List of birds of the Cayman Islands
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: Nyctibiiformes Family: Nyctibiidae The potoos (sometimes called poor-me-ones) are large near passerine birds related to the nightjars and frogmouths.
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.
Order: Gruiformes Family: Aramidae The limpkin is an odd bird that looks like a large rail, but is skeletally closer to the cranes.
They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short thick necks, and long, usually pointed, wings.
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.
Terns are a group of generally medium to large seabirds typically with grey 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: Procellariidae The procellariids are the main group of medium-sized "true petrels", characterised by united nostrils with medium septum and a long outer functional primary.
Order: Suliformes Family: Anhingidae Anhingas are often called "snake-birds" because of their long thin neck, which gives a snake-like appearance when they swim with their bodies submerged.
The males have black and dark-brown plumage, an erectile crest on the nape, and a larger bill than the female.
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.
Order: Piciformes Family: Picidae Woodpeckers are small to medium-sized birds with chisel-like beaks, short legs, stiff tails, and long tongues used for capturing insects.
Order: Psittaciformes Family: Psittacidae Parrots are small to large birds with a characteristic curved beak.
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: Polioptilidae These dainty birds resemble Old World warblers in their build and habits, moving restlessly through the foliage seeking insects.
The gnatcatchers and gnatwrens are mainly soft bluish grey in colour and have the typical insectivore's long sharp bill.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Turdidae The thrushes are a group of passerine birds that occur mainly in the Old World.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Estrildidae The estrildid finches are small passerine birds native to the Old World tropics.
Order: Passeriformes Family: Icteriidae This species was historically placed in the New World warblers (Parulidae) but nonetheless most authorities were unsure if it belonged there.
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.
As a family they are omnivorous, but individual species specialize in eating fruits, seeds, insects, or other types of food.
