, look for it statewide in thickets, overgrown yards, and woodland edges. It's one of the few insect-eaters that sticks around and visits feeders.

Feeder favorites: suet, mealworms, peanut pieces

5. Mourning Dove

Family – Columbidae
Species – Zenaida macroura
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Mourning Dove is a ground-feeding seed eater that swallows seeds quickly, stores them in its crop, and digests later somewhere safe. (It's basically eating in the car.) Louisiana's resident doves are joined in winter by birds from farther north.

It's slim and soft gray-brown with black spots on the wings and a long, pointed tail edged in white. Males have a pinkish wash on the breast and a bluish crown, while females are slightly browner.

The Mourning Dove call is a low, sad coo-OO-oo-oo-oo that people often mistake for an owl. Their wings make a sharp whistle when they take off.

In Louisiana winters, look for them in farm country, along roadsides, and in suburban yards, often sitting together on power lines.

Feeder favorites: millet, cracked corn, black oil sunflower on the ground or a platform

6. Blue Jay

Family – Corvidae
Species – Cyanocitta cristata
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Blue Jay is a loud, clever member of the crow family that eats acorns, seeds, insects, and the occasional egg. It buries acorns for later and forgets plenty of them, which makes it an accidental oak planter.

It's bright blue above with black and white wing and tail markings, a black necklace, and a crest. Males and females look alike, though males average a bit larger.

The Blue Jay call is a harsh jeer, but jays also give soft, gurgling notes and do a convincing Red-shouldered Hawk impression, which they seem to use mainly to clear the feeder.

In Louisiana winters, jays are common statewide in oak woods, towns, and parks.

Feeder favorites: peanuts in the shell, black oil sunflower, suet

7. Northern Mockingbird

Family – Mimidae
Species – Mimus polyglottos
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Northern Mockingbird is the state bird of Texas, Arkansas, and Mississippi, so Louisiana is officially surrounded. In winter, mockingbirds switch from bugs to berries, and both males and females defend their own feeding territories, chasing other birds away from a favorite holly or hackberry.

It's gray above and paler below, with a long tail and bold white patches on the wings that flash when it flies. Males and females look alike.

The Northern Mockingbird song is a long medley of other birds' songs, each phrase repeated a few times before it switches. Its call is a hard chack.

In Louisiana winters, look for it statewide in yards, parking lots, hedgerows, and anywhere with fruiting shrubs and a good lookout post.

Feeder favorites: suet, chopped fruit, mealworms

8. Red-bellied Woodpecker

Family – Picidae
Species – Melanerpes carolinus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Red-bellied Woodpecker is named for a pale reddish wash on its belly that you'll almost never see, which puts it in the running for the most misleading bird name in the South. It eats insects, nuts, and fruit, and it stores food in bark cracks.

It has a black-and-white barred back and a pale face. Males have red from the bill all the way over the crown to the nape, while females have red only on the nape.

The Red-bellied Woodpecker call is a rolling churr or kwirr that carries through bare winter woods.

In Louisiana winters, it's common statewide in woods, bottomland forests, and wooded neighborhoods.

Feeder favorites: suet, peanuts, black oil sunflower

9. Downy Woodpecker

Family – Picidae
Species – Dryobates pubescens
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Downy Woodpecker is the smallest woodpecker in North America, light enough to forage on weed stems and thin twigs where bigger woodpeckers can't.

It's black and white with a white stripe down the back and a short, stubby bill. Males have a small red patch on the back of the head, while females don't.

The Downy Woodpecker call is a soft pik, and it also gives a high, whinnying rattle that drops in pitch.

In Louisiana winters, look for it statewide in woods, parks, and yards, often traveling with chickadees and titmice.

Feeder favorites: suet, peanuts, black oil sunflower

10. House Finch

Family – Fringillidae
Species – Haemorhous mexicanus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The House Finch is originally a western bird, and eastern populations trace back to birds released on Long Island in the 1940s. (As a Brooklynite, I'll take partial credit.) It's a seed and fruit eater that shows up in noisy little groups.

Males have a red to orange-red head and breast, and the color can vary depending on what they've been eating. Females are plain brown with blurry streaks and no bold face pattern.

The House Finch song is a long, cheerful warble that often ends on a buzzy note.

In Louisiana winters, look for it around towns and suburbs, especially near feeders and buildings.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, sunflower chips, nyjer

11. Brown Thrasher

Family – Mimidae
Species – Toxostoma rufum
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird

The Brown Thrasher is a mockingbird relative that spends winter flipping leaves with its long, curved bill to find insects, seeds, and berries. You'll often hear it rustling under shrubs before you see it.

It's rich rusty-brown above with a long tail, two pale wing bars, a heavily streaked breast, and bright yellow eyes. Males and females look alike.

Thrashers are mostly quiet in winter, but their call is a loud, sharp smack. In spring the males sing long songs with each phrase repeated twice.

In Louisiana winters, look for it statewide in hedgerows, thickets, and overgrown backyards with leaf litter.

Feeder favorites: suet, mealworms, seed scattered on the ground

12. White-winged Dove

Family – Columbidae
Species – Zenaida asiatica
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird (expanding)

The White-winged Dove used to be a bird of the desert Southwest and South Texas, but it has spread east, and it now shows up at plenty of Louisiana feeders. It ranked 12th in the same FeederWatch South Central list, ahead of the Downy Woodpecker.

It's a bit stockier than a Mourning Dove, with a squared-off tail and a bright white stripe along the edge of the folded wing that becomes a wide white band in flight. It also has a red eye ringed with blue skin. Males and females look alike.

The White-winged Dove call is a hooting who-cooks-for-you, a little like a Barred Owl that's been taking voice lessons.

In Louisiana winters, look for it in towns and cities, especially around feeders and power lines.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, millet, cracked corn

13. American Goldfinch

Family – Fringillidae
Species – Spinus tristis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

In much of the country goldfinches stay all year, but in Louisiana the American Goldfinch is a winter guest. As one New Orleans birder put it in WAFB's look at winter birds, "They're only here in our winter months."

Goldfinches arrive in their drab winter outfit: olive-brown to buffy, with black wings and white wing bars. Males keep a yellowish wash on the face, while females are grayer. By March, males start molting back into lemon yellow just before they leave, which feels a little rude.

The American Goldfinch call is a bouncy flight call often written as po-ta-to-chip.

In Louisiana winters, look for flocks at feeders, in weedy fields, and in sweetgums, where they pick seeds out of the spiky gumballs.

Feeder favorites: nyjer, sunflower chips, black oil sunflower

14. Yellow-rumped Warbler

Family – Parulidae
Species – Setophaga coronata
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Yellow-rumped Warbler is Louisiana's most common winter warbler, and the reason is wax myrtle. Unlike most warblers, it can digest the waxy berries of wax myrtle and bayberry, which lets it spend winter in the South instead of the tropics. Birders call them "butter butts," and I refuse to apologize for repeating that.

In winter, both sexes are brownish-gray with streaks, a bright yellow rump patch, and a little yellow on the sides. Males tend to be crisper and grayer, while females are browner.

The Yellow-rumped Warbler call is a sharp, flat chek, and you'll hear it constantly from flocks moving through the trees.

In Louisiana winters, they're abundant statewide, especially in coastal thickets, pine woods, and anywhere with wax myrtle.

Feeder favorites: suet, peanut butter mixes, mealworms

15. Orange-crowned Warbler

Family – Parulidae
Species – Leiothlypis celata
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Orange-crowned Warbler is a warbler with an orange crown you'll almost never see, which makes it a great match for the Red-bellied Woodpecker. It's a common winter bird in southern Louisiana, eating insects, berries, and sometimes sap from sapsucker holes.

It's dull olive-yellow overall with faint blurry streaks on the breast, a thin dark line through the eye, and bright yellow under the tail. Males and females look very similar, and the orange crown patch is usually hidden.

The Orange-crowned Warbler call is a sharp, metallic chet, a little harder than the Yellow-rumped's.

In Louisiana winters, look for it low in thickets, gardens, and woodland edges, especially in the southern half of the state. It's one of the warblers most likely to visit a suet feeder.

Feeder favorites: suet, peanut butter mixes

16. Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Family – Regulidae
Species – Corthylio calendula
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Ruby-crowned Kinglet is a tiny, hyperactive insect-eater that hovers to pick bugs off leaves and flicks its wings nonstop. It ranked 22nd in FeederWatch's South Central list, which is impressive for a bird that mostly ignores feeders.

It's olive-green with a white wing bar and a broken white eye-ring that gives it a permanently startled look. Males have a red crown patch they raise when excited, while females have none.

The Ruby-crowned Kinglet call is a husky ji-dit, and it's one of the most common sounds in Louisiana woods in winter.

In Louisiana winters, look for it statewide in woods, thickets, and yards, often in mixed flocks with chickadees and warblers.

Feeder favorites: suet, mealworms

17. White-throated Sparrow

Family – Passerellidae
Species – Zonotrichia albicollis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The White-throated Sparrow breeds in Canadian forests and spends winter scratching through Louisiana leaf litter, kicking backward with both feet at once like it's doing a very small line dance.

It has a bright white throat, a yellow spot between the eye and bill, and a striped head. There are two forms, one with crisp white head stripes and one with tan stripes, and both sexes come in each form.

The White-throated Sparrow song is a clear whistled Old-Sam-Peabody-Peabody-Peabody, and they'll sing it on warm winter days. The call is a sharp pink.

In Louisiana winters, look for small flocks in brushy edges, thickets, and backyards with shrubs, often under feeders.

Feeder favorites: millet, sunflower chips, cracked corn on the ground

18. Chipping Sparrow

Family – Passerellidae
Species – Spizella passerina
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (some nest in north Louisiana)

The Chipping Sparrow is a slim little sparrow that travels in winter flocks, feeding on seeds in lawns, pastures, and under feeders.

In summer it has a bright rusty cap, but in winter it's duller, with a brownish cap, a buffy face, and a dark line running through the eye all the way to the bill. Males and females look alike.

The Chipping Sparrow call is a thin tsip, and its song is a dry, even trill.

In Louisiana winters, look for flocks statewide in open areas with scattered trees, such as parks, pastures, pecan groves, and yards.

Feeder favorites: millet, sunflower chips, cracked corn on the ground

19. Savannah Sparrow

Family – Passerellidae
Species – Passerculus sandwichensis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Savannah Sparrow isn't a feeder bird, but it might be the most numerous sparrow in Louisiana in winter. Loyola University's coastal guide says it's probably the most abundant wintering sparrow, with hundreds gathering in rice-growing areas. (It's the classic "little brown job" of a field, so don't feel bad if it takes a few tries.)

It's streaky brown above and white below with fine streaks on the breast, a short notched tail, and usually a yellow wash in front of the eye. Males and females look alike.

The Savannah Sparrow call is a thin, high tsip, often given as it flushes from the grass and drops back down a few yards away.

In Louisiana winters, look in open fields, rice country, pastures, and grassy levees, especially in the southwestern prairie parishes.

20. Dark-eyed Junco

Family – Passerellidae
Species – Junco hyemalis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (uncommon, mainly north Louisiana)

The Dark-eyed Junco is the "snowbird" that heads south for winter, though Louisiana is about as far south as it usually goes. Juncos are much easier to find in north Louisiana than near the coast, so if you're in New Orleans and have one at your feeder, consider it a good winter.

Louisiana's juncos are the slate-colored type: dark gray above, white belly, and a pale pink bill. Males are darker gray, while females are a softer, brownish gray. Both flash white outer tail feathers when they fly.

The Dark-eyed Junco call is a sharp tick or smack, and the song is a quick musical trill.

In Louisiana winters, look for small flocks on the ground under feeders and along wooded edges, mostly in the northern parishes.

Feeder favorites: millet, cracked corn, sunflower chips scattered on the ground

21. Eastern Phoebe

Family – Tyrannidae
Species – Sayornis phoebe
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (resident in parts of north Louisiana)

The Eastern Phoebe is a flycatcher, which sounds like a terrible plan for winter until you remember that Louisiana has bugs in January. Phoebes catch flying insects from low perches and switch to berries on cold days.

It's gray-brown above with a darker head, whitish underparts, and no eye-ring. The giveaway is behavior: it constantly pumps its tail down and up while perched. Males and females look alike.

The Eastern Phoebe song is a raspy fee-bee, and its call is a sharp chip.

In Louisiana winters, look for it near water, along fence lines, and around barns, bridges, and backyard ponds.

22. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Family – Picidae
Species – Sphyrapicus varius
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker drills neat rows of small holes into tree bark, then comes back to drink the sap and eat the insects it attracts. Those wells also feed kinglets, warblers, and even wintering hummingbirds, which makes the sapsucker the bartender of the winter woods.

It's black and white with a long white wing stripe, a red forehead, and a pale yellow wash on the belly. Males have a red throat, while females have a white throat.

