What Types of Birds Live in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed?
Hundreds of species of birds reside in the Chesapeake Bay region. Some live here year-round, while others are migratory and only visit during certain seasons. Chesapeake Bay birds include: • Waterfowl such as ducks, geese and swans. Most waterfowl are migratory, though some Canada geese, as well as the invasive mute swan, have taken up full-time residence around the Bay. • Ospreys, bald eagles and other raptors, or birds of prey. Some bald eagles live in the Bay region year-round, while others only visit during winter. Ospreys visit the Bay from spring through summer to breed, then they migrate south for the winter. • Shorebirds such as ibis, willets, plovers, sandpipers, oystercatchers and ruddy turnstones. These birds are only found in the Bay region during certain seasons. • Wading birds, including egrets and herons. The great blue heron and the black-crowned night heron are the only two resident wading birds in the Bay region; egrets and other herons migrate south for the winter. •