Birds of Southwest Florida: 25+ Feathered Friends to Set Your Sights On

If you’re looking to the ultimate guide to some of the beautiful birds of Southwest Florida, we’ve got everything you need to know.

One of the things we love best about the Paradise coast is the abundance of nature at our doorstep.

Dozens of wildlife preserves, nature refuges and 12 state parks in southwest Florida offer plenty of quiet places to escape and observe birds and other animals in their natural habitat.

Given that this part of Florida lies within the Everglades ecosystem, there are hundreds of birds call southwest Florida home.

Some hang out in the water, while others stay on land.

Several species migrate throughout the year, while many others make this their permanent home year round.

Some bird species are here for only a short time until the chicks leave the nest while others stay for most of the summer to take advantage of the abundant food resources.

What’s in This Article

Types of Birds You’ll See in Southwest Florida

Best Time of Year For Birding in Southwest Florida

Best Places to See Birds in Southwest Florida

Birds of Southwest Florida

Types of Birds You’ll See in Southwest Florida

For birdwatchers and nature lovers alike, spotting the birds of southwest Florida is a bucket list adventure and each bird spotted is equally rewarding.

Raptors, wading birds, swimming and diving birds, gulls, terns, vultures, and of course an assortment of song birds, can all be seen.

During your time in Southwest Florida, you’ll likely catch a glimpse of anhingas sunning themselves after a meal, majestic great blue herons feeding in the late afternoon, adorable moorhens cooing as they paddle, and the easily recognizable brightly-colored roseate spoonbills.

As for how to see these southwest Florida birds, the viewing options are endless, though hiking, paddling, or taking a guided tour are great ways to get you closer to the birds.

This article may contain affiliate links. If you click through and make a qualifying purchase, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Best Time of Year For Birding in Southwest Florida

The best time of year to spot the many unique birds of Florida is from November to May.

For some birds, nesting time in southwest Florida can take place from February to October — it’s during these months that mating and nesting occur and the birds eagerly show off their colorful breeding feathers.

Many establish their nests in colonies in the many rookeries found throughout the area mangroves.

Spring and early summer are a great time of year to spot osprey nests with the heads of chicks popping up as one of the parents arrive with their next meal.

Best Places to See Birds in Southwest Florida

The nice thing about southwest Florida is that wherever you go, you’re usually surrounded by beautiful water views, scenery, and local wildlife.

But if birding or nature hikes are high on your list of things to do while you’re here, these are some of the best places for bird watching in southwest Florida.

Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve

In Everglades National Park, you’ll see over 360 land and wading bird species, from Wood storks and Great Egrets, to the Roseate Spoonbill.

A great way to discover where the best birding is, is to take a guided boat or kayak tour (airboat rides are fun but the noise tends to drive away any birds, so keep this for another day).

From this vantage point, you can get up close with binoculars or long camera lenses.

The Gulf Coast Visitor Center at Everglades National Park is just 45 minutes from Naples.

Adjacent to Everglades National Park is Big Cypress National Preserve, one of the best locations to go birdwatching in the Everglades because of the unique ecosystems within the one Preserve.

Here, you’ll find open prairies, pinelands and hardwood hammocks, estuaries, and cypress swamps.

Be sure and download their birding checklist before you go.

Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary and CREW Bird Rookery Swamp

Located 12 miles inland from Naples, the 13,000-acre Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is one of the best bird-watching destinations in Florida.

Hike along elevated boardwalks and you’ll see a host of native species including ibis, snowy egrets, wood storks, and cranes, though the sanctuary is home to nearly 200 bird species.

There are guided tours, conservation programs and events, rare plant life like the ghost orchid and habitats for other native species like the Florida panther, American alligator and Florida black bear.

If you’d rather not spend the entry fee or take a guided tour at the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, you’ll find similar habitat 8 miles closer to Naples at the CREW Bird Rookery Swamp Trail, one of the most walking unique trails in Naples.

You can walk this 12-mile loop trail or ride your bike — some of the trail is elevated boardwalk and other spots are flat, grassy trails.

Just watch out for alligators who often sun themselves right along the trail.

Rookery Bay

Rookery Bay between Naples and Marco Island stretches across 110,000 acres of pristine mangrove forest, uplands and protected waters from Gordon Pass in Naples to the western Everglades.

Formally known as the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, the Reserve is the perfect place to go birding, boating, and kayaking if you want to learn more about the local Everglades and Ten Thousand Islands ecosystem, or spend a quiet day on the water.

Among the many wading and migratory birds you’ll find here, the Bay and its multitude of rivers and mangroves are home to the largest concentration of bald eagles in southwest Florida.

J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge

Just an hour north of Naples on Sanibel Island is the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Preserve, with over 6,400 acres of preserve and 245 species of birds.

It’s a bird-watchers paradise! Along with unique native flora and fauna, you’ll be treated to frequent sights of the Yellow-Crowned Night Heron, American White Pelicans, the Mangrove Cuckoo and lots more wildlife including the popular American alligator.

Now that you know where to find them, let’s talk about what kind of birds you’ll see in southwest Florida!

Birds of Southwest Florida

Swimming and Diving Birds

Anhinga

One of the coolest birds you’ll see in southwest Florida is the Anhinga.

You’ll likely see it perched on a rock or a branch sunning itself with its white and black wings stretched way out to the side.

But if you see it fishing in the water, you almost won’t believe your eyes.

Anhingas completely submerge their bodies underwater, diving beneath the surface to chase down their prey spearing them with a sharp pointed beak.

Only their long neck will sometimes be outstretched above the water, looking more like a snake!

This is why they’re sometimes referred to as “snake birds”.

Anhingas are usually migratory birds, as they like to gravitate towards warm weather.

But southwest Florida is warm all year round, so these feathered friends have no need to migrate to or from the Sunshine State.

Anhingas like to hang out at just about any body of fresh water like ponds, canals, and swamps so you have a good chance of seeing one during your visit to Southwest Florida.

For your best bet, check out J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island or Rookery Bay near Marco Island.

Double-Crested Cormorant

Double-crested cormorants are often confused with anhingas, since both have long necks and are often found sunning themselves with outstretched wings near bodies of freshwater.

But to tell which you are seeing, look closer at their coloring and beaks.

Double-crested cormorants have black wings and an easily recognized hooked beak.

Cormorants are such good swimmers, the fascinating age-old tradition of using trained cormorants to fish in China and Japan still continues today.

Fishermen use the cormorant to dive for fish from their small floating raft, keeping a loosely tied rope around its neck to prevent the bird from swallowing its catch!

The migratory patterns of double-crested cormorants are surprisingly inconsistent.

Some like to hang out in one spot all year, while others choose to migrate along Florida’s rivers, and a few opt to travel up and down the East Coast.

If you’d like to catch a glimpse of the double-crest cormorant, your best bet is to look for the birds that have made their permanent home in Southwest Florida.

Check out Rookery Bay or Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park.

Anhingas vs. Cormorants: What’s the Difference at a Glance?

Anhingas - Black/white wings, and long, pointed beak used to spear their prey.

Cormorants - Black wings, and hooked bills to grab and swallow their prey.

Anhinga
Fishing with cormorants in China
Cormorants

Pelicans

If you see a Brown pelican, consider yourself lucky. Brown pelicans are listed as endangered in many states and threatened in Florida.

For your best chance of seeing them, head to the Gulf! Rookery Bay is one of their favorite hotspots.

They can also be spotted daily at most any beach either singly or in a v-shaped group cruising low over the water searching for schools of small fish.

When they have located fish, feeding time is on.

A pelican will climb a little higher then plunge-dive nearly straight down to scoop-up a fish with it’s long bill and pouch.

It’s fun to watch them feed and squish the water out of their pouch before eating their catch.

While these seabirds are somewhat rare, they luckily don’t migrate.

This means that you can see them in southwest Florida throughout the year enjoying the sunny skies, sandy beaches, and abundant schools of bait fish.

The American white pelican is a very large bird, much larger than their cousin, the Brown Pelican.

Easily identified by their large white body, broad black tipped wings, and orangish bill, they are usually seen in large groups. American White Pelicans migrate to Florida during the winter months.

Another difference with the brown pelican is that the white pelican doesn’t dive into the water to catch their prey.

They cruise in large groups to stir up schools of small fish and feed on the surface. In southwest Florida the best bet for a sighting is at Rookery Bay or on the lake from the birdwatching tower at the end of Briggs Boardwalk Nature Preserve.

American White Pelicans
Brown pelican

Shorebirds

Bonaparte’s Gull

Bonaparte’s gull is an adorable, small species of gull.

These black and white birds can often be found meandering on the beaches of Southwest Florida.

After all, that’s where they can find many of their favorite tiny fish to eat!

While these cute seabirds often migrate from colder areas, the ones that live in southwest Florida don’t need to do so.

The year-round warm weather ensures that the Bonaparte’s gulls can make Florida their permanent home.

Laughing Gull

The laughing gull is one of the species of gulls found in southwest Florida.

This particular type of gull gets its name from its distinctive call, which sounds a lot like a laugh or cackle.

Laughing gulls are actually the only type of gull that consistently breeds in Florida – the rest sometimes migrate elsewhere to breed.

And whether or not it’s breeding season, laughing gulls like to hang out at Southwest Florida beaches.

If you do see them, remember not to feed them!

We don’t want to make them reliant on humans for food.

Ring-Billed Gull

These are very common gulls and can generally be spotted near any body of water in southwest Florida especially on beaches looking for a handout or sneaking off with chips or snacks left out when the beachgoers haver gone for a swim.

These are relatively small gulls easily identified by the black ring encircling their yellow bill near the tip.

They will hang-out around you while you picnic hoping that you’ll toss them something.

Don’t do it.

Feeding them reenforces the behavior and makes them less wary of humans.

Ring-billed gull
Laughing gull

We’d be remiss to leave out terns on this list of birds of Southwest Florida.

There are a handful of different types of terns in the area, including the Least Tern, the Sandwich Tern, the Forster’s Tern, and the Royal Tern.

Forster’s Tern

This lovely little seabird with black, white, and gray feathers and short, orange legs.

Named after the famous German naturalist, Johann Reinhold Forster, this small bird holds a special place in many birdwatcher’s hearts.

These seabirds like to spend their time near, well, the sea, or in this case, the Gulf of Mexico.

You can see them on the shorelines of Sanibel Island and Fort Myers.

Black Skimmer

These guys are fascinating.

They are usually seen in a small v-shaped formation flying just above the water and, well, skimming the water’s surface through schools of small fish.

Their somewhat downward angled orange bill allows them to feed on the fly.

They’re often seen feeding along with gulls and terns just off the beach.

Royal Tern

You’ll often see these guys at the Naples Pier and adjoining beaches as they are only seen near salt water where they feed.

Once spotted, they will dive into schools of small fish to feed.

The Royal Tern has a reddish-orange bill and a dark black cap during the breeding season, March - June, which becomes less defined during the rest of the year time.

They hunt in small groups and are fun to watch when they’ve located a meal.

Black skimmer
Forster's Tern

Wading Birds

Great Blue Heron

The great blue heron is arguably the most majestic type of heron in southwest Florida.

With its long neck, blue-tinted feathers, and distinctive black stripe above the eye, this beautiful bird is often found wading through shallow waters, searching for fish to eat.

While most blue herons around the world like to migrate, the great blue herons in Florida do not.

The year-round warm weather in the area is the perfect climate for great blue herons.

To see a great blue heron in its natural habitat, you can visit J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, or Everglades National Park.

Little Blue Heron

Not to be confused with the Great Blue, these wading birds are much smaller and are a much darker shade of blue, almost indigo.

Their behavior and foraging is much like snowy egrets.

They are usually seen wading along small lakes and ponds.

Great Blue Heron
Little Blue Heron

Tricolored Heron

This is another small heron with a long and slender neck and bill.

Sometimes referred to as the Louisiana Heron, their white belly contrasts with the darker coloring of their back and wings.

They like to forage in shallow water and in marshes and will even run after their prey.

Yellow-Crowned Night Heron

The yellow-crowned night heron may be one of the hardest birds to spot in Southwest Florida.

While this bird isn’t particularly rare, it will feed during the day or at night.

Since many of the birds have opted for nocturnal feeding, this means that there are fewer yellow-crowned night herons to see during the day.

But, luckily for you, these beautiful birds stay in Florida year-round.

To try to catch a glimpse of them, you can pop by the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, or the Everglades.

There is also the black-crowned night heron, which, as you can guess, is closely related to the yellow-crowned night heron.

Tri-colored Heron
Yellow-crowned Night Heron

Great Egret

These large birds wade the shorelines of almost any body of freshwater making them fairly easy to spot.

Tall with long black legs and a yellow bill, they are sometimes mistaken for a juvenile great blue heron.

They forage through shore vegetation for fish, frogs, and small turtles.

Snowy Egret

The smaller cousin of the great egret, they are sometimes confused with juvenile little blue herons.

The tell-tale sign is that this egret has black legs and yellow feet.

Their behaviors and foraging are much the same as the great egret.

They can even be seen on beaches walking along the edge of the surf or watching for an opportunity to help themselves to whatever is in an anglers bait bucket.

Great vs. Snowy Egret: What’s the Difference at a Glance?

Great Egret - Larger in size, yellow bill, longer neck, black legs and feet.

Snowy Egret - Smaller body, black bill, black legs, and yellow feet.

Great Egret, nesting with chicks
Snowy Egret, nesting with eggs

Reddish Egret

Egrets are one of the most popular birds of Southwest Florida, so it’s even funnier to think this unique bird has one of the least distinctive names in ornithology!

One of the most captivating egret species is yes… the Reddish egret.

As the name sort of implies, the Reddish egret boasts distinctive reddish-brown coat.

These birds are quite rare, as many plume hunters sought them for their feathers.

As a matter of fact, their population dwindled so much that they weren’t seen in Florida for ten whole years, from 1927 to 1937.

If you want to increase your chances of seeing a Reddish egret, you’ll want to visit one of the mangrove swamps in the area.

The J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge is a fantastic option as is Rookery Bay.

Roseate Spoonbill

The Roseate spoonbill is undoubtedly one of the most eye-catching birds of Southwest Florida.

With its bright pink feathers, it’s certainly a sight to behold.

These coastal wading birds are quite rare.

Their numbers were decimated in the early 20th century, when loads of plume hunters went after them for their brightly colored feathers.

These beautiful birds do sometimes migrate between Florida and Cuba, depending on the season.

That said, not all roseate spoonbills make this journey.

If you’d like to see these bright pink birds, you can find them at J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Carl Johnson State Park, and Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve.

Wood Stork

The wood stork is a large bird with a charcoal and reddish-colored heavy bill and head, and is the only stork native to North America.

They fish in the shallows of swampy areas, small lakes, ponds, and even along roadways in drainage ditches and canals.

They’re at once prehistoric looking and elegant, draped in a billowy white feather boa.

Sadly, their numbers have been in decline in southwest Florida mainly due to human activity.

White Ibis

White ibises are one of the most common birds of southwest Florida and also one of the most distinctive.

With their bright white feathers and curved red beaks, these birds will immediately catch your eye.

And fun fact: during breeding season, the distinctive red beak actually gets brighter!

They are most often seen foraging in small groups.

White ibises are wading birds, which means they like to spend their time in shallow water.

Luckily, there are many places in southwest Florida that fit the bill, including the Everglades, Bunche Beach Preserve, Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve, and Audubon Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.

Moorhen (Common Gallinule)

The Common Gallinule (also referred to as the Moorhen) is one of the noisiest birds of Southwest Florida – and also one of the most common.

And with the bright red of their beaks, they’re easy to spot too!

They can swim like a duck and sometimes will feed by walking on floating vegetation like a rail with their long toes.

You can find them in nearly every marsh in southwest Florida and on ponds and small lakes that have water vegetation along the shoreline.

And since these waterbirds don’t migrate, you can see them all year round!

One good spot to check for gallinules is the Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in Fort Myers.

Roseate Spoonbill
Moorhen, or Common Gallinule
Ibis

Raptors

Owls

Okay, so owls are not related to hawks, but they’re still considered raptors because of their predatory behavior, much the same as hawks.

There are 7 unique species of owls In southwest Florida; the Barn owl, Short-eared owl, the Barred owl, the Great Horned owl, and the Eastern Screech owl, but perhaps the most popular and endearing species of owl in SWFL is the adorable Burrowing owl.

In fact, if you’re planning on visiting Cape Coral or Marco Island, be on the lookout for these small owls that can be found in open fields and empty lots around the islands.

The Barred Owl can be found in forested areas that have tall trees a relatively thin undergrowth.

They are a fairly large owl that are most active when hunting at dusk and at night.

They can often be heard during the day and early evening with their distinctive hooting voice that sounds a lot like “who cooks for you, who cooks for you all”.

Osprey

Ospreys are one of the largest birds of Southwest Florida.

On average, they boast a whopping six-foot wingspan!

Add to that it’s dark wings and curved beak, and these land-based birds are certainly a sight to see.

Some ospreys in Florida migrate, while others stick around throughout the year.

Winter is when you’ll see the highest number of ospreys in southwest Florida at one time.

As for where to spot ospreys and their large nests, you’ll have quite a few options, since these large birds are surprisingly common.

You can head to Delnor-Wiggins Pass State Park, Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve, Bunche Beach Preserve, or Pine Island to watch these gorgeous birds.

Bald Eagle

Although they can be difficult to locate, southwest Florida eagles can be spotted regularly in Rookery Bay.

Eagles are large and imposing birds that like to perch in tall trees near water where they feed on fish and waterfowl or scavenge for leftovers.

There is no mistaking the adult eagle with its distinctive white head, piercing eyes, and huge wingspan when in flight.

Red-Shouldered Hawk

These hawks like to make noise. Their loud squealing vocalization is great help in locating them.

Once spotted look for the red plumage across their shoulders.

They like to perch in trees or on poles in wooded areas, near ponds, and in swamplands.

Osprey
Red-shouldered Hawk
Bald Eagle mother and juvenile

Whether you’re looking for seabirds or raptors, migratory birds or settled ones, you’ll be able to spot many of these beautiful birds from the Naples City Dock, your beach blanket, or your own front porch.

From Rookery Bay to the bow of your boat. They’re fascinating to watch and one of the big reasons this part of Florida is a favorite among nature-lovers.

This introduction to some of the unique birds of southwest Florida certainly isn’t exhaustive, but it’s a good start.

How many more have you found?

---