List of birds of Benin
Encyclopedia
This is a list of the bird species recorded in Benin. The avifauna of Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...

 includes a total of 592 species, of which 2 are rare or accidental.

This list's taxonomic
Taxonomy
Taxonomy is the science of identifying and naming species, and arranging them into a classification. The field of taxonomy, sometimes referred to as "biological taxonomy", revolves around the description and use of taxonomic units, known as taxa...

 treatment (designation and sequence of orders, families, and species) and nomenclature (common and scientific names) follow the conventions of Clements
James Clements
Dr. James Franklin Clements was an ornithologist, author and very successful businessman. He was born in New York....

's 5th edition. The family accounts at the beginning of each heading reflects this taxonomy, as do the species counts found in each family account. Accidental species are included in the total species counts for Benin.

The following tags have been used to highlight certain relevant categories. The commonly occurring, native, species do not fall into any of these categories.
  • (A) Accidental A species that rarely or accidentally occurs in Benin.

Table of contents

Non-passerines:
Grebes .
Shearwaters and Petrels .
Storm-Petrels .
Pelicans .
Boobies and Gannets .
Cormorants .
Darters .
Bitterns, Herons and Egrets .
Hammerkop .
Storks .
Ibises and Spoonbills .
Flamingos .
Ducks, Geese and Swans .
Osprey .
Hawks, Kites and Eagles .
Secretary-bird .
Caracaras and Falcons .
Pheasants and Partridges .
Guineafowl .
Buttonquails .
Cranes .
Rails, Crakes, Gallinules, and Coots .
Sungrebe and Finfoots .
Bustards .
Jacanas .
Painted snipe .
Oystercatchers .
Avocets and Stilts .
Thick-knees .
Pratincoles and Coursers .
Plovers and Lapwings .
Sandpipers and allies .
Skuas and Jaegers .
Gulls .
Terns .
Skimmers .
Sandgrouse .
Pigeons and Doves .
Parrots, Macaws and allies .
Turacos .
Cuckoos and Anis .
Barn owls .
Typical owls .
Nightjars .
Swifts .
Mousebirds .
Trogons and Quetzals .
Kingfishers .
Bee-eaters .
Typical Rollers .
Hoopoes .
Woodhoopoes .
Hornbills .
Barbets .
Honeyguides .
Woodpeckers and allies .

Passerines:
Larks .
Swallows and Martins .
Wagtails and Pipits .
Cuckoo-shrikes .
Bulbuls .
Thrushes and allies .
Cisticolas and allies .
Old World warblers .
Old World flycatchers .
Wattle-eyes .
Monarch flycatchers .
Babblers .
Chickadees and Titmice .
Treecreepers .
Penduline tits .
Sunbirds and Spiderhunters .
White-eyes .
Old World Orioles .
Shrikes .
Bushshrikes and allies .
Helmetshrikes .
Drongos .
Crows, Jays, Ravens and Magpies .
Starlings .
Weavers and allies .
Waxbills and allies .
Indigobirds .
Weavers and allies .
Buntings, Sparrows, Seedeaters and allies .
Siskins, Crossbills and allies .
Sparrows .

See also       References

Grebes

Order: Podicipediformes. Family: Podicipedidae

Grebe
Grebe
A grebe is a member of the Podicipediformes order, a widely distributed order of freshwater diving birds, some of which visit the sea when migrating and in winter...

s are small to medium-large sized freshwater diving birds. They have lobed toes, and are excellent swimmers and divers. However, they have their feet placed far back on the body, making them quite ungainly on land. There are 20 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Little Grebe
    Little Grebe
    The Little Grebe , also known as Dabchick, member of the grebe family of water birds. At 23 to 29 cm in length it is the smallest European member of its family. It is commonly found in open bodies of water across most of its range.-Description:The Little Grebe is a small water bird with a pointed...

     Tachybaptus ruficollis

Shearwaters and petrels

Order: Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes is an order of seabirds that comprises four families: the albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters, storm petrels, and diving petrels...

. Family: Procellariidae
Procellariidae
The family Procellariidae is a group of seabirds that comprises the fulmarine petrels, the gadfly petrels, the prions, and the shearwaters. This family is part of the bird order Procellariiformes , which also includes the albatrosses, the storm-petrels, and the diving petrels.The procellariids are...



The procellariids are the main group of medium-sized 'true petrels', characterised by united nostrils with a medium septum, and a long outer functional primary. There are 75 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Sooty Shearwater
    Sooty Shearwater
    The Sooty Shearwater is a medium-large shearwater in the seabird family Procellariidae. In New Zealand it is also known by its Māori name tītī and as "muttonbird", like its relatives the Wedge-tailed Shearwater and the Australian Short-tailed Shearwater The Sooty Shearwater (Puffinus griseus) is...

     Puffinus griseus

Storm-Petrels

Order: Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes
Procellariiformes is an order of seabirds that comprises four families: the albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters, storm petrels, and diving petrels...

. Family: Hydrobatidae

The storm-petrel
Storm-petrel
Storm petrels are seabirds in the family Hydrobatidae, part of the order Procellariiformes. These smallest of seabirds feed on planktonic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat-like.Storm petrels have a cosmopolitan...

s are relatives of the petrel
Petrel
Petrels are tube-nosed seabirds in the bird order Procellariiformes. The common name does not indicate relationship beyond that point, as "petrels" occur in three of the four families within that group...

s, and are the smallest of sea-birds. They feed on plankton
Plankton
Plankton are any drifting organisms that inhabit the pelagic zone of oceans, seas, or bodies of fresh water. That is, plankton are defined by their ecological niche rather than phylogenetic or taxonomic classification...

ic crustaceans and small fish picked from the surface, typically while hovering. The flight is fluttering and sometimes bat
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

-like. There are 21 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Wilson's Storm-Petrel
    Wilson's Storm-petrel
    Wilson's Storm Petrel , also known as Wilson's Petrel, is a small seabird of the storm-petrel family. It is one of the most abundant bird species in the world and has a circumpolar distribution mainly in the seas of the southern hemisphere but extending northwards during the summer of the northern...

     Oceanites oceanicus

Pelicans

Order: Pelecaniformes
Pelecaniformes
The Pelecaniformes is a order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide. As traditionally—but erroneously—defined, they encompass all birds that have feet with all four toes webbed. Hence, they were formerly also known by such names as totipalmates or steganopodes...

. Family: Pelecanidae

Pelican
Pelican
A pelican, derived from the Greek word πελεκυς pelekys is a large water bird with a large throat pouch, belonging to the bird family Pelecanidae....

s are large water birds with a distinctive pouch under the beak. As with other members of the order Pelecaniformes, they have webbed feet with four toes. There are 8 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Great White Pelican Pelecanus onocrotalus
  • Pink-backed Pelican
    Pink-backed Pelican
    The Pink-backed Pelican is a member of the pelican family of birds. It is a resident breeder in Africa, southern Arabia and apparently extinct in Madagascar in swamps and shallow lakes.-Description:...

     Pelecanus rufescens

Boobies and gannets

Order: Pelecaniformes
Pelecaniformes
The Pelecaniformes is a order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide. As traditionally—but erroneously—defined, they encompass all birds that have feet with all four toes webbed. Hence, they were formerly also known by such names as totipalmates or steganopodes...

. Family: Sulidae
Sulidae
The bird family Sulidae comprises the gannets and boobies. Collectively called sulidas, they are medium-large coastal seabirds that plunge-dive for fish and similar prey. The ten species in this family are often considered congeneric in older sources, placing all in the genus Sula...



The sulids comprise the gannet
Gannet
Gannets are seabirds comprising the genus Morus, in the family Sulidae, closely related to the boobies.The gannets are large black and white birds with yellow heads. They have long pointed wings and long bills. Northern gannets are the largest seabirds in the North Atlantic, with a wingspan of up...

s and boobies
Booby
A booby is a seabird in the genus Sula, part of the Sulidae family. Boobies are closely related to the gannets , which were formerly included in Sula.-Description:...

. Both groups comprise medium-to-large coastal sea-birds that plunge-dive for fish. There are 9 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Cape Gannet
    Cape Gannet
    The Cape Gannet, Morus capensis, originally Sula capensis, is a large seabird of the gannet family, Sulidae.They are easily identified by their large size, black and white plumage and distinctive yellow crown and hindneck...

     Morus capensis
  • Brown Booby
    Brown Booby
    The Brown Booby is a large seabird of the booby family, Sulidae. The adult brown booby reaches about in length. Its head and upper body are covered in dark brown, with the remainder being a contrasting white. The juvenile form is gray-brown with darkening on the head, wings and tail...

     Sula leucogaster

Cormorants

Order: Pelecaniformes
Pelecaniformes
The Pelecaniformes is a order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide. As traditionally—but erroneously—defined, they encompass all birds that have feet with all four toes webbed. Hence, they were formerly also known by such names as totipalmates or steganopodes...

. Family: Phalacrocoracidae

The Phalacrocoracidae is a family of medium-to-large coastal, fish-eating sea-birds that includes cormorants and shags. Plumage colouration varies with the majority having mainly dark plumage, some species being black and white, and a few being colourful. There are 38 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Long-tailed Cormorant
    Long-tailed Cormorant
    The Reed Cormorant , also known as the Long-tailed Cormorant, is a bird in the cormorant family Phalacrocoracidae. It breeds in much of Africa south of the Sahara, and Madagascar. It is resident but undertakes some seasonal movements.This is a common and widespread species, and is not considered to...

     Phalacrocorax africanus

Darters

Order: Pelecaniformes
Pelecaniformes
The Pelecaniformes is a order of medium-sized and large waterbirds found worldwide. As traditionally—but erroneously—defined, they encompass all birds that have feet with all four toes webbed. Hence, they were formerly also known by such names as totipalmates or steganopodes...

. Family: Anhingidae

Darters are frequently referred to as "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. The females have a much paler plumage especially on the neck and underparts. The darters have completely webbed feet, and their legs are short and set far back on the body. Their plumage is somewhat permeable, like that of cormorants, and they spread their wings to dry after diving. There are 4 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Darter
    Darter
    The darters or snakebirds are mainly tropical waterbirds in the family Anhingidae. There are four living species, three of which are very common and widespread while the fourth is rarer and classified as near-threatened by the IUCN. The term "snakebird" is usually used without any additions to...

