[1] The list's taxonomic treatment (designation and sequence of orders, families, and species) and nomenclature (common and scientific names) are also those of the SACC.
These birds are adapted to an aquatic existence with webbed feet, flattened bills, and feathers that are excellent at shedding water due to an oily coating.
Order: Phoenicopteriformes Family: Phoenicopteridae Flamingos are gregarious wading birds, usually 3 to 5 feet (0.9 to 1.5 m) tall, found in both the Western and Eastern Hemispheres.
Their oddly shaped beaks are specially adapted to separate mud and silt from the food they consume and, uniquely, are used upside-down.
Order: Apodiformes Family: Apodidae Swifts are small birds which spend the majority of their lives flying.
Order: Apodiformes Family: Trochilidae Hummingbirds are small birds capable of hovering in mid-air due to the rapid flapping of their wings.
They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings.
Order: Charadriiformes Family: Haematopodidae The oystercatchers are large and noisy plover-like birds, with strong bills used for smashing or prising open molluscs.
Order: Charadriiformes Family: Burhinidae The thick-knees are a group of waders found worldwide within the tropical zone, with some species also breeding in temperate Europe and Australia.
Variation in length of legs and bills enables multiple species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food.
They are identifiable by their huge feet and claws which enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat.
Terns are a group of generally medium to large seabirds typically with gray or white plumage, often with black markings on the head.
Order: Phaethontiformes Family: Phaethontidae Tropicbirds are slender white birds of tropical oceans with exceptionally long central tail feathers.
Order: Procellariiformes Family: Oceanitidae The storm-petrels are the smallest seabirds, relatives of the petrels, feeding on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering.
Order: Procellariiformes Family: Procellariidae The procellariids are the main group of medium-sized "true petrels", characterized by united nostrils with medium septum and a long outer functional primary.
Order: Suliformes Family: Fregatidae Frigatebirds are large seabirds usually found over tropical oceans.
Having the largest wingspan-to-body-weight ratio of any bird, they are essentially aerial, able to stay aloft for more than a week.
Order: Pelecaniformes Family: Pelecanidae Pelicans are large water birds with a distinctive pouch under their beak.
Members of Ardeidae fly with their necks retracted, unlike other long-necked birds such as storks, ibises, and spoonbills.
Order: Strigiformes Family: Strigidae The typical owls are small to large solitary nocturnal birds of prey.
Order: Coraciiformes Family: Alcedinidae Kingfishers are medium-sized birds with large heads, long pointed bills, short legs, and stubby tails.
Old World parrots are found from Africa east across south and southeast Asia and Oceania to Australia and New Zealand.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Tyrannidae Tyrant flycatchers are passerine birds which occur throughout North and South America.
They have a slender streamlined body, long pointed wings, and a short bill with a wide gape.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Bombycillidae The waxwings are a group of birds with soft silky plumage and unique red tips to some of the wing feathers.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Turdidae The thrushes are a group of passerine birds that occur mainly in the Old World.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Parulidae The wood-warblers are a group of small, often colorful, passerine birds restricted to the New World.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Thraupidae The tanagers are a large group of small to medium-sized passerine birds restricted to the New World, mainly in the tropics.