Priority Species

When encountering any of the following species, we encourage you to:

Start (ideally) a new, stationary and complete checklist at the site of the encounter, or at a minimum include coordinates (in decimal degrees) of the species’ specific location in a comment if already conducting a traveling checklist.
- Note: some rare species can be found in high densities in specific areas, e.g., Swainson’s Warbler along the Lower Roanoke River. In these situations, you do not need to create a new checklist for each individual bird encountered. Instead, attempt to capture the variability of their abundance across the site by using multiple checklists, which will provide us with the spatial accuracy necessary to know more precisely where these species occurred and the habitats they were using.
Include notes on the habitat and behavior of the bird, including but not limited to identification marks you used to identify it.
Collect physical documentation, such as photos or vocal recordings.

Common Name	Scientific Name	Conservation Priority*	Knowledge Gap	Management Concern
American Bittern	Botaurus lentiginosus	SGCN	Yes
American Oystercatcher	Haematopus palliatus	SGCN		Yes
Bachman’s Sparrow	Peucaea aestivalis	SGCN
Bald Eagle	Haliaeetus leucocephalus	SGCN		Yes
Barn Owl	Tyto alba	SGCN, Global	Yes
Black Rail	Laterallus jamaicensis	SGCN	Yes
Black Skimmer	Rynchops niger	SGCN		Yes
Black-bellied Plover	Pluvialis squatarola	SGCN	Yes	Yes
Blackburnian Warbler	Setophaga fusca	SGCN	Yes
Black-crowned Night-Heron	Nycticorax nycticorax	SGCN	Yes
Bobolink	Dolichonyx oryzivorus	SGCN, Global	Yes
Caspian Tern	Hydroprogne caspia	SGCN		Yes
Cerulean Warbler	Setophaga cerulea	SGCN
Clapper Rail	Rallus longirostris	SGCN	Yes
Common Gallinule	Gallinula galeata	SGCN	Yes
Common Raven	Corvus corax	SGCN, Global	Yes
Common Tern	Sterna hirundo	SGCN		Yes
Eastern Painted Bunting	Passerina ciris	SGCN
Glossy Ibis	Plegadis falcinellus	SGCN		Yes
Golden-winged Warbler	Vermivora chrysoptera	SGCN
Gull-billed Tern	Gelochelidon nilotica	SGCN
Henslow’s Sparrow	Ammodramus henslowii	SGCN
Hermit Thrush	Catharus guttatus	SGCN, Global	Yes
King Rail	Rallus elegans	SGCN	Yes
Le Conte’s Sparrow	Ammodramus leconteii	SGCN, Global	Yes
Least Bittern	Ixobrychus exilis	SGCN	Yes
Least Tern	Sterna antillarum	SGCN		Yes
Little Blue Heron	Egretta caerulea	SGCN		Yes
Loggerhead Shrike	Lanius ludovicianus	SGCN	Yes
Marbled Godwit	Limosa fedoa	SGCN	Yes	Yes
Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow	Ammodramus nelsoni	SGCN	Yes
Northern Harrier	Circus cyaneus	SGCN, Global	Yes
Northern Saw-whet Owl	Aegolius acadicus	SGCN
Olive-sided Flycatcher	Contopus cooperi	SGCN, Global	Yes
Peregrine Falcon	Falco peregrinus	SGCN		Yes
Piping Plover	Charadrius melodus	SGCN		Yes
Red Crossbill	Loxia curvirostra	SGCN	Yes	Yes
Red Knot	Calidris canutus	SGCN		Yes
Red-cockaded Woodpecker	Picoides borealis	SGCN, NC		Yes
Ruffed Grouse	Bonasa umbellus	SGCN		Yes
Rusty Blackbird	Euphagus carolinus	SGCN	Yes
Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow	Ammodramus caudacutus	SGCN	Yes
Seaside Sparrow	Ammodramus maritimus	SGCN, NC	Yes
Snowy Egret	Egretta thula	SGCN		Yes
Swainson’s Warbler	Limnothlypis swainsonii	SGCN, Global	Yes
Swallow-tailed Kite	Elanoides forficatus	SGCN	Yes
Tricolored Heron	Egretta tricolor	SGCN		Yes
Veery	Catharus fuscescens	SGCN	Yes
Vesper Sparrow	Pooecetes gramineus	SGCN, Global
Virginia Rail	Rallus limicola	SGCN	Yes
Wayne’s Black-throated Green Warbler	Setophaga virens waynei	SGCN	Yes
Wilson’s Plover	Charadrius wilsonia	SGCN		Yes
Wood Stork	Mycteria americana	SGCN
Worm-eating Warbler	Helmitheros vermivorus	SGCN, NC	Yes
Yellow Rail	Coturnicops noveboracensis	SGCN	Yes
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron	Nyctanassa violacea	SGCN	Yes	Yes

*SGCN=Species of Greatest Conservation Need, NC=indicates the importance of North Carolina for species recovery, Global= species occurs in North Carolina in the periphery of its range, and is therefore rare in the state.