34 Winter Birds in Mississippi

Winter in Mississippi is less a season and more a rumor (it shows up for a long weekend in January, everybody digs out the one heavy coat, and then it's 68 degrees again). That's exactly why the winter birds in Mississippi are worth your time. While birders up north are counting the same six chickadees, Mississippi is busy checking in guests: sparrows and kinglets from Canada, ducks and geese by the million in the Delta, and the odd hummingbird that decided Mexico was too mainstream.

The state bird isn't going anywhere, though. The Northern Mockingbird has been Mississippi's official state bird since 1944, and it stays put all winter, guarding a berry bush and yelling at anyone who gets too close. (The state's official waterfowl, the Wood Duck, is on this list too.)

Types of Winter Birds in Mississippi

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

Resident Mississippi Birds – species that live here year-round and make up most of the backyard feeder crowd
Winter Migrants / Visitors – birds that breed farther north or west and arrive for the cold months. This is the big group in Mississippi, from Yellow-rumped Warblers and White-throated Sparrows to the waterfowl that pour into the Delta. According to MSU Extension's guide to Mississippi's winter waterfowl, duck numbers peak from December through January
Irruptive Species – birds like Pine Siskins and Purple Finches that show up in good numbers some winters and hardly at all in others, depending on seed crops up north

Each entry covers ID, male vs female, calls, where to find the bird in Mississippi, and what it eats at feeders if it visits them. If you've ever wondered why a bird would fly 2,000 miles to spend January in Hattiesburg, here's where birds go in the winter.

1. Northern Cardinal

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

The Northern Cardinal is the most dependable backyard bird in the region. In Project FeederWatch's Southeast rankings, it showed up at nearly 98% of counting sites, which makes it the closest thing birding has to a sure bet. It's a seed eater with a thick, cone-shaped bill that cracks sunflower hulls with no effort at all.

Males are bright red with a black face around the bill. Females are a soft tan-brown with reddish wings, tail, and crest, plus the same orange-red bill. Both wear the pointed crest.

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

In Mississippi winters, cardinals are everywhere, from Delta hedgerows to Gulf Coast yards. Look early and late in the day, when they feed most heavily, often in pairs or small loose flocks.

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

2. Northern Mockingbird

Family – Mimidae
Species – Mimus polyglottos
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Mississippi State Bird (resident)

The Northern Mockingbird is Mississippi's state bird and its most opinionated resident. In winter it switches from bugs to fruit and will claim a holly, pyracantha, or hackberry as its personal property, chasing off robins, waxwings, and anything else that tries to snack. The Hattiesburg Christmas Bird Count logged an all-time high of 118 mockingbirds during the 123rd Christmas Bird Count, so they're doing just fine.

It's a slim gray bird with a long tail, paler underparts, and white wing patches that flash when it flies. Males and females look alike.

The Northern Mockingbird song is a long medley of other birds' songs (and car alarms), with each phrase usually repeated a few times before it moves on. In winter you'll mostly hear a harsh chack call.

In Mississippi winters, look in towns, parks, and farm edges statewide, usually perched up top on a fruiting shrub or fence post.

Feeder favorites: suet, chopped fruit, raisins

3. Carolina Chickadee

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

The Carolina Chickadee is Mississippi's only chickadee, and in winter it's the ringleader of the mixed flocks that move through the woods. Where it goes, titmice, kinglets, nuthatches, and warblers tend to follow.

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

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

In Mississippi winters, it's common statewide in woods, parks, and leafy neighborhoods. A chickadee takes one seed, flies off to eat or stash it, and comes back, so one busy bird can look like five.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, suet, shelled peanuts

4. Tufted Titmouse

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

The Tufted Titmouse is a small gray songbird with a crest and big dark eyes, and it eats seeds, nuts, and insects. It hangs out with chickadees in winter and isn't shy about taking the best seat at the feeder.

It's soft gray above, pale below, with peachy flanks and a black patch just above the bill. Males and females look alike.

The Tufted Titmouse song is a loud, whistled peter-peter-peter, and it scolds with a raspy, chickadee-like call.

In Mississippi winters, look in hardwood and mixed forests, river bottoms, and wooded yards across the state.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, peanuts, suet

5. Carolina Wren

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

The Carolina Wren is a small bird with a huge voice. It mostly eats insects and spiders, poking through brush piles, porch corners, and hanging plants, and it'll come to suet in cold snaps. Mississippi's mild winters suit it well, since harsh freezes are what knock wren numbers back farther north.

It's warm rusty-brown above and buffy below, with a bold white eyebrow stripe and a tail it likes to cock upward. Males and females look alike.

The Carolina Wren song is a loud, rolling teakettle-teakettle-teakettle, and it seems louder than physics should allow for a bird this size.

In Mississippi winters, look low in thick tangles, woodpiles, and shrubby yards statewide.

Feeder favorites: suet, peanut pieces, mealworms

6. Mourning Dove

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

The Mourning Dove is a seed eater that loads up fast, storing seeds in its crop, then flies off to digest somewhere quiet. In winter, local doves are joined by birds from farther north, and big flocks gather in harvested fields.

It's a slim, sandy gray-brown dove with black spots on the wings and a long, pointed tail. Males have a faint pinkish breast and bluish crown, while females are a little browner.

The Mourning Dove call is a low, soft coo-OO-oo-oo-oo that gets mistaken for an owl a lot. Their wings whistle when they take off.

In Mississippi winters, they're common statewide in farm country, along roadsides, and under backyard feeders.

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

7. American Goldfinch

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

In much of Mississippi, the American Goldfinch is a winter guest rather than a year-round neighbor, arriving in fall and crowding tube feeders until spring. It eats almost nothing but seeds.

In winter it trades its lemon-yellow summer suit for olive-brown, which makes a lot of people think their goldfinches left. Males keep a yellowish face and dark black wings with white bars, while females are grayer and duller.

The American Goldfinch call is a bouncy po-ta-to-chip given in flight, as the bird dips up and down like it's on a roller coaster.

In Mississippi winters, look for flocks in weedy fields, sweetgums, and anywhere with a nyjer feeder.

Feeder favorites: nyjer, sunflower chips, black oil sunflower

8. Red-bellied Woodpecker

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

The Red-bellied Woodpecker is badly named, since the "red belly" is a faint blush you'll rarely see. It eats acorns, nuts, fruit, and insects, and it stores food in bark cracks for later.

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

The Red-bellied Woodpecker call is a rolling churr or kwirr, one of the most common sounds in a Southern winter woods.

In Mississippi winters, look in hardwood forests, river bottoms, and suburbs statewide.

Feeder favorites: suet, peanuts, black oil sunflower

9. Downy Woodpecker

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

The Downy Woodpecker is North America's smallest woodpecker. It eats insects and larvae from twigs and weed stems, and it's light enough to work branches the 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, and females don't.

The Downy Woodpecker call is a soft pik plus a descending, whinnying rattle.

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

Feeder favorites: suet, black oil sunflower, peanuts

10. Blue Jay

Family – Corvidae
Species – Cyanocitta cristata
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi 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 the ones it forgets help plant new oaks.

It's bright blue above and whitish below, with a crest and a black necklace. Males and females look alike, though males run a little bigger.

The Blue Jay call is a harsh jay-jay, and it does a convincing Red-shouldered Hawk impression that's fooled me more times than I'd like to admit.

In Mississippi winters, jays are common statewide in oak woods and neighborhoods, though numbers swing from year to year. Some Christmas Bird Counts in the state, like Sardis Lake, have recorded record lows.

Feeder favorites: peanuts, black oil sunflower, suet

11. House Finch

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

The House Finch is a small, chatty seed eater that's at home around buildings, porches, and feeders. It was originally a western bird and spread east after being released in New York in the 1940s.

Males have a rosy-red face, breast, and rump, while females are plain brown with blurry streaks. Their bills are short and curved on top.

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

In Mississippi winters, look in towns and suburbs statewide, usually in noisy little groups at tube feeders.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, nyjer

12. Brown Thrasher

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

The Brown Thrasher is the mockingbird's quieter, rustier cousin. It forages on the ground by flipping leaves with its long, curved bill, eating insects, seeds, and berries. In winter you'll usually hear the leaves moving before you see the bird.

It's bright rufous above with heavy dark streaks on a pale breast and a piercing yellow eye. Males and females look alike.

The Brown Thrasher song repeats phrases in pairs, unlike the mockingbird's threes. In winter it mostly gives a loud smack call.

In Mississippi winters, look under thick shrubs and hedges in yards and woodland edges statewide.

Feeder favorites: suet, cracked corn and millet scattered under cover

13. Eastern Bluebird

Family – Turdidae
Species – Sialia sialis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird

The Eastern Bluebird eats insects most of the year but leans on berries in winter, like dogwood, holly, and wax myrtle. Small flocks roam open country, and they'll pile into nest boxes on cold nights to share heat.

Males are vivid blue above with a rusty throat and breast. Females are gray-blue with paler orange, like the male's photo with the saturation turned down.

The Eastern Bluebird call is a soft, rising tu-a-wee, and the song is a gentle warble.

In Mississippi winters, look in pastures, golf courses, and along fence lines statewide.

Feeder favorites: mealworms, suet nuggets, chopped fruit

14. Dark-eyed Junco

Family – Passerellidae
Species – Junco hyemalis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor

The Dark-eyed Junco is a sparrow that breeds in Canada and the mountains and drops south for winter, which is why people call it the "snowbird." In Mississippi it's a ground feeder, hopping under feeders for spilled seed.

The juncos here are "slate-colored": gray above, white belly, and a pinkish bill. Males are darker and crisper gray, while females are paler and browner. Both flash white outer tail feathers when they fly.

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

In Mississippi winters, juncos are most reliable in the northern half of the state and get scarcer toward the coast. Look in small flocks along woodland edges and in yards.

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

15. White-throated Sparrow

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

The White-throated Sparrow is one of the most common winter arrivals in Mississippi. It breeds in northern forests and spends winter scratching through leaf litter with a two-footed hop that looks like a tiny dance move.

It has a bright white throat, a striped head, and a yellow spot between the eye and bill. Some birds have white head stripes and others have tan ones, and both types occur in males and females.

The White-throated Sparrow song is a thin, whistled Oh sweet Canada-Canada-Canada, and you'll often hear it on mild winter days.

In Mississippi winters, look statewide in brushy thickets, woodland edges, and under backyard feeders.

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

16. Chipping Sparrow

Family – Passerellidae
Species – Spizella passerina
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird (numbers jump in winter)

The Chipping Sparrow is a small, slim sparrow that eats seeds on lawns and open ground. In winter it gathers in flocks, sometimes big ones, often mixed with other sparrows and bluebirds.

In winter it loses its bright rusty cap and looks plainer, with a brownish crown, a dark line through the eye, and a clean gray breast. Males and females look alike.

The Chipping Sparrow call is a thin tsip, and the song is a dry, rapid trill.

In Mississippi winters, look in yards, parks, and pine edges statewide, usually feeding on the ground in groups.

Feeder favorites: millet, sunflower chips, cracked corn

17. Yellow-rumped Warbler

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

The Yellow-rumped Warbler is the warbler for people who don't want to wait for May. It's the most common winter warbler in Mississippi, and it survives the season by eating berries, especially wax myrtle, when bugs are scarce.

In winter it's mostly brownish-gray with streaks, a bright yellow rump, and yellow patches on the sides. Males are a bit brighter and grayer, while females are browner. The ones here are mostly the "Myrtle" type, with a white throat.

The Yellow-rumped Warbler call is a sharp check, which is how birders lovingly nicknamed it "butter butt." (I didn't come up with that one, but I use it every chance I get.)

In Mississippi winters, look statewide in woodland edges, wax myrtle thickets, and coastal scrub.

Feeder favorites: suet, peanut butter mixes, mealworms

18. Ruby-crowned Kinglet

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

The Ruby-crowned Kinglet is a tiny, twitchy insect eater that arrives from northern forests each fall. It flicks its wings almost constantly, which is the best way to pick it out of a mixed flock.

It's olive-green with a white eye-ring and white wing bars. Males have a red crown patch that's usually hidden, but they flash it when they're excited. Females don't have it.

The Ruby-crowned Kinglet call is a husky, scolding jidit.

In Mississippi winters, look statewide in shrubs and low trees, often traveling with chickadees and Yellow-rumped Warblers.

Feeder favorites: suet, now and then

19. Pine Warbler

Family – Parulidae
Species – Setophaga pinus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird

The Pine Warbler is one of the only warblers that eats a lot of seeds, which is why it's a regular at Southern feeders in winter. It lives in pine woods year-round and gets joined by birds from farther north.

Males are bright yellow on the throat and breast with olive backs and white wing bars. Females are duller, and young birds can be almost gray-brown.

The Pine Warbler song is a musical trill, softer and sweeter than a Chipping Sparrow's.

In Mississippi winters, look in the pine forests of the Piney Woods and the coastal counties, and in yards with tall pines.

Feeder favorites: suet, sunflower chips, cornmeal mixes

20. Brown-headed Nuthatch

Family – Sittidae
Species – Sitta pusilla
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird

The Brown-headed Nuthatch is a tiny pine specialist, and one of the few birds known to use a tool: it'll pry up a flake of bark and use it to dig for insects. It travels in chattering family groups.

It has a brown cap, a pale spot on the back of the neck, a blue-gray back, and a short tail. Males and females look alike.

The Brown-headed Nuthatch call is a squeaky kew-kew that sounds a lot like a rubber duck being stepped on.

In Mississippi winters, look in open, mature pine forests across the southern and eastern parts of the state, high in the needle clusters.

Feeder favorites: sunflower chips, suet

21. 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 in tree bark, then comes back to drink the sap and eat the insects it attracts. If you've noticed a tree trunk that looks like it was hit with a hole punch, this is your suspect.

It has a black-and-white face, a red forehead, and a long white stripe on the wing. Males have a red throat, while females have a white one.

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker call is a nasal, mewing neeah, like a cat with a cold.

In Mississippi winters, look statewide in woods, orchards, and yards with pecans, hollies, or other favorite sap trees.

Feeder favorites: suet

22. Eastern Phoebe

Family – Tyrannidae
Species – Sayornis phoebe
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird (more common in winter)

The Eastern Phoebe is a flycatcher that toughs out winter by catching whatever insects are flying on warm afternoons and eating berries when they aren't. Mississippi's mild winters make it one of the easier flycatchers to see in January.

It's gray-brown above and whitish below, with a dark head and no eye-ring. It wags its tail down and up nearly all the time. Males and females look alike.

The Eastern Phoebe call is a sharp chip, and the song is a raspy fee-bee, which is the bird saying its own name.

In Mississippi winters, look near water, bridges, barns, and open edges statewide, perched low and tail-pumping.

23. American Robin

Family – Turdidae
Species – Turdus migratorius
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird (plus big winter flocks)

The American Robin is a year-round bird in Mississippi, but winter is when the crowds arrive. Huge flocks move in from the north and roam the state for berries, and a holly that's full on Monday can be bare by Tuesday.

It has a gray-brown back and a warm orange breast. Males have darker, blacker heads, while females are paler overall.

The American Robin call in winter is a low tut-tut and a sharp peek. The cheery song comes back toward late winter.

In Mississippi winters, look in fruiting trees, lawns after rain, and river bottoms statewide.

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, silky fruit eater that travels in tight, roving flocks. It'll strip a cedar or holly in an afternoon and then vanish, so seeing them is mostly luck and timing.

It's soft brown fading to gray, with a black mask, a crest, a yellow-tipped tail, and red waxy tips on the wing feathers. Males and females look alike.

The Cedar Waxwing call is a high, thin sreee that's easy to miss if you aren't listening for it.

In Mississippi winters, look anywhere with fruiting trees, including junipers, hollies, and hackberries, statewide.

25. Purple Finch

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

The Purple Finch is a northern finch that comes south in some winters and skips others. In good years it's a regular at feeders over most of Mississippi.

Males look like they've been dipped in raspberry juice, with color across the head, back, and breast. Females are brown and white with a bold, striped face, a stronger pattern than a female House Finch.

The Purple Finch call is a short, flat pik in flight, and the song is a fast, rich warble.

In Mississippi winters, look at sunflower feeders and in woodland edges statewide, especially in years when northern seed crops fail.

Feeder favorites: black oil sunflower, sunflower chips

26. Pine Siskin

Family – Fringillidae
Species – Spinus pinus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Irruptive

The Pine Siskin is a small, streaky finch that wanders south in irruption years when northern seed crops are poor. Some winters you won't see one. Others, they'll empty your nyjer feeder by lunch.

It's brown and heavily streaked with a thin, pointed bill and yellow flashes in the wings and tail. Males usually show more yellow than females.

The Pine Siskin call is a rising, buzzy zreeee, a bit like someone slowly zipping a jacket.

In Mississippi winters, look at feeders and in pines and sweetgums statewide, but only in irruption years.

Feeder favorites: nyjer, sunflower chips

27. Rufous Hummingbird

Family – Trochilidae
Species – Selasphorus rufus
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (uncommon, mostly near the coast)

Yes, Mississippi gets hummingbirds in winter. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds mostly head to Central America in fall, and the Rufous Hummingbird is the most common winter replacement, along with smaller numbers of Black-chinned, Calliope, Broad-tailed, and Buff-bellied Hummingbirds. Our guide to Hummingbirds in Mississippi: Species, Migration Dates and Winter Visitors covers who shows up and when.

Males are fiery orange with a glowing red-orange throat. Females and young birds are green above with rusty flanks and rust at the base of the tail.

The Rufous Hummingbird call is a hard chip, and it's famously feisty at feeders.

In Mississippi winters, most hummingbirds stay in the warmer areas near the coast, south of I-10, though a few turn up farther north at feeders. You don't need a new feeder for this, by the way. The one you used all summer works fine, as long as you keep it clean and leave it up.

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

28. Sandhill Crane

Family – Gruidae
Species – Antigone canadensis
Primary Activity Time – Daytime
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird (rare, Jackson County only)

This one comes with an asterisk. Mississippi has its own non-migratory subspecies, the Mississippi Sandhill Crane, and it's critically endangered. The only place to see it is the wet pine savanna of Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge near Gautier, which runs guided crane tours from late fall to late winter when staffing allows.

It's a tall, gray bird with a red crown and long legs. Mississippi's cranes are darker gray than the migratory birds farther north. Males and females look alike, though males are a little larger.

The Sandhill Crane call is a loud, rolling garoo-oo-oo that carries a long way, and pairs call together in a duet.

In Mississippi winters, stick to the refuge, its trails, and the guided tours. These birds are rare, so give them room and follow refuge rules.

29. Snow Goose

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

The Snow Goose arrives from the Arctic in huge, noisy flocks that settle on open farm fields across the Delta. It grazes on waste grain and grasses, and a big flock lifting off a field looks like a snow squall in a state that rarely gets one.

There are two color types. White birds are all white with black wingtips, while "blue geese" are dark gray-brown with white heads. Both have pink bills with a dark "grin patch." Males and females look alike.

The Snow Goose call is a high, nasal honk, given constantly by the whole flock.

In Mississippi winters, look over Delta rice and soybean fields, often alongside Greater White-fronted Geese.

30. Mallard

Family – Anatidae
Species – Anas platyrhynchos
Primary Activity Time – Dawn and Dusk
Diurnal
Winter Migrant / Visitor (plus some residents)

The Mallard is the classic dabbling duck, and the lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley is one of its most important wintering grounds anywhere. Big pushes of mallards often arrive in December after hard freezes up north. During the 123rd Christmas Bird Count, the Washington County (south) circle in the Delta counted 20,518 of them.

Males have a glossy green head, white neck ring, and gray body. Females are mottled brown with an orange-and-black bill. Both have a blue wing patch edged in white.

The female gives the loud, classic quack. Males make a softer, raspy call.

In Mississippi winters, look in flooded fields, oxbow lakes, and timber in the Delta, plus ponds statewide.

31. Wood Duck

Family – Anatidae
Species – Aix sponsa
Primary Activity Time – Dawn and Dusk
Diurnal
Resident Mississippi Bird (state waterfowl)

The Wood Duck is Mississippi's official state waterfowl, and it lives here all year. It eats acorns, seeds, and insects in wooded swamps and nests in tree cavities or nest boxes, which is a very fancy thing for a duck to do.

Males are the overdressed guest at every party, with a green crested head, red eye, chestnut chest, and crisp white face stripes. Females are gray-brown with a white teardrop around the eye.

The female Wood Duck call is a rising, squealing oo-eek when flushed. Males give a thin whistle.

In Mississippi winters, look in flooded bottomland hardwoods, beaver ponds, and quiet creeks statewide, including waterfowl refuges like Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge near Starkville.

32. American White Pelican

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

The American White Pelican is one of the biggest birds in North America, and it spends winter on Mississippi's lakes, reservoirs, and coastal waters. Unlike the Brown Pelican, it doesn't dive. Flocks swim together and herd fish into the shallows, then scoop them up.

It's bright white with black flight feathers and a huge orange bill. Late in winter, breeding adults grow a strange flat bump on the top of the bill. Males and females look alike.

American White Pelicans are mostly silent away from their breeding colonies.

In Mississippi winters, look on large lakes and ponds in the Delta, on big reservoirs, and along the coast.

33. Bald Eagle

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

The Bald Eagle eats mostly fish but also scavenges and steals from Ospreys when it can. In the South, eagles nest in winter, so this is actually their busy season, and wintering birds from the north join the locals.

Adults have a dark brown body, white head and tail, and a heavy 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 chatter of whistles, much less majestic than the screaming hawk call movies dub over it.

In Mississippi winters, look near big reservoirs, the Mississippi River, and coastal marshes like Grand Bay.

34. Northern Harrier

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

The Northern Harrier hunts by gliding low over fields and marshes with its wings held in a shallow V, tilting side to side as it listens for voles and mice. It has an owl-like facial disk that helps it hunt by sound.

Adult males are pale gray with black wingtips, which earned them the nickname "gray ghost." Females are brown and streaky. Both have a bright white rump patch that's easy to spot.

Harriers are mostly quiet in winter, though they'll give a rapid kek-kek-kek if disturbed.

In Mississippi winters, look over Delta farm fields, prairies, and coastal marshes.

Birds of Mississippi in Winter: FAQ

What birds stay in Mississippi during the winter?

Year-round residents like the Northern Cardinal, Northern Mockingbird, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, and Blue Jay stay put. They're joined by a long list of winter arrivals, including Yellow-rumped Warblers, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, White-throated Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, and millions of ducks and geese. Next door, our guides to winter birds in Alabama and winter birds in Louisiana cover a lot of the same visitors.

What are the most common Mississippi birds at feeders in winter?

In FeederWatch's Southeast list, the top 10 were Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, American Goldfinch, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Downy Woodpecker, House Finch, and Carolina Chickadee. Black oil sunflower, suet, and millet on the ground cover almost all of them. Skip the bread, though. It fills birds up without giving them the nutrition they need.

Do hummingbirds stay in Mississippi in winter?

Some do, but they're usually not the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds you see in summer. Most winter hummingbirds in Mississippi are Rufous Hummingbirds and other western species, and most of them stay near the coast. Leaving one feeder up through winter gives you a chance at one.

What is the state bird of Mississippi?

The Northern Mockingbird, adopted in 1944. It lives in Mississippi year-round, and in winter it guards fruiting shrubs from other birds. The state waterfowl is the Wood Duck.

Where can I see Sandhill Cranes in Mississippi?

The endangered Mississippi Sandhill Crane lives only at Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge near Gautier. Late fall through late winter is the best time to try, when the refuge offers guided crane tours if staffing allows.

What Winter Birds Have You Seen in Mississippi?

Winter is honestly the best birding season in Mississippi, since the visitors outnumber the locals and you can do it all in a light jacket. Share what's turning up at your feeders, ponds, and Delta fields on the Sparkbird App, and find other birders near you to swap sightings with.

And if a mockingbird spends all winter chasing every other bird off your holly bush, don't take it personally. It's the state bird. It's just doing its job.