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker call is a nasal, cat-like mew, and its drumming starts fast and slows down unevenly.

In Louisiana winters, look for it statewide in woods, pecan orchards, and yards. Check for horizontal rows of holes in tree trunks, then wait nearby.

Feeder favorites: suet

23. American Robin

Family – Turdidae
Species – Turdus migratorius
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (some resident)

The American Robin is a spring bird in the North and a winter bird in Louisiana. Robins arrive from the north in winter and travel in big, noisy flocks hunting berries, so you may go from zero robins to 200 in the time it takes to make coffee.

It's gray-brown above with a warm orange breast and a white eye-ring. Females are generally paler, with a grayer head and a less intense breast.

In winter, robins mostly give a clucking tut-tut and a high, thin seee call. The full cheerily-cheer-up song is a spring thing.

In Louisiana winters, look for them in yaupon, holly, hackberry, and camphor trees, and on wet lawns after rain.

Feeder favorites: chopped fruit, softened raisins, mealworms

24. Cedar Waxwing

Family – Bombycillidae
Species – Bombycilla cedrorum
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Cedar Waxwing is a sleek, social fruit-eater that travels in tight flocks and strips berry trees clean. Some birds have red, wax-like tips on their wing feathers, which is where the name comes from.

It's soft brown fading to gray, with a pointed crest, a black mask edged in white, a pale yellow belly, and a yellow-tipped tail. Males and females look nearly identical, though males can show a slightly darker chin.

The Cedar Waxwing call is a very high, thin sreee, and you'll often hear a flock before you spot it.

In Louisiana winters, look for flocks statewide in yaupon, holly, and other fruiting trees and shrubs, often with robins.

Feeder favorites: they rarely use feeders, but they'll visit a bird bath and berry-producing shrubs

25. Purple Finch

Family – Fringillidae
Species – Haemorhous purpureus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Irruptive Species

The Purple Finch is a northern finch that comes south in bigger numbers when seed crops fail in Canada. It made FeederWatch's South Central top 25, but some winters you'll barely see one, so it's a "check the forecast up north" kind of bird.

Males look like they've been dipped in raspberry juice, with color across the head, back, and breast. Females are brown and streaky with a bold white eyebrow and a white stripe below the cheek, which separates them from the plainer female House Finch.

The Purple Finch call is a short, sharp pik, often given in flight.

In Louisiana winters, look for it at feeders and in woodland edges, mostly in the northern half of the state and in irruption years.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, sunflower chips

26. Rufous Hummingbird

Family – Trochilidae
Species – Selasphorus rufus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (uncommon, statewide)

Yes, Louisiana has hummingbirds in winter, and Louisiana birders keep a surprisingly organized list of them. By the end of January in one recent season, they had documented eight hummingbird species wintering in the state, and Rufous or Allen's Hummingbirds led the count with 133 birds. Buff-bellied, Calliope, and Broad-tailed Hummingbirds turned up too.

Males are bright orange-rufous with a glowing red-orange throat. Females are green above with rusty flanks and rusty at the base of the tail. (Female Rufous and Allen's are so similar that experts lump them as "Rufous/Allen's" unless they have the bird in hand. I find that comforting.)

The Rufous Hummingbird call is a hard chip, and males make a buzzy wing whistle in flight.

In Louisiana winters, they show up at nectar feeders and winter-blooming plants statewide, most often in the southern half. The Baton Rouge Audubon Society recommends leaving feeders up all year and says a hummingbird in your yard between November and February is likely one of these western visitors.

Feeder favorites: sugar water (1 part white sugar to 4 parts water), kept from freezing on cold nights

27. Black-chinned Hummingbird

Family – Trochilidae
Species – Archilochus alexandri
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (uncommon)

The Black-chinned Hummingbird is another western hummingbird that winters in Louisiana in small numbers. In that same winter tally, Black-chinned (57 birds) nearly matched the state's own Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (58), which is the hummingbird version of the visitors outnumbering the hosts at Thanksgiving.

Males are green above with a black chin and a thin purple band at the bottom of the throat that only shows in good light. Females are plain green above and whitish below. Black-chinned Hummingbirds pump and spread their tails while hovering, which helps separate them from Ruby-throateds.

The Black-chinned Hummingbird call is a soft tchew, and males make a dull wing hum.

In Louisiana winters, look for it at backyard feeders and flowering plants, mostly in the southern parishes.

Feeder favorites: sugar water (1 part white sugar to 4 parts water), changed every few days

28. Brown Pelican

Family – Pelecanidae
Species – Pelecanus occidentalis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Louisiana State Bird (resident)

The Brown Pelican is Louisiana's state bird, and it's also a comeback story. Pesticides like DDT and endrin wiped the species out of Louisiana by the early 1960s, and wildlife officials declared it extirpated in 1963. Biologists then moved young pelicans from Florida to the Louisiana coast starting in 1968, and today the state has an estimated 100,000-plus. If you need proof that what we spray ends up in the birds we love, this is it. So the next time I'm shopping for weed killer, I try to remember that a pelican's eggshells once paid for that convenience.

It's a big gray-brown seabird with a long bill and throat pouch. It hunts by folding its wings and plunge-diving headfirst into the water. Males and females look alike, though males are larger. Breeding adults have a yellowish head and a dark chestnut back of the neck, nonbreeding adults have a white neck, and young birds are plain brown.

Adult Brown Pelicans are mostly silent. Young birds in the colony beg loudly, but that's not a winter sound.

In Louisiana winters, look along the entire coast, from Holly Beach and Grand Isle to the docks and piers around Venice and the Mississippi River Delta, often perched on pilings.

29. American White Pelican

Family – Pelecanidae
Species – Pelecanus erythrorhynchos
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The American White Pelican is the Brown Pelican's much larger, much whiter winter cousin, with a wingspan of around 9 feet. It doesn't dive. Instead, groups swim together and herd fish into the shallows, then scoop them up.

It's bright white with black flight feathers that show in flight, and a huge orange-yellow bill. Males and females look alike. In late winter, breeding adults grow a flat, fin-like bump on the top of the bill that falls off after nesting.

White pelicans are mostly silent away from their breeding colonies.

In Louisiana winters, look for big flocks on coastal marshes, lakes, crawfish ponds, and refuges, often soaring in slow circles on warm afternoons.

30. Snow Goose

Family – Anatidae
Species – Anser caerulescens
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Snow Goose is the bird that makes southwest Louisiana look like it snowed. It grazes on grasses, roots, and waste rice in fields and marshes, and big flocks of Snow and Greater White-fronted Geese spend the winter on refuges like Lacassine. Loyola's coastal guide says you can see thousands of geese in a single day in the rice country.

The white form is all white with black wingtips and a pink bill with a dark "grin patch." There's also a dark form, called the "blue goose," with a gray-brown body and a white head. Males and females look alike.

The Snow Goose call is a high, nasal honk, and a big flock sounds like a stadium full of slightly annoyed fans.

In Louisiana winters, look in rice fields, prairies, and coastal marshes in the southwestern parishes, including Lacassine and Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuges.

31. Northern Pintail

Family – Anatidae
Species – Anas acuta
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Northern Pintail is one of the most elegant dabbling ducks, and Lacassine NWR manages its pool with special emphasis on pintails. It tips up to feed on seeds and plants in shallow water and flooded fields.

Males have a chocolate-brown head, a white stripe running up the side of the neck, a gray body, and long, needle-like central tail feathers. Females are mottled brown with a long, slender neck and a plain face.

Males give a soft, rolling whistle, and females give a low quack.

In Louisiana winters, look on shallow marshes, flooded rice fields, and refuge pools in southwest Louisiana, often in big mixed flocks with teal, Gadwall, and shovelers.

32. Sandhill Crane

Family – Gruidae
Species – Antigone canadensis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (uncommon, central and southwest Louisiana)

The Sandhill Crane is a tall, gray crane that feeds on waste grain, roots, and insects in open fields. A USGS study tracked Sandhill Cranes wintering in central and southwestern Louisiana, and you're most likely to find them in farm country rather than in the marshes.

It stands about 4 feet tall, with a gray body, a red crown, and sometimes a rusty stain on the feathers. Males and females look alike, though males are slightly bigger.

The Sandhill Crane call is a loud, rolling rattle that carries a long way, so you'll often hear them before you see them.

In Louisiana winters, look in pastures and harvested fields in central and southwest Louisiana. While you're out there, keep an eye out for Whooping Cranes too. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries runs a non-migratory Whooping Crane reintroduction centered on White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area, and those birds are protected, so enjoy them from a distance.

33. Bald Eagle

Family – Accipitridae
Species – Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Louisiana Bird (plus winter visitors)

The Bald Eagle is a fish-eating raptor that also scavenges and steals from Ospreys, which is not a great look for a national symbol. In Louisiana, winter is nesting season. According to LDWF's Bald Eagle nest survey, eagles here start nesting in September, lay eggs in November and December, and usually have chicks by February.

Adults have a dark brown body, a white head and tail, and a big yellow bill. Young eagles are mottled brown and white and take about five years to get the full adult look. Females are larger than males.

The Bald Eagle call is a high, thin series of chirps and whistles, much smaller than you'd expect from such a big bird.

In Louisiana winters, look in southeast Louisiana's cypress swamps and lakes. LDWF says Terrebonne and St. Mary parishes have some of the highest nest densities, with clusters around Lake Palourde and Lake Verret.

34. Northern Harrier

Family – Accipitridae
Species – Circus hudsonius
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Northern Harrier hunts by flying low and slow over marshes and fields, tilting side to side and listening for mice and voles. It has an owl-like face disk that helps it hunt by sound.

Adult males are pale gray above and white below with black wingtips, which earned them the nickname "gray ghost." Females are brown and streaky. Both have a bright white patch at the base of the tail that's easy to spot as they bank away.

Harriers are mostly silent in winter, though they'll give a fast kek-kek-kek when disturbed.

In Louisiana winters, look over coastal marshes, rice fields, and pastures, especially in southwest Louisiana, where harriers are a regular winter sight.

35. American Kestrel

Family – Falconidae
Species – Falco sparverius
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (some resident)

The American Kestrel is North America's smallest falcon, about the size of a Mourning Dove. It eats grasshoppers, lizards, mice, and small birds, and it often hovers in place over a field before dropping on prey.

Males have blue-gray wings and a rusty back and tail. Females have rusty-brown wings and backs with dark barring. Both sexes have two bold black stripes on the face.

The American Kestrel call is a rapid, high klee-klee-klee.

In Louisiana winters, kestrels and Red-tailed Hawks are especially numerous in the western farm country, where you'll see them on telephone wires and fence posts along the roadside. Drive the back roads of Acadia, Jefferson Davis, or Vermilion Parish and you'll probably lose count.

Louisiana Birds in Winter FAQ

Which birds of Louisiana only show up in winter?

Louisiana gets a huge wave of winter arrivals: ducks and geese, American White Pelicans, Sandhill Cranes, Northern Harriers, Yellow-rumped and Orange-crowned Warblers, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, sparrows, American Goldfinches, and western hummingbirds. They join year-round residents like the Northern Cardinal, Carolina Wren, and Carolina Chickadee. Heading east? Our guide to winter birds in Mississippi covers your next stop.

What are the most common birds in Louisiana in winter?

At backyard feeders, the most common birds of Louisiana in winter are the Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, Carolina Chickadee, American Goldfinch, House Finch, Blue Jay, Northern Mockingbird, and Carolina Wren, all top-10 birds in FeederWatch's South Central list. Out in the woods, Yellow-rumped Warblers and Ruby-crowned Kinglets are everywhere. Looking west instead? See winter birds in Texas.

Do hummingbirds stay in Louisiana in winter?

Some do, and a good number of them come from the West. Rufous Hummingbirds are the most common winter hummingbird, followed by Ruby-throated and Black-chinned in nearly equal numbers, then Buff-bellied. Keep at least one feeder up from November through February, and don't let the nectar freeze on cold nights.

What is the state bird of Louisiana, and is it around in winter?

The Brown Pelican became Louisiana's state bird in 1966. It lives along the coast all year, so you can see it in winter on piers, pilings, and beaches from Cameron Parish to the Mississippi River Delta.

When do Snow Geese and ducks arrive in Louisiana?

Waterfowl start arriving in fall, and Louisiana's coast hosts wintering birds roughly from October through March. Midwinter is the best time for big flocks on the southwest Louisiana refuges and rice fields.

What Winter Birds Have You Seen in Louisiana?

Winter is the best birding season in Louisiana, and you don't even need hand warmers to enjoy it. Share what's at your feeders, on the refuges, or circling over the rice fields on the Sparkbird App, and find other birders nearby to swap sightings with.

And if a Rufous Hummingbird drains your feeder all January and leaves without saying goodbye in March, don't take it personally. That's just how snowbirds are.