     Anhinga melanogaster

Bitterns, herons and egrets

Order: Ciconiiformes
Ciconiiformes
Traditionally, the order Ciconiiformes has included a variety of large, long-legged wading birds with large bills: storks, herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, and several others. Ciconiiformes are known from the Late Eocene...

. Family: Ardeidae

The family Ardeidae contains the bittern
Bittern
Bitterns are a classification of birds in the heron family, Ardeidae, a family of wading birds. Species named bitterns tend to be the shorter-necked, often more secretive members of this family...

s, heron
Heron
The herons are long-legged freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae. There are 64 recognised species in this family. Some are called "egrets" or "bitterns" instead of "heron"....

s and egret
Egret
An egret is any of several herons, most of which are white or buff, and several of which develop fine plumes during the breeding season. Many egrets are members of the genera Egretta or Ardea which contain other species named as herons rather than egrets...

s. Herons and egrets are medium to large sized wading birds with long necks and legs. Bitterns tend to be shorter necked and more wary. Unlike other long-necked birds suck as storks, ibises and spoonbills, members of Ardeidae fly with their necks retracted. There are 61 species worldwide and 17 species which occur in Benin.
  • Gray Heron Ardea cinerea
  • Black-headed Heron
    Black-headed Heron
    The Black-headed Heron is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae, common throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar. It is mainly resident but some west African birds move further north in the rainy season....

     Ardea melanocephala
  • Goliath Heron
    Goliath Heron
    The Goliath Heron is a very large wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae. It is found in sub-Saharan Africa, with smaller numbers in Southwest and South Asia.-Description:This is the world's largest heron...

     Ardea goliath
  • Purple Heron
    Purple Heron
    The Purple Heron is a wading bird in the heron family Ardeidae, breeding in Africa, central and southern Europe, and southern and eastern Asia. The European populations are migratory, wintering in tropical Africa; the more northerly Asian populations also migrate further south within Asia...

     Ardea purpurea
  • Great Egret
    Great Egret
    The Great Egret , also known as the Great White Egret or Common Egret, White Heron, or Great White Heron, is a large, widely-distributed egret. Distributed across most of the tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world, in southern Europe it is rather localized...

     Ardea alba
  • Black Heron
    Black Heron
    The Black Heron also known as the Black Egret, is an African heron. It is a medium-sized , black-plumaged heron with yellow legs and feet. It is found south of the Sahara Desert, including Madagascar, and prefers shallow open waters, such as the edges of freshwater lakes and ponds...

     Egretta ardesiaca
  • Intermediate Egret
    Intermediate Egret
    The Intermediate Egret, Median Egret, or Yellow-billed Egret is a medium-sized heron. It is a resident breeder from east Africa across tropical southern Asia to Australia. It often nests in colonies with other herons, usually on platforms of sticks in trees or shrubs...

     Egretta intermedia
  • Western Reef-Heron Egretta gularis
  • Little Egret
    Little Egret
    The Little Egret is a small white heron. It is the Old World counterpart to the very similar New World Snowy Egret.-Subspecies:Depending on authority, two or three subspecies of Little Egret are currently accepted....

     Egretta garzetta
  • Squacco Heron
    Squacco Heron
    The Squacco Heron, Ardeola ralloides, is a small heron, long, of which the body is , with wingspan. It is of Old World origins, breeding in southern Europe and the Greater Middle East.-Behaviour:...

     Ardeola ralloides
  • Cattle Egret
    Cattle Egret
    The Cattle Egret is a cosmopolitan species of heron found in the tropics, subtropics and warm temperate zones. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Bubulcus, although some authorities regard its two subspecies as full species, the Western Cattle Egret and the Eastern Cattle Egret...

     Bubulcus ibis
  • Striated Heron
    Striated Heron
    The Striated Heron, Butorides striata, also known as Mangrove Heron, Little Heron or Green-backed Heron, is a small heron. Striated Herons are mostly non-migratory and noted for some interesting behavioral traits. Their breeding habitat is small wetlands in the Old World tropics from west Africa to...

     Butorides striata
  • Black-crowned Night-Heron Nycticorax nycticorax
  • White-backed Night-Heron
    White-backed Night-heron
    The White-backed Night Heron is a species of heron in the Ardeidae family. This relatively small and dark night heron is found throughout a large part of sub-Saharan Africa. It was formerly placed in the genus Nycticorax....

     Gorsachius leuconotus
  • White-crested Bittern
    White-crested Bittern
    The White-crested Tiger Heron , also known as the White-crested Bittern, is a species of heron in the Ardeidae family. It is in the monotypic genus Tigriornis...

     Tigriornis leucolophus
  • Dwarf Bittern
    Dwarf Bittern
    The Dwarf Bittern is a species of heron in the Ardeidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Ixobrychus sturmii
  • Great Bittern
    Great Bittern
    The Eurasian Bittern or Great Bittern is a wading bird of the heron family Ardeidae. It is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds applies.-Etymology:...

     Botaurus stellaris

Hammerkop

Order: Ciconiiformes
Ciconiiformes
Traditionally, the order Ciconiiformes has included a variety of large, long-legged wading birds with large bills: storks, herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, and several others. Ciconiiformes are known from the Late Eocene...

. Family: Scopidae

The Hammerkop is a medium-sized bird with a long shaggy crest. The shape of its head with a curved bill and crest at the back is reminiscent of a hammer, hence its name. Its plumage is a drab brown all over.
  • Hamerkop Scopus umbretta

Storks

Order: Ciconiiformes
Ciconiiformes
Traditionally, the order Ciconiiformes has included a variety of large, long-legged wading birds with large bills: storks, herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, and several others. Ciconiiformes are known from the Late Eocene...

. Family: Ciconiidae

Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked, wading birds with long, stout bills. Storks are mute; bill-clattering is an important mode of stork communication at the nest. Their nests can be large and may be reused for many years. Many species are migratory. There are 19 species worldwide and 8 species which occur in Benin.
  • Yellow-billed Stork
    Yellow-billed Stork
    The Yellow-billed Stork, Mycteria ibis, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It occurs in Africa south of the Sahara and in Madagascar....

     Mycteria ibis
  • African Openbill Anastomus lamelligerus
  • Black Stork
    Black Stork
    The Black Stork Ciconia nigra is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It is a widespread, but rare, species that breeds in the warmer parts of Europe, predominantly in central and eastern regions. This is a shy and wary species, unlike the closely related White Stork. It is seen in...

     Ciconia nigra
  • Abdim's Stork
    Abdim's Stork
    The Abdim's Stork, also known as White-bellied Stork, is a black stork with grey legs, red knees and feet, grey bill and white underparts. It has red facial skin in front of eye and blue skin near the bill in breeding season...

     Ciconia abdimii
  • Woolly-necked Stork
    Woolly-necked Stork
    The Woolly-necked Stork or White necked stork , Ciconia episcopus, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It can also be known as the Espiscopos....

     Ciconia episcopus
  • White Stork
    White Stork
    The White Stork is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on its wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average from beak tip to end of tail, with a wingspan...

     Ciconia ciconia
  • Saddle-billed Stork
    Saddle-billed Stork
    The Saddle-billed Stork is a large wading bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. It is a widespread species which is a resident breeder in sub-Saharan Africa from Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya south to South Africa, and in The Gambia, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire and Chad in west Africa.This is a close...

     Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis
  • Marabou Stork
    Marabou Stork
    The Marabou Stork, Leptoptilos crumeniferus, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It breeds in Africa south of the Sahara, occurring in both wet and arid habitats, often near human habitation, especially waste tips...

     Leptoptilos crumeniferus

Ibises and spoonbills

Order: Ciconiiformes
Ciconiiformes
Traditionally, the order Ciconiiformes has included a variety of large, long-legged wading birds with large bills: storks, herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, and several others. Ciconiiformes are known from the Late Eocene...

. Family: Threskiornithidae
Threskiornithidae
The family Threskiornithidae includes 34 species of large terrestrial and wading birds, falling into two subfamilies, the ibises and the spoonbills. It was formerly known as Plataleidae. The spoonbills and ibises were once thought to be related to other groups of long-legged wading birds in the...



The Threskiornithidae is a family of large terrestrial and wading birds which includes the ibis
Ibis
The ibises are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae....

es and spoonbill
Spoonbill
Spoonbills are a group of large, long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, which also includes the Ibises.All have large, flat, spatulate bills and feed by wading through shallow water, sweeping the partly opened bill from side to side...

s. They have long, broad wings with 11 primary and about 20 secondary feathers. They are strong fliers and despite their size and weight, very capable soarers. There are 36 species worldwide and 4 species which occur in Benin.
  • Sacred Ibis
    Sacred Ibis
    The African Sacred Ibis is a species of ibis.-Description:An adult individual is 68 cm long with all-white body plumage apart from dark plumes on the rump. The bald head and neck, thick curved bill and legs are black. The white wings show a black rear border in flight...

     Threskiornis aethiopicus
  • Hadada Ibis
    Hadada Ibis
    The Hadada or Hadeda Ibis, Bostrychia hagedash, is an ibis found in Sub-Saharan Africa.-Appearance:The Hadeda is a large , dark brown ibis with a white "moustache", glossy greenish purple wings, a large black bill with a red stripe on the upper mandible, and blackish legs.-Call:It has a...

     Bostrychia hagedash
  • Glossy Ibis
    Glossy Ibis
    The Glossy Ibis is a wading bird in the ibis family Threskiornithidae.This is the most widespread ibis species, breeding in scattered sites in warm regions of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, and the Atlantic and Caribbean region of the Americas...

     Plegadis falcinellus
  • African Spoonbill
    African Spoonbill
    The African Spoonbill is a long-legged wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae. The species is widespread across Africa and Madagascar, including Botswana, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. It lives in marshy wetlands with some open shallow water and...

     Platalea alba

Flamingos

Order: Phoenicopteriformes. Family: Phoenicopteridae

Flamingo
Flamingo
Flamingos or flamingoes are gregarious wading birds in the genus Phoenicopterus , the only genus in the family Phoenicopteridae...

s are gregarious wading birds, usually 3 to 5 feet high, found in both the Western and Eastern Hemispheres. They are more numerous in the latter. Flamingos filter-feed on shellfish and algae. Their oddly-shaped beaks are specially adapted to separate mud and silt from the food they consume, and are uniquely used upside-down. There are 6 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Lesser Flamingo
    Lesser Flamingo
    The Lesser Flamingo is a species in the flamingo family of birds that resides in Africa and in southern Asia...

     Phoenicopterus minor

Ducks, geese and swans

Order: Anseriformes
Anseriformes
The order Anseriformes contains about 150 living species of birds in three extant families: the Anhimidae , Anseranatidae , and the Anatidae, which includes over 140 species of waterfowl, among them the ducks, geese, and swans.All species in the order are highly adapted for an aquatic existence at...

. Family: Anatidae
Anatidae
Anatidae is the biological family of birds that includes ducks, geese and swans. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on all the world's continents except Antarctica and on most of the world's islands and island groups...



The family Anatidae includes the duck
Duck
Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...

s and most duck-like waterfowl, such as geese
Goose
The word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....

 and swan
Swan
Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...

s. These are birds that are modified for an aquatic existence with webbed feet, flattened bills and feathers that are excellent at shedding water due to an oily coating. There are 131 species worldwide and 14 species which occur in Benin.
  • Fulvous Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna bicolor
  • White-faced Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna viduata
  • White-backed Duck
    White-backed Duck
    The White-backed Duck is a waterbird of the family Anatidae. It is distinct from all other ducks, but most closely related to the whistling ducks in the subfamily Dendrocygninae, though also showing some similarities to the stiff-tailed ducks in the subfamily Oxyurinae...

     Thalassornis leuconotus
  • Egyptian Goose
    Egyptian Goose
    The Egyptian Goose is a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae, and is the only extant member of the genus Alopochen...

     Alopochen aegyptiacus
  • Spur-winged Goose
    Spur-winged Goose
    The Spur-winged Goose is a large bird in the family Anatidae, related to the geese and the shelducks, but distinct from both of these in a number of anatomical features, and therefore treated in its own subfamily, the Plectropterinae...

     Plectropterus gambensis
  • Comb Duck
    Comb Duck
    The Knob-billed Duck , or Comb Duck, is an unusual, pan-tropical duck, found in tropical wetlands in sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar and south Asia from Pakistan to Laos and extreme southern China...

     Sarkidiornis melanotos
  • Hartlaub's Duck
    Hartlaub's Duck
    The Hartlaub's Duck is a dark chestnut-coloured duck of African forests. Formerly included in the paraphyletic "perching duck" assemblage, it was later moved to the dabbling duck assemblage...

     Pteronetta hartlaubii
  • African Pygmy-goose Nettapus auritus
  • Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope
  • Eurasian Teal Anas crecca
  • Northern Pintail
    Northern Pintail
    The Pintail or Northern Pintail is a widely occurring duck which breeds in the northern areas of Europe, Asia and North America. It is strongly migratory and winters south of its breeding range to the equator...

     Anas acuta
  • Garganey
    Garganey
    The Garganey is a small dabbling duck. It breeds in much of Europe and western Asia, but is strictly migratory, with the entire population moving to southern Africa, India Santragachi and Australasia in winter, where large flocks can occur. This species was first described by Linnaeus in 1758...

     Anas querquedula
  • Northern Shoveler
    Northern Shoveler
    The Northern Shoveler , Northern Shoveller in British English, sometimes known simply as the Shoveler, is a common and widespread duck. It breeds in northern areas of Europe and Asia and across most of North America, and is a rare vagrant to Australia...

     Anas clypeata
  • Ferruginous Pochard Aythya nyroca

Osprey

Order: Falconiformes
Falconiformes
The order Falconiformes is a group of about 290 species of birds that comprises the diurnal birds of prey. Raptor classification is difficult and the order is treated in several ways.- Classification problems :...

. Family: Pandionidae

The Pandionidae family contains only one species, the Osprey. The Osprey is a medium large raptor
Bird of prey
Birds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....

 which is a specialist fish-eater with a worldwide distribution.
  • Osprey
    Osprey
    The Osprey , sometimes known as the sea hawk or fish eagle, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. It is a large raptor, reaching more than in length and across the wings...

     Pandion haliaetus

Hawks, kites and eagles

Order: Falconiformes
Falconiformes
The order Falconiformes is a group of about 290 species of birds that comprises the diurnal birds of prey. Raptor classification is difficult and the order is treated in several ways.- Classification problems :...

. Family: Accipitridae
Accipitridae
The Accipitridae, one of the two major families within the order Accipitriformes , are a family of small to large birds with strongly hooked bills and variable morphology based on diet. They feed on a range of prey items from insects to medium-sized mammals, with a number feeding on carrion and a...



Accipitridae is a family of birds of prey and include hawk
Hawk
The term hawk can be used in several ways:* In strict usage in Australia and Africa, to mean any of the species in the subfamily Accipitrinae, which comprises the genera Accipiter, Micronisus, Melierax, Urotriorchis and Megatriorchis. The large and widespread Accipiter genus includes goshawks,...

s, eagle
Eagle
Eagles are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just two species can be found in the United States and Canada, nine more in...

s, kites
Kite (bird)
Kites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. Most feed mainly on carrion but some take various amounts of live prey.They are birds of prey which, along with hawks and eagles, are from the family Accipitridae....

, harriers
Harrier (bird)
A harrier is any of the several species of diurnal hawks forming the Circinae sub-family of the Accipitridae family of birds of prey. Harriers characteristically hunt by flying low over open ground, feeding on small mammals, reptiles, or birds....

 and Old World vultures. These birds have powerful hooked beaks for tearing flesh from their prey, strong legs, powerful talons, and keen eyesight. There are 233 species worldwide and 40 species which occur in Benin.
  • African Cuckoo-Hawk
    African Cuckoo-Hawk
    The African Cuckoo-Hawk is a medium-sized raptor in the family Accipitridae resembling a Common Cuckoo, found in sub-Saharan Africa and along the eastern parts of Southern Africa...

     Aviceda cuculoides
  • European Honey-buzzard Pernis apivorus
  • Bat Hawk
    Bat Hawk
    The Bat Hawk is a raptor found in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia to New Guinea. It is named for its diet, which consists mainly of bats. It requires open space in which to hunt, but will live anywhere from dense rainforest to semi-arid veld.-Description:The Bat Hawk is a slender, medium-sized...

     Macheiramphus alcinus
  • Black-shouldered Kite
    Black-shouldered Kite
    The Black-shouldered Kite or Australian Black-shouldered Kite is a small raptor found in open habitat throughout Australia and resembles similar species found in Eurasia and North America, which have in the past also been named as Black-shouldered Kites...

     Elanus caeruleus
  • Scissor-tailed Kite Chelictinia riocourii
  • Black Kite
    Black Kite
    The Black Kite is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors. Unlike others of the group, they are opportunistic hunters and are more likely to scavenge. They spend a lot of time soaring and gliding in thermals in search of food. Their...

     Milvus migrans
  • African Fish-Eagle Haliaeetus vocifer
  • Palm-nut Vulture
    Palm-nut Vulture
    The Palm-nut Vulture or Vulturine Fish Eagle, is a very large bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers, vultures, and eagles. It is the only member of the genus Gypohierax...

     Gypohierax angolensis
  • Hooded Vulture
    Hooded Vulture
    The Hooded Vulture is an Old World vulture in the order Accipitriformes, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is the only member of the genus Necrosyrtes....

     Necrosyrtes monachus
  • White-backed Vulture
    White-backed Vulture
    The White-backed Vulture is an Old World vulture in the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is closely related to the European Griffon Vulture, G. fulvus...

     Gyps africanus
  • Rueppell's Griffon Gyps rueppellii
  • Lappet-faced Vulture
    Lappet-faced Vulture
    The Lappet-faced Vulture or Nubian Vulture is a mostly African Old World vulture belonging to the bird order Accipitriformes, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is the only member of the genus Torgos. A distinct subspecies T. t. negevensis occurs in the Sinai, the Negev...

     Torgos tracheliotus
  • White-headed Vulture
    White-headed Vulture
    The White-headed Vulture is an Old World vulture endemic to Africa. It has a pink beak and a white crest, and the featherless areas on its head are pale. Its has dark brown upper parts and black tail feathers. The feathers on its lower parts and legs are white. It has a wing span of 2 m and spends...

     Trigonoceps occipitalis
  • Beaudouin's Snake-Eagle
    Beaudouin's Snake-eagle
    Beaudouin's Snake Eagle is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family.-References:*...

     Circaetus beaudouini
  • Brown Snake-Eagle
    Brown Snake-eagle
    The Brown Snake Eagle is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family. It is found throughout sub-Saharan Africa....

     Circaetus cinereus
  • Banded Snake-Eagle Circaetus cinerascens
  • Bateleur
    Bateleur
    The Bateleur is a medium-sized eagle in the bird family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as buzzards, kites and harriers...

     Terathopius ecaudatus
  • Western Marsh-Harrier Circus aeruginosus
  • Pallid Harrier
    Pallid Harrier
    The Pale or Pallid Harrier is a migratory bird of prey of the harrier family. It breeds in southern parts of eastern Europe and central Asia and winters mainly in India and southeast Asia...

     Circus macrourus
  • Montagu's Harrier
    Montagu's Harrier
    The Montagu's Harrier is a migratory bird of prey of the harrier family. Its common name commemorates the British naturalist George Montagu.-Plumage:...

     Circus pygargus
  • African Harrier-Hawk Polyboroides typus
  • Lizard Buzzard
    Lizard Buzzard
    The Lizard Buzzard is a bird of prey. It belongs to the family Accipitridae. Despite its name, it may be more closely related to the Accipiter hawks than the Buteo buzzards....

     Kaupifalco monogrammicus
  • Dark Chanting-Goshawk Melierax metabates
  • Gabar Goshawk
    Gabar Goshawk
    The Gabar Goshawk is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana,...

     Micronisus gabar
  • Red-chested Goshawk
    Red-chested Goshawk
    The Red-chested Goshawk is a hawk of West Africa. It is often considered conspecific with the African Goshawk.-Range and habitat:...

     Accipiter toussenelii
  • Shikra
    Shikra
    The Shikra is a small bird of prey in the family Accipitridae found widely distributed in Asia and Africa where it is also called the Little Banded Goshawk. The African forms may represent a separate species but have usually been considered as subspecies of the Shikra...

     Accipiter badius
  • Red-thighed Sparrowhawk
    Red-thighed Sparrowhawk
    The Red-thighed Sparrowhawk is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria,...

     Accipiter erythropus
  • Ovampo Sparrowhawk
    Ovampo Sparrowhawk
    The Ovambo or Ovampo Sparrowhawk is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia,...

     Accipiter ovampensis
  • Black Goshawk
    Black Goshawk
    The Black Sparrowhawk , sometimes known as the Black Goshawk or Great Sparrowhawk, is the largest African member of the genus Accipiter . Downloaded on 06 October 2011....

     Accipiter melanoleucus
  • Grasshopper Buzzard
    Grasshopper Buzzard
    The Grasshopper Buzzard is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family. It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali,...

     Butastur rufipennis
  • Red-necked Buzzard
    Red-necked Buzzard
    The Red-necked Buzzard is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Buteo auguralis
  • Tawny Eagle
    Tawny Eagle
    The Tawny Eagle is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. It was once considered to be closely related to the migratory Steppe Eagle, Aquila nipalensis, and the two forms have previously been treated as conspecific...

     Aquila rapax
  • Wahlberg's Eagle
    Wahlberg's Eagle
    The Wahlberg's Eagle is a bird of prey. It is about 55–60 cm in length and has a wingspan of 130–160 cm. Body mass is 1.04 kg for males and 1.3 kg for females on average. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae.Wahlberg's Eagle breeds in most of Africa south of...

     Aquila wahlbergi
  • African Hawk-Eagle Aquila spilogaster
  • Booted Eagle
    Booted Eagle
    The Booted Eagle is a medium-sized bird of prey. It is about in length and has a wingspan of . Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae....

     Aquila pennatus
  • Ayres's Hawk-Eagle
    Ayres's Hawk-eagle
    Ayres's Hawk-Eagle is a species of bird of prey in the Accipitridae family. It is found throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. Its name honours South African ornithologist Thomas Ayres.-References:...

     Aquila ayresii
  • Martial Eagle
    Martial Eagle
    The Martial Eagle , is a very large eagle found in open and semi-open habitats of sub-Saharan Africa. It is the only member of the genus Polemaetus.-Description:...

     Polemaetus bellicosus
  • Long-crested Eagle
    Long-crested Eagle
    The Long-crested Eagle is a bird of prey. Like all eagles, it is in the family Accipitridae. It is currently placed in a monotypic genus Lophaetus....

     Lophaetus occipitalis
  • Cassin's Hawk-Eagle
    Cassin's Hawk-eagle
    The Cassin's Hawk-eagle is a bird of prey in the Accipitridae family. It is found in western, central and eastern Africa. They prefer dense, humid forests....

     Spizaetus africanus
  • Crowned Hawk-Eagle Stephanoaetus coronatus

Secretary-bird

Order: Falconiformes
Falconiformes
The order Falconiformes is a group of about 290 species of birds that comprises the diurnal birds of prey. Raptor classification is difficult and the order is treated in several ways.- Classification problems :...

. Family: Sagittariidae

The Secretary-bird is a bird of prey in the order Falconiformes
Falconiformes
The order Falconiformes is a group of about 290 species of birds that comprises the diurnal birds of prey. Raptor classification is difficult and the order is treated in several ways.- Classification problems :...

 but is easily distinguished from other raptors by it long crane-like legs.
  • Secretary-bird Sagittarius serpentarius

Caracaras and falcons

Order: Falconiformes
Falconiformes
The order Falconiformes is a group of about 290 species of birds that comprises the diurnal birds of prey. Raptor classification is difficult and the order is treated in several ways.- Classification problems :...

. Family: Falconidae
Falconidae
The falcons and caracaras are around 60 species of diurnal birds of prey that make up the family Falconidae. The family is divided into two subfamiles, Polyborinae, which includes the caracaras and forest falcons, and Falconinae, the falcons, kestrels and falconets.-Description:Falcons and...



Falconidae is a family of diurnal birds of prey. They differ from hawks, eagles, and kites in that they kill with their beaks instead of their feet. There are 62 species worldwide and 9 species which occur in Benin.
  • Lesser Kestrel
    Lesser Kestrel
    The Lesser Kestrel is a small falcon. This species breeds from the Mediterranean across southern central Asia to China and Mongolia. It is a summer migrant, wintering in Africa and Pakistan and sometimes even to India and Iraq. It is rare north of its breeding range, and declining in its European...

     Falco naumanni
  • Eurasian Kestrel Falco tinnunculus
  • Fox Kestrel
    Fox Kestrel
    The Fox Kestrel is a bird of prey belonging to the falcon family Falconidae. It is found in arid, open country in Africa.-Description:...

     Falco alopex
  • Gray Kestrel Falco ardosiaceus
  • Red-necked Falcon
    Red-necked Falcon
    The Red-necked Falcon or Red-headed Merlin is a bird of prey in the falcon family. This bird is a widespread resident in India and adjacent regions as well as sub-Saharan Africa. It is sometimes called Turumti locally....

     Falco chicquera
  • Eurasian Hobby
    Eurasian Hobby
    The Eurasian Hobby , or just simply Hobby, is a small slim falcon. It belongs to a rather close-knit group of similar falcons often considered a subgenus Hypotriorchis.-Description:...

     Falco subbuteo
  • African Hobby
    African Hobby
    The African Hobby is a species of bird of prey in the Falconidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Falco cuvierii
  • Lanner Falcon
    Lanner Falcon
    The Lanner Falcon is a large bird of prey that breeds in Africa, southeast Europe and just into Asia. It is mainly resident, but some birds disperse more widely after the breeding season.-Description:...

     Falco biarmicus
  • Peregrine Falcon
    Peregrine Falcon
    The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...

     Falco peregrinus

Pheasants and partridges

Order: Galliformes
Galliformes
Galliformes are an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding domestic or game bird, containing turkey, grouse, chicken, New and Old World Quail, ptarmigan, partridge, pheasant, and the Cracidae. Common names are gamefowl or gamebirds, landfowl, gallinaceous birds or galliforms...

. Family: Phasianidae
Phasianidae
The Phasianidae is a family of birds which consists of the pheasants and partridges, including the junglefowl , Old World Quail, francolins, monals and peafowl. The family is a large one, and is occasionally broken up into two subfamilies, the Phasianinae, and the Perdicinae...



The Phasianidae are a family of terrestrial birds which consists of quail
Quail
Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally considered in the order Galliformes. Old World quail are found in the family Phasianidae, while New World quail are found in the family Odontophoridae...

s, partridge
Partridge
Partridges are birds in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are a non-migratory Old World group.These are medium-sized birds, intermediate between the larger pheasants and the smaller quails. Partridges are native to Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East...

s, snowcock
Snowcock
The snowcocks are a group of bird species in the genus Tetraogallus of the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are ground-nesting birds which breed in the mountain ranges of southern Eurasia from the Caucasus to the Himalayas and western China. The Himalayan Snowcock has been introduced...

s, francolin
Francolin
Francolins are birds that traditionally have been placed in the genus Francolinus, but now commonly are divided into multiple genera , although some of the major taxonomic listing sources have yet to divide them. They are members of the pheasant family, Phasianidae...

s, spurfowls, tragopan
Tragopan
Tragopan is a genus of bird in the family Phasianidae. These birds are commonly called "horny pheasants" because of two brightly-colored, fleshy horns on their heads that they can erect during courtship displays...

s, monal
Monal
A Monal is a bird of genus Lophophorus of the Pheasant family, Phasianidae. There are three species and several sub-species within the genus Lophophorus:* Himalayan Monal Lophophorus impejanus* Sclater's Monal Lophophorus sclateri...

s, pheasant
Pheasant
Pheasants refer to some members of the Phasianinae subfamily of Phasianidae in the order Galliformes.Pheasants are characterised by strong sexual dimorphism, males being highly ornate with bright colours and adornments such as wattles and long tails. Males are usually larger than females and have...

s, peafowl
Peafowl
Peafowl are two Asiatic species of flying birds in the genus Pavo of the pheasant family, Phasianidae, best known for the male's extravagant eye-spotted tail, which it displays as part of courtship. The male is called a peacock, the female a peahen, and the offspring peachicks. The adult female...

s and jungle fowls. In general, they are plump (although they may vary in size) and have broad, relatively short wings. There are 156 species worldwide and 5 species which occur in Benin.
  • White-throated Francolin
    White-throated Francolin
    The White-throated Francolin is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Togo, and Zambia.These birds are found in tropical & sub-tropical...

     Francolinus albogularis
  • Ahanta Francolin
    Ahanta Francolin
    The Ahanta Francolin is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in Benin, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo....

     Francolinus ahantensis
  • Double-spurred Francolin
    Double-spurred Francolin
    The Double-spurred Francolin, Pternistis bicalcaratus, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds....

     Francolinus bicalcaratus
  • Blue Quail
    Blue Quail
    The Blue Quail or African Blue Quail, is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.-Geographic Range:The species ranges from Sierra Leone to Ethiopia, and south to Zambia, and eastward to Kenya, and is migratory...

     Coturnix adansonii
  • Stone Partridge
    Stone Partridge
    The Stone Partridge, Ptilopachus petrosus, is a bird of the pheasant family. This largely brown bird, which commonly holds its tail raised, is found in scrubland and lightly wooded habitats, often near rocks, from Kenya and Ethiopia to Gambia...

     Ptilopachus petrosus

Guineafowl

Order: Galliformes
Galliformes
Galliformes are an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding domestic or game bird, containing turkey, grouse, chicken, New and Old World Quail, ptarmigan, partridge, pheasant, and the Cracidae. Common names are gamefowl or gamebirds, landfowl, gallinaceous birds or galliforms...

. Family: Numididae

Guineafowl are a group of African, seed-eating, ground-nesting birds that resemble partridges, but with featherless heads and spangled grey plumage. There are 6 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Helmeted Guineafowl
    Helmeted Guineafowl
    The Helmeted Guineafowl is the best known of the guineafowl bird family, Numididae, and the only member of the genus Numida...

     Numida meleagris
  • Crested Guineafowl
    Crested Guineafowl
    The Crested Guineafowl is a member of the Numididae, the guineafowl bird family. It is found in open forest, woodland and forest-savanna mosaics in sub-Saharan Africa. It has a total length of approximately 50 cm and weighs . The plumage is overall blackish with dense white spots...

     Guttera pucherani

Buttonquails

Order: Gruiformes
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like"....

. Family: Turnicidae

The buttonquails are small, drab, running birds which resemble the true quails.The female is the brighter of the sexes, and initiates courtship. The male incubates the eggs and tends the young. There are 16 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Small Buttonquail
    Small Buttonquail
    The Kurrichane Buttonquail, Small Buttonquail, Common Buttonquail, or Andalusian Hemipode, Turnix sylvaticus, is a buttonquail, one of a small family of birds which resemble, but are unrelated to, the true quails...

     Turnix sylvatica
  • Quail-plover Ortyxelos meiffrenii

Cranes

Order: Gruiformes
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like"....

. Family: Gruidae

Cranes are large, long-legged and long-necked birds. Unlike the similar-looking but unrelated herons, cranes fly with necks outstretched, not pulled back. Most have elaborate and noisy courting displays or "dances". There are 15 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Black Crowned-Crane Balearica pavonina

Rails, crakes, gallinules, and coots

Order: Gruiformes
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like"....

. Family: Rallidae
Rallidae
The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small to medium-sized birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and the family also includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules...



Rallidae is a large family of small to medium-sized birds which includes the rails, crakes, coot
Coot
Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family Rallidae. They constitute the genus Fulica. Coots have predominantly black plumage, and, unlike many of the rails, they are usually easy to see, often swimming in open water...

s, and gallinule
Rallidae
The rails, or Rallidae, are a large cosmopolitan family of small to medium-sized birds. The family exhibits considerable diversity and the family also includes the crakes, coots, and gallinules...

s. Typically they inhabit dense vegetation in damp environments near lakes, swamps, or rivers. In general they are shy and secretive birds, difficult to observe. Most species have strong legs, and have long toes which are well adapted to soft, uneven surfaces. They tend to have short, rounded wings and be weak fliers. There are 143 species worldwide and 6 species which occur in Benin.
  • African Crake
    African Crake
    The African Crake is a bird in the rail family that breeds in most of sub-Saharan Africa away from the arid south and southwest. It is seasonally common in most of its range other than the rainforests and areas that have low annual rainfall...

     Crecopsis egregia
  • Black Crake
    Black Crake
    The Black Crake, Amaurornis flavirostra, is a waterbird in the rail and crake family Rallidae. It breeds in most of sub-Saharan Africa except in very arid areas. It undertakes some seasonal movements in those parts of its range which are subject to drought...

     Amaurornis flavirostris
  • Baillon's Crake
    Baillon's Crake
    The Baillon's Crake is a very small waterbird of the family Rallidae.-Distribution:Their breeding habitat is sedge beds in Europe, mainly in the east, and across Asia. They used to breed in Great Britain up to the mid-19th century, but the western European population declined through drainage....

     Porzana pusilla
  • Allen's Gallinule
    Allen's Gallinule
    The Allen's Gallinule , formerly known as the Lesser Gallinule is a small waterbird of the family Rallidae. Its former binomial name is Porphyrula alleni....

     Porphyrio alleni
  • Common Moorhen
    Common Moorhen
    The Common Moorhen is a bird in the Rallidae family with an almost worldwide distribution. The North and South American Committees of the AOU and the IOC have voted on or before July 2011 to split the American forms into a new species Common Gallinule, however, no other committee has voted to...

     Gallinula chloropus
  • Lesser Moorhen
    Lesser Moorhen
    The Lesser Moorhen is a species of bird in the Rallidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana,...

     Gallinula angulata

Sungrebe and Finfoots

Order: Gruiformes
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like"....

. Family: Heliornithidae
Heliornithidae
The Heliornithidae are a small family of tropical birds with webbed lobes on their feet like those of grebes and coots. The family overall are known as finfoots, although one species is known as a Sungrebe. The family is composed of three species in three genera.-Description:Finfoots resemble...



The Heliornithidae are small family of tropical birds with webbed lobes on their feet similar to those of grebes and coots. There are 3 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • African Finfoot
    African Finfoot
    The African Finfoot is an aquatic bird inhabiting the rivers and lakes of western, central, and southern Africa.-Description:...

     Podica senegalensis

Bustards

Order: Gruiformes
Gruiformes
The Gruiformes are an order containing a considerable number of living and extinct bird families, with a widespread geographical diversity. Gruiform means "crane-like"....

. Family: Otididae

Bustards are large terrestrial birds mainly associated with dry open country and steppes in the Old World
Old World
The Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....

. They are omnivorous and nest on the ground. They walk steadily on strong legs and big toes, pecking for food as they go. They have long broad wings with "fingered" wingtips, and striking patterns in flight. Many have interesting mating displays. There are 26 species worldwide and 3 species which occur in Benin.
  • Stanley Bustard
    Stanley Bustard
    Denham's Bustard, Stanley Bustard or Stanley's Bustard, Neotis denhami, is a large bird in the bustard family. It breeds in much of sub-Saharan Africa. It is a species of open ground, including agricultural land, grassland, flood-plains and burnt fynbos...

     Neotis denhami
  • White-bellied Bustard
    White-bellied Bustard
    The White-bellied Bustard or White-bellied Korhaan is an African species of bustard.-Range and habitat:...

     Eupodotis senegalensis
  • Black-bellied Bustard
    Black-bellied Bustard
    The Black-bellied Bustard is an African ground-dwelling bird in the bustard family. Some authorities place it in the genus Eupodotis.-Description:...

     Lissotis melanogaster

Jacanas

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Jacanidae

The jacana
Jacana
The jaçanas are a group of tropical waders in the family Jacanidae. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone. See Etymology below for pronunciation....

s are a group of tropical waders in the family Jacanidae. They are found worldwide in the Tropics. 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. There 8 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • African Jacana
    African Jacana
    The African Jacana is a jacana. The jacanas are a group of waders in the family Jacanidae, which 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. They are found worldwide within the tropical...

     Actophilornis africanus

Painted snipe

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Rostratulidae

Painted snipe are short-legged, long-billed birds similar in shape to the true snipes, but more brightly coloured. There are 2 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Greater Painted-snipe Rostratula benghalensis

Oystercatchers

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Haematopodidae

The oystercatcher
Oystercatcher
The oystercatchers are a group of waders; they form the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, Haematopus. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia...

s are large and noisy plover
Plover
Plovers are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. There are about 40 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subfamily, Vanellinae, comprises another 20-odd species.Plovers are found throughout...

-like birds, with strong bills used for smashing or prising open molluscs. There are 11 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Eurasian Oystercatcher
    Eurasian Oystercatcher
    The Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus, also known as the Common Pied Oystercatcher, or just Oystercatcher, is a wader in the oystercatcher bird family Haematopodidae. It is the most widespread of the oystercatchers, with three races breeding in western Europe, central Eurasia,...

     Haematopus ostralegus

Avocets and stilts

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Recurvirostridae
Recurvirostridae
Recurvirostridae is a family of birds in the wader suborder Charadrii. It contains two distinct groups of birds, the avocets and the stilts .-Description and diet:...



Recurvirostridae is a family of large wading birds, which includes the avocet
Avocet
The four species of Avocets are a genus, Recurvirostra, of waders in the same avian family as the stilts.Avocets have long legs and long, thin, upcurved bills which they sweep from side to side when feeding in the brackish or saline wetlands they prefer...

s and the stilt
Stilt
Stilt is a common name for several species of birds in the family Recurvirostridae, which also includes those known as avocets. They are found in brackish or saline wetlands in warm or hot climates....

s. The avocets have long legs and long up-curved bills. The stilts have extremely long legs and long, thin, straight bills. There are 9 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Black-winged Stilt
    Black-winged Stilt
    The Black-winged Stilt or Common Stilt is a widely distributed very long-legged wader in the avocet and stilt family . Opinions differ as to whether the birds treated under the scientific name H. himantopus ought to be treated as a single species and if not, how many species to recognize...

     Himantopus himantopus
  • Pied Avocet
    Pied Avocet
    The Pied Avocet, Recurvirostra avosetta, is a large black and white wader in the avocet and stilt family, Recurvirostridae. They breed in temperate Europe and western and Central Asia. It is a migratory species and most winter in Africa or southern Asia...

     Recurvirostra avosetta

Thick-knees

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Burhinidae

The thick-knees are a group of largely tropical waders in the family Burhinidae. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone, with some species also breeding in temperate Europe and Australia. They are medium to large waders with strong black or yellow black bills, large yellow eyes and cryptic plumage. Despite being classed as waders, most species have a preference for arid or semi-arid habitats. There are 9 species worldwide and 3 species which occur in Benin.
  • Water Thick-knee
    Water Thick-knee
    The Water Thick-knee is a species of bird in the Burhinidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia,...

     Burhinus vermiculatus
  • Senegal Thick-knee
    Senegal Thick-knee
    The Senegal Thick-knee, Burhinus senegalensis, is a Stone-curlew, a group of waders in the family Burhinidae.It is a resident breeder in Africa between the Sahara and the equator, and in the Nile valley....

     Burhinus senegalensis
  • Spotted Thick-knee
    Spotted Thick-knee
    The Spotted Thick-knee, Burhinus capensis, also known as the Spotted Dikkop or Cape Thick-knee, is a stone-curlew in the family Burhinidae.- Description :...

     Burhinus capensis

Pratincoles and coursers

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Glareolidae
Glareolidae
Glareolidae is a family of birds in the wader suborder Charadri. It contains two distinct groups, the pratincoles and the coursers. The coursers include the atypical Egyptian Plover, Pluvianus aegyptius, which has sometimes been placed in its own family...



Glareolidae is a family of wading birds comprising the pratincole
Pratincole
The Pratincoles or Greywaders are a group of birds which together with the coursers and Egyptian Plover make up the family Glareolidae. They have short legs, very long pointed wings and long forked tails....

s, which have short legs, long pointed wings and long forked tails, and the courser
Courser
The Coursers are a group of birds which together with the pratincoles make up the family Glareolidae. They have long legs, short wings and long pointed bills which curve downwards...

s, which have long legs, short wings and long pointed bills which curve downwards. There are 17 species worldwide and 6 species which occur in Benin.
  • Egyptian Plover
    Egyptian Plover
    The Egyptian Plover is a wader, the only member of the genus Pluvianus. Formerly placed in the pratincole and courser family, Glareolidae, it is now regarded as the sole member of its own monotypic family Pluvianidae....

     Pluvianus aegyptius
  • Temminck's Courser
    Temminck's Courser
    Temminck's Courser, Cursorius temminckii, is a bird in the pratincole and courser family, Glareolidae. It is a wader which lives in sub-Saharan Africa....

     Cursorius temminckii
  • Bronze-winged Courser
    Bronze-winged Courser
    The Bronze-winged Courser or Violet-tipped Courser is a species of bird in the Glareolidae family. It is found throughout Sub-Saharan Africa.-References:...

     Rhinoptilus chalcopterus
  • Collared Pratincole
    Collared Pratincole
    The Collared Pratincole or Common Pratincole, Glareola pratincola, is a wader in the pratincole family, Glareolidae.Pratincoles are unusual among waders in that they typically hunt their insect prey on the wing like swallows, although they can also feed on the ground.The Collared Pratincole is a...

     Glareola pratincola
  • Rock Pratincole
    Rock Pratincole
    The Rock Pratincole is a species of bird in the Glareolidae family.-Distribution and habitat:It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Glareola nuchalis
  • Gray Pratincole Glareola cinerea

Plovers and lapwings

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Charadriidae
Charadriidae
The bird family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings, about 64 to 66 species in all.- Morphology :They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings, but most species of lapwing may have more rounded wings...



The family Charadriidae includes the plover
Plover
Plovers are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. There are about 40 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subfamily, Vanellinae, comprises another 20-odd species.Plovers are found throughout...

s, dotterels, and lapwing
Lapwing
Vanellinae are any of various crested plovers, family Charadriidae, noted for its slow, irregular wingbeat in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. Its length is 10-16 inches. They are a subfamily of medium-sized wading birds which also includes the plovers and dotterels. The Vanellinae are...

s. They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings. They are found in open country worldwide, mostly in habitats near water, although there are some exceptions. There are 66 species worldwide and 13 species which occur in Benin.
  • Spur-winged Plover
    Spur-winged Plover
    The Spur-winged Lapwing or Spur-winged Plover is a lapwing species, one of a group of largish waders in the family Charadriidae....

     Vanellus spinosus
  • Black-headed Lapwing
    Black-headed Lapwing
    The Black-headed Plover or Black-headed Lapwing is a large lapwing, a group of largish waders in the family Charadriidae. It is a resident breeder across sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to Ethiopia, although it has seasonal movements. It lays two or three eggs on a ground scrape.These are...

     Vanellus tectus
  • White-headed Lapwing Vanellus albiceps
  • Senegal Lapwing
    Senegal Lapwing
    The Senegal Lapwing or Lesser Black-winged Lapwing is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family.It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria,...

     Vanellus lugubris
  • Wattled Lapwing Vanellus senegallus
  • Brown-chested Lapwing
    Brown-chested Lapwing
    The Brown-chested Lapwing is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family.It is found in Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritania, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, and Zambia.It is a carnivorous bird...

     Vanellus superciliosus
  • Black-bellied Plover Pluvialis squatarola
  • Common Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula
  • Little Ringed Plover
    Little Ringed Plover
    The Little Ringed Plover is a small plover. Adults have a grey-brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with one black neckband. They have a brown cap, a white forehead, a black mask around the eyes with white above and a short dark bill...

     Charadrius dubius
  • Kittlitz's Plover
    Kittlitz's Plover
    The Kittlitz’s Plover is a small plover found in much of Sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar, and the Nile delta. Some birds, especially in coastal areas, are resident, other populations are migratory or nomadic.-Description:...

     Charadrius pecuarius
  • Forbes's Plover
    Forbes's Plover
    The Forbes’s Plover or Forbes’s Banded Plover, Charadrius forbesi, is a small wader. This plover is resident in much of west Africa, mainly on inland rivers, pools and lakes. Its nest is a scrape lined with small pebbles in rocky uplands. After breeding in the wet season, this bird moves to open...

     Charadrius forbesi
  • White-fronted Plover
    White-fronted Plover
    The White-fronted Plover or White-fronted Sandplover, Charadrius marginatus, is a small wader. This plover is resident in much of Africa south of the Sahara on rocky, sandy or muddy coasts and large inland rivers and lakes....

     Charadrius marginatus
  • Snowy Plover
    Snowy Plover
    The Snowy Plover is a small wader in the plover bird family. It breeds in Ecuador, Peru, Chile, the southern and western USA and the Caribbean...

     Charadrius alexandrinus

Sandpipers and allies

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Scolopacidae
Scolopacidae
The sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders or shorebirds. They include many species called sandpipers, as well as those called by names such as curlew and snipe. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil...



The Scolopacidae are a large diverse family of small to medium sized shorebirds including the sandpipers, curlew
Curlew
The curlews , genus Numenius, are a group of eight species of birds, characterised by long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. They are one of the most ancient lineages of scolopacid waders, together with the godwits which look similar but have straight bills...

s, godwit
Godwit
The godwits are a group of large, long-billed, long-legged and strongly migratory wading birds of the genus Limosa. They form large flocks on coasts and estuaries in winter....

s, shanks
Tringa
Tringa is a genus of waders, containing the shanks and tattlers. They are mainly freshwater birds, often with brightly coloured legs as reflected in the English names of six species, as well as the specific names of two of these and the Green Sandpiper. They are typically associated with northern...

, tattler
Tattler (bird)
The tattlers are the two very similar bird species in the shorebird genus Tringa. They formerly had their own genus, Heteroscelus. The old genus name means "different leg" in Greek, referring to the leg scales that differentiate the tattlers from their close relatives, the shanks.The species are:*...

s, woodcock
Woodcock
The woodcocks are a group of seven or eight very similar living species of wading birds in the genus Scolopax. Only two woodcocks are widespread, the others being localized island endemics. Most are found in the Northern Hemisphere but a few range into Wallacea...

s, snipe
Snipe
A snipe is any of about 25 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill and crypsis plumage. The Gallinago snipes have a nearly worldwide distribution, the Lymnocryptes Jack Snipe is restricted to Asia and Europe and the...

s, dowitcher
Dowitcher
The three dowitchers are medium-sized long-billed wading birds. They resemble godwits in body and bill shape, and the reddish underparts in summer, but are much shorter legged, more like snipe to which they are also somewhat closer related...

s and phalarope
Phalarope
A phalarope or wadepiper is any of three living species of slender-necked shorebirds in the genus Phalaropus of the bird family Scolopacidae. They are close relatives of the shanks and tattlers, the Actitis and Terek Sandpipers, and also of the turnstones and calidrids...

s. The majority of species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil. Variation in length of legs and bills enable different species to feed in the same habitat, particularly on the coast, without direct competition for food. There are 89 species worldwide and 22 species which occur in Benin.
  • Jack Snipe
    Jack Snipe
    The Jack Snipe, Lymnocryptes minimus is a small stocky wader. It is the smallest snipe, and the only member of the genus Lymnocryptes...

     Lymnocryptes minimus
  • Great Snipe
    Great Snipe
    The Great Snipe, Gallinago media is a small stocky wader in the genus Gallinago.This bird's breeding habitat is marshes and wet meadows with short vegetation in north-eastern Europe including north-western Russia. Great Snipes are migratory, wintering in Africa...

     Gallinago media
  • Common Snipe
    Common Snipe
    The Common Snipe is a small, stocky wader native to the Old World. The breeding habitat is marshes, bogs, tundra and wet meadows throughout northern Europe and northern Asia...

     Gallinago gallinago
  • Black-tailed Godwit
    Black-tailed Godwit
    The Black-tailed Godwit, Limosa limosa, is a large, long-legged, long-billed shorebird first described by Carolus Linnaeus in 1758. It is a member of the Limosa genus, the godwits...

     Limosa limosa
  • Bar-tailed Godwit
    Bar-tailed Godwit
    The Bar-tailed Godwit is a large wader in the family Scolopacidae, which breeds on Arctic coasts and tundra mainly in the Old World, and winters on coasts in temperate and tropical regions of the Old World...

     Limosa lapponica
  • Whimbrel
    Whimbrel
    The Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus, is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae. It is one of the mostwidespread of the curlews, breeding across much of subarctic North America, Europe and Asia as far south as Scotland....

     Numenius phaeopus
  • Eurasian Curlew
    Eurasian Curlew
    The Eurasian Curlew, Numenius arquata, is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across temperate Europe and Asia...

     Numenius arquata
  • Spotted Redshank
    Spotted Redshank
    The Spotted Redshank, Tringa erythropus, is a wader in the large bird family Scolopacidae. It breeds across northern Scandinavia and northern Asia and migrates south to the Mediterranean, the southern British Isles, France, tropical Africa, and tropical Asia for the winter...

     Tringa erythropus
  • Common Redshank
    Common Redshank
    The Common Redshank or simply Redshank is an Eurasian wader in the large family Scolopacidae.- Description and systematics :...

     Tringa totanus
  • Marsh Sandpiper
    Marsh Sandpiper
    The Marsh Sandpiper, Tringa stagnatilis, is a small wader. It is a rather small shank, and breeds in open grassy steppe and taiga wetlands from easternmost Europe to central Asia....

     Tringa stagnatilis
  • Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
  • Green Sandpiper
    Green Sandpiper
    The Green Sandpiper is a small wader of the Old World. It represents an ancient lineage of the genus Tringa; its only close living relative is the Solitary Sandpiper . They both have brown wings with little light dots and a delicate but contrasting neck and chest pattern...

     Tringa ochropus
  • Wood Sandpiper
    Wood Sandpiper
    The Wood Sandpiper, Tringa glareola, is a small wader. This Eurasian species is the smallest of the shanks, which are mid-sized long-legged waders of the family Scolopacidae.- Description and systematics :...

     Tringa glareola
  • Common Sandpiper
    Common Sandpiper
    The Common Sandpiper is a small Palearctic wader. This bird and its American sister species, the Spotted Sandpiper , make up the genus Actitis. They are parapatric and replace each other geographically; stray birds of either species may settle down with breeders of the other and hybridize...

     Actitis hypoleucos
  • Ruddy Turnstone
    Ruddy Turnstone
    The Ruddy Turnstone is a small wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus Arenaria. It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plover family Charadriidae...

     Arenaria interpres
  • Red Knot
    Red Knot
    The Red Knot, Calidris canutus , is a medium sized shorebird which breeds in tundra and the Arctic Cordillera in the far north of Canada, Europe, and Russia. It is a large member of the Calidris sandpipers, second only to the Great Knot...

     Calidris canutus
  • Sanderling
    Sanderling
    The Sanderling is a small wader. It is a circumpolar Arctic breeder, and is a long-distance migrant, wintering south to South America, South Europe, Africa, and Australia...

     Calidris alba
  • Little Stint
    Little Stint
    The Little Stint, Calidris minuta , is a very small wader. It breeds in arctic Europe and Asia, and is a long-distance migrant, wintering south to Africa and south Asia...

     Calidris minuta
  • Temminck's Stint
    Temminck's Stint
    Temminck's Stint, Calidris or Erolia temminckii, is a small wader.This stint's breeding habitat is bogs and marshes in the taiga of Arctic northern Europe and Asia. It will breed in southern Scandinavia and occasionally Scotland. It has a distinctive hovering display flight. It nests in a scrape...

     Calidris temminckii (A)
  • Curlew Sandpiper
    Curlew Sandpiper
    The Curlew Sandpiper is a small wader that breeds on the tundra of Arctic Siberia. It is strongly migratory, wintering mainly in Africa, but also in south and southeast Asia and in Australasia...

     Calidris ferruginea
  • Dunlin
    Dunlin
    The Dunlin, Calidris alpina, is a small wader, sometimes separated with the other "stints" in Erolia. It is a circumpolar breeder in Arctic or subarctic regions. Birds that breed in northern Europe and Asia are long-distance migrants, wintering south to Africa, southeast Asia and the Middle East...

     Calidris alpina (A)
  • Ruff Philomachus pugnax

Skuas and jaegers

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Stercorariidae

The family Stercorariidae are, in general, medium to large birds, typically with grey or brown plumage, often with white markings on the wings. They nest on the ground in temperate and arctic regions and are long-distance migrants. There are 7 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Pomarine Jaeger Stercorarius pomarinus
  • Parasitic Jaeger Stercorarius parasiticus

Gulls

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Laridae

Laridae is a family of medium to large birds seabirds and includes gull
Gull
Gulls are birds in the family Laridae. They are most closely related to the terns and only distantly related to auks, skimmers, and more distantly to the waders...

s and kittiwake
Kittiwake
The kittiwakes are two closely related seabird species in the gull family Laridae, the Black-legged Kittiwake and the Red-legged Kittiwake . The epithets "Black-legged" and "Red-legged" are used to distinguish the two species in North America, but in Europe, where R...

s. They are typically grey or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They have stout, longish bills and webbed feet. There are 55 species worldwide and 3 species which occur in Benin.
  • Lesser Black-backed Gull
    Lesser Black-backed Gull
    The Lesser Black-backed Gull is a large gull that breeds on the Atlantic coasts of Europe. It is migratory, wintering from the British Isles south to West Africa...

     Larus fuscus
  • Gray-headed Gull Larus cirrocephalus
  • Black-headed Gull
    Black-headed Gull
    The Black-headed Gull is a small gull which breeds in much of Europe and Asia, and also in coastal eastern Canada. Most of the population is migratory, wintering further south, but some birds in the milder westernmost areas of Europe are resident...

     Larus ridibundus

Terns

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Sternidae

Tern
Tern
Terns are seabirds in the family Sternidae, previously considered a subfamily of the gull family Laridae . They form a lineage with the gulls and skimmers which in turn is related to skuas and auks...

s are a group of generally general medium to large sea-birds typically with grey or white plumage, often with black markings on the head. Most terns hunt fish by diving but some pick insects off the surface of fresh water. Terns are generally long-lived birds, with several species now known to live in excess of 25 to 30 years. There are 44 species worldwide and 14 species which occur in Benin.
  • Gull-billed Tern
    Gull-billed Tern
    The Gull-billed Tern formerly Sterna nilotica , is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae...

     Sterna nilotica
  • Caspian Tern
    Caspian Tern
    The Caspian Tern is a species of tern, with a subcosmopolitan but scattered distribution. Despite its extensive range, it is monotypic of its genus, and has no subspecies accepted either...

     Sterna caspia
  • Sandwich Tern Sterna sandvicensis
  • Royal Tern
    Royal Tern
    The Royal Tern is a seabird in the tern family Sternidae. This bird has two distinctive subspecies. T. m. maximus breeds on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the southern USA and Mexico into the Caribbean. The slightly smaller T. m. albididorsalis breeds in coastal west Africa...

     Sterna maxima
  • Roseate Tern
    Roseate Tern
    The Roseate Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a number of geographical races, differing mainly in bill colour and minor plumage details....

     Sterna dougallii
  • Common Tern
    Common Tern
    The Common Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, breeding in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America. It is strongly migratory, wintering in coastal tropical and subtropical regions. It is sometimes...

     Sterna hirundo
  • Arctic Tern
    Arctic Tern
    The Arctic Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar breeding distribution covering the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and North America...

     Sterna paradisaea
  • Little Tern
    Little Tern
    The Little Tern, Sternula albifrons or Sterna albifrons, is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. It was formerly placed into the genus Sterna, which now is restricted to the large white terns . The former North American and Red Sea S. a...

     Sterna albifrons
  • Damara Tern
    Damara Tern
    The Damara Tern is a species of tern in the Sternidae family.It breeds in western South Africa, Namibia and Angola...

     Sterna balaenarum
  • Sooty Tern
    Sooty Tern
    The Sooty Tern, Onychoprion fuscatus , is a seabird of the tern family . It is a bird of the tropical oceans, breeding on islands throughout the equatorial zone. Colloquially, it is known as the Wideawake Tern or just wideawake...

     Sterna fuscata
  • Whiskered Tern
    Whiskered Tern
    The Whiskered Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a number of geographical races, differing mainly in size and minor plumage details....

     Chlidonias hybridus
  • White-winged Tern
    White-winged Tern
    The White-winged Tern, or White-winged Black Tern, Chlidonias leucopterus, is a small tern generally found in or near bodies of fresh water across from Southeastern Europe east to Australia....

     Chlidonias leucopterus
  • Black Tern
    Black Tern
    The Black Tern, Chlidonias niger, is a small tern generally found in or near inland water in Europe and North America. As its name suggests, it has predominantly dark plumage.- Description :...

     Chlidonias niger
  • Brown Noddy
    Brown Noddy
    The Brown Noddy or Common Noddy is a seabird from the tern family. The largest of the noddies, it can be told from the closely related Black Noddy by its larger size and plumage, which is dark brown rather than black...

     Anous stolidus

Skimmers

Order: Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic , some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick...

. Family: Rynchopidae

Skimmer
Skimmer
The Skimmers, Rynchopidae, are a small family of tern-like birds in the order Charadriiformes, which also includes the waders, gulls and auks. The family comprises three species found in South Asia, Africa, and the Americas....

s are a small family of tropical tern-like birds. They have an elongated lower mandible which they use to feed by flying low over the water surface and skimming the water for small fish. There are 3 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • African Skimmer
    African Skimmer
    The African Skimmer is a skimmer that lives in Senegal to northern Congo River and southern Nile Valley, southern Tanzania to the Zambezi Valley, and then to Natal and Angola.- Appearance :...

     Rynchops flavirostris

Sandgrouse

Order: Pterocliformes. Family: Pteroclidae

Sandgrouse have small, pigeon like heads and necks, but sturdy compact bodies. They have long pointed wings and sometimes tails and a fast direct flight. Flocks fly to watering holes at dawn and dusk. Their legs are feathered down to the toes. There are 16 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Four-banded Sandgrouse
    Four-banded Sandgrouse
    The Four-banded Sandgrouse is a medium-sized bird in the sandgrouse family.It breeds in a belt across Africa from Mauritania and Cameroon east to Sudan and Uganda. It is much more common in the west of its range...

     Pterocles quadricinctus

Pigeons and doves

Order: Columbiformes
Columbiformes
Columbiformes are an avian order that includes the very widespread and successful doves and pigeons, classified in the family Columbidae, and the extinct Dodo and the Rodrigues Solitaire, long classified as a second family Raphidae. 313 species, found worldwide, comprise the Columbiformes order....

. Family: Columbidae

Pigeons and dove
Dove
Pigeons and doves constitute the bird family Columbidae within the order Columbiformes, which include some 300 species of near passerines. In general terms "dove" and "pigeon" are used somewhat interchangeably...

s are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with a fleshy cere
Cère
The Cère is a long river in south-western France, left tributary of the Dordogne River. Its source is in the south-western Massif Central, near the mountain Plomb du Cantal...

. There are 308 species worldwide and 13 species which occur in Benin.
  • Speckled Pigeon
    Speckled Pigeon
    The Speckled Pigeon or Rock Pigeon is a pigeon which is a resident breeding bird in much of Africa south of the Sahara. It is a common and widespread species in open habitats over a good deal of its range, although there are sizeable gaps in its distribution.This species builds a large stick nest...

     Columba guinea
  • Western Bronze-naped Pigeon
    Western Bronze-naped Pigeon
    The Western Bronze-naped Pigeon is a species of bird in the Columbidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan,...

     Columba iriditorques
  • African Collared Dove
    African Collared Dove
    The African Collared Dove is a small dove found in Africa in the arid region south of the Sahara. Its range extends in a band right across the continent, and into southern Arabia. Although it lives in arid lands, it is found around water sources.This bird is typically around 26 cm in length...

     Streptopelia roseogrisea
  • African Mourning Dove
    African Mourning Dove
    The Mourning Collared Dove is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in Africa south of the Sahara. Despite its name, it is not a close relative of the North American Mourning Dove, Zenaida macroura. This species is common or abundant near water...

     Streptopelia decipiens
  • Red-eyed Dove
    Red-eyed Dove
    The Red-eyed Dove is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in Africa south of the Sahara. It is a common, if not abundant, species in most habitats other than desert....

     Streptopelia semitorquata
  • Vinaceous Dove
    Vinaceous Dove
    The Vinaceous Dove is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in a belt across Africa just south of the Sahara Desert....

     Streptopelia vinacea
  • Laughing Dove
    Laughing Dove
    The Laughing Dove is a small pigeon which is a resident breeding bird in the tropics in Africa south of the Sahara, the Middle East and southern Asia east to India. In India it is also known as the Little Brown Dove...

     Streptopelia senegalensis
  • Black-billed Wood Dove
    Black-billed Wood Dove
    The Black-billed Wood Dove is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in a belt across Africa just south of the Sahara Desert....

     Turtur abyssinicus
  • Blue-spotted Wood Dove Turtur afer
  • Tambourine Dove
    Tambourine Dove
    The Tambourine Dove is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in woodlands and other thick vegetation in Africa south of the Sahara Desert. Its range extends from Senegal east to Ethiopia and Kenya and southwards through eastern Africa to south-eastern South Africa, but it is absent...

     Turtur tympanistria
  • Namaqua Dove
    Namaqua Dove
    The Namaqua Dove is a small pigeon. It is the only species in the genus Oena. .-Description:The Namaqua Dove is a tiny sparrow-sized pigeon, typically 22 cm in length with a 28–33 cm wingspan, and weighing 40g. It has a very long black tapered tail, and the size and shape have led to...

     Oena capensis
  • Bruce's Green Pigeon Treron waalia
  • African Green Pigeon Treron calva

Parrots, macaws and allies

Order: Psittaciformes. Family: Psittacidae

Parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...

s are small to large birds with a characteristic curved beak shape. Their upper mandibles have slight mobility in the joint with the skull and the have a generally erect stance. All parrots are zygodactyl, having the four toes on each foot placed two at the front and two back. There are 335 species worldwide and 4 species which occur in Benin.
  • Rose-ringed Parakeet
    Rose-ringed Parakeet
    The Rose-ringed Parakeet , also known as the Ringnecked Parakeet, is a gregarious tropical parakeet species that has an extremely large range. Since the trend of the population appears to be increasing, the species has been evaluated as Least Concern by IUCN in 2009.Rose-ringed parakeets are...

     Psittacula krameri
  • Red-headed Lovebird
    Red-headed Lovebird
    The Red-headed Lovebird also known as the Red-faced Lovebird is a member of the genus Agapornis, a group commonly known as Lovebirds. Like other lovebirds it is native to Africa.-Description:...

     Agapornis pullarius
  • Gray Parrot Psittacus erithacus
  • Senegal Parrot
    Senegal Parrot
    The Senegal Parrot is a Poicephalus parrot which is a resident breeder across a wide range of west Africa. It makes migrations within west Africa, according to the availability of the fruit, seeds and blossoms which make up its diet. It is considered a farm pest in Africa, often feeding on...

     Poicephalus senegalus

Turacos

Order: Cuculiformes
Cuculiformes
The near passerine bird order Cuculiformes traditionally included three families as below:* Musophagidae - turacos and allies* Cuculidae - cuckoos, coucals, roadrunners and anis* Opisthocomidae - Hoatzin...

. Family: Musophagidae

The turacos, plantain eaters and go-away birds make up the bird family Musophagidae. They are medium-sized arboreal birds. The turacos and plantain eaters are brightly coloured birds, usually blue, green or purple. The go-away birds are mostly grey and white. There are 23 species worldwide and 4 species which occur in Benin.
  • Great Blue Turaco
    Great Blue Turaco
    The Great Blue Turaco is a turaco, a group of African near-passerines. It is not only the largest turaco but the largest species in the diverse Cuculiformes order . Generally, the Great Blue Turaco is in length with a mass of...

     Corythaeola cristata
  • Guinea Turaco Tauraco persa
  • Violet Turaco
    Violet Turaco
    The Violet Turaco is a large turaco, a group of African near-passerines. It is a resident breeder in the forests of tropical west Africa. It lays two eggs in a tree platform nest....

     Musophaga violacea
  • Western Plantain-eater Crinifer piscator

Cuckoos and anis

Order: Cuculiformes
Cuculiformes
The near passerine bird order Cuculiformes traditionally included three families as below:* Musophagidae - turacos and allies* Cuculidae - cuckoos, coucals, roadrunners and anis* Opisthocomidae - Hoatzin...

. Family: Cuculidae

The family Cuculidae includes cuckoo
Cuckoo
The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...

s, roadrunner
Geococcyx
The roadrunners are two species of bird in the genus Geococcyx of the cuckoo family, Cuculidae, native to North and Central America...

s and anis
Ani (bird)
The anis are the three species of near-passerine birds in the genus Crotophaga of the cuckoo family. They are essentially tropical New world birds, although the range of two species just reaches the United States...

. These birds are of variable size with slender bodies, long tails and strong legs. Unlike the cuckoo species of the Old World, North American cuckoos are not brood parasites. There are 138 species worldwide and 14 species which occur in Benin.
  • Pied Cuckoo
    Pied Cuckoo
    The Jacobin Cuckoo, Pied Cuckoo, or Pied Crested Cuckoo is a member of the cuckoo order of birds that is found in Africa and Asia. It is partially migratory and in India, it has been considered a harbinger of the Monsoon rains due to the timing of its arrival...

     Clamator jacobinus
  • Levaillant's Cuckoo
    Levaillant's Cuckoo
    Levaillant's Cuckoo, Clamator levaillantii is a cuckoo which is a resident breeding species in Africa south of the Sahara. It is found in bushy habitats. It is a brood parasite, using the nests of bulbuls and babblers...

     Clamator levaillantii
  • Great Spotted Cuckoo
    Great Spotted Cuckoo
    The Great Spotted Cuckoo is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals....

     Clamator glandarius
  • Red-chested Cuckoo
    Red-chested Cuckoo
    The Red-chested Cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family. It is a medium-sized bird , found in Africa south of the Sahara.-Distribution and habitat:...

     Cuculus solitarius
  • Black Cuckoo
    Black Cuckoo
    The Black Cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family. The species is distributed widely across sub-Saharan Africa...

     Cuculus clamosus
  • Common Cuckoo
    Common Cuckoo
    The Common Cuckoo is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, Cuculiformes, which includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals....

     Cuculus canorus
  • African Cuckoo
    African Cuckoo
    The African Cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana,...

     Cuculus gularis
  • Klaas's Cuckoo
    Klaas's Cuckoo
    The Klaas's Cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia,...

     Chrysococcyx klaas
  • African Emerald Cuckoo
    African Emerald Cuckoo
    The African Emerald Cuckoo is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Chrysococcyx cupreus
  • Dideric Cuckoo
    Dideric Cuckoo
    The Diederik Cuckoo , formerly Dideric Cuckoo or Didric Cuckoo, is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis, and the Hoatzin....

     Chrysococcyx caprius
  • Yellowbill
    Yellowbill
    The Yellowbill is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family. The species is sometimes known as the Green Malkoha. It is monotypic within the genus Ceuthmochares. There are three subspecies that display some differences in plumage colouration; all subspecies have a greyish belly, head and throat...

     Ceuthmochares aereus
  • Black Coucal
    Black Coucal
    The Black Coucal is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,...

     Centropus grillii
  • Blue-headed Coucal
    Blue-headed Coucal
    The Blue-headed Coucal is a species of cuckoo in the Cuculidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,...

     Centropus monachus
  • Senegal Coucal
    Senegal Coucal
    The Senegal Coucal, Centropus senegalensis, is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis, and the Hoatzin....

     Centropus senegalensis

Barn owls

Order: Strigiformes. Family: Tytonidae
Tytonidae
Barn-owls are one of the two families of owls, the other being the true owls, Strigidae. They are medium to large sized owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long, strong legs with powerful talons...



Barn owl
Barn Owl
The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as Common Barn Owl, to distinguish it from other species in the barn-owl family Tytonidae. These form one of two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical...

s are medium to large sized owls with large heads and characteristic heart-shaped faces. They have long strong legs with powerful talons. There are 16 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Barn Owl
    Barn Owl
    The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as Common Barn Owl, to distinguish it from other species in the barn-owl family Tytonidae. These form one of two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical...

     Tyto alba

Typical owls

Order: Strigiformes. Family: Strigidae

Typical owl
Typical owl
True owl or Typical owl are one of the two generally accepted families of Owls, the other being the barn owls . The Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy unites the Caprimulgiformes with the owl order; here, the typical owls are a subfamily Strigidae...

s are small to large solitary nocturnal birds of prey. They have large forward-facing eyes and ears, a hawk-like beak, and a conspicuous circle of feathers around each eye called a facial disk. There are 195 species worldwide and 9 species which occur in Benin.
  • African Scops-Owl Otus senegalensis
  • Northern White-faced Owl
    Northern White-faced Owl
    The Northern White-faced Owl is a species of owl in the Strigidae family. The Southern White-faced Owl was formerly included in this species and the two were known as the White-faced Scops-Owl....

     Ptilopsis leucotis
  • Grayish Eagle-Owl Bubo cinerascens
  • Verreaux's Eagle-Owl Bubo lacteus
  • Akun Eagle-Owl
    Akun Eagle-owl
    The Akun Eagle-Owl is a species of owl in the Strigidae family. It is found in forests in Central and Western Africa. At , it is the smallest eagle-owl in Africa and also the only African rainforest eagle-owl with yellow eyes....

     Bubo leucostictus
  • Pel's Fishing-Owl
    Pel's Fishing-owl
    The Pel's Fishing Owl is a large species of owl in the Strigidae family. It feeds nocturnally on fish and frogs snatched from the surface of lakes and rivers. The species prefers slow moving rivers with large overhanging trees to roost and forage from. It nests in hollows and the forks of large...

     Scotopelia peli
  • African Wood-Owl
    African Wood-owl
    The African Wood Owl, Strix woodfordii, is a medium-sized owl with dark eyes and no ear tufts. It is 30 to 36 cm long and weighs from 240 to 350 grams. It lives in Africa from Senegambia to Sudan and south to Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, and on the east coast to...

     Strix woodfordii
  • Pearl-spotted Owlet
    Pearl-spotted Owlet
    The Pearl-spotted Owlet is an owl which breeds in Africa south of the Sahara. This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping is the barn owls, Tytonidae.Pearl-spotted Owlet is a common and easily seen...

     Glaucidium perlatum
  • Marsh Owl
    Marsh Owl
    The Marsh Owl, Asio capensis, is a species of owl which is a mainly resident breeder in Africa and Madagascar.This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, Strigidae, which contains most species of owl...

     Asio capensis

Nightjars

Order: Caprimulgiformes
Caprimulgiformes
The Caprimulgiformes is an order of birds that includes a number of birds with global distribution . They are generally insectivorous and nocturnal...

. Family: Caprimulgidae

Nightjar
Nightjar
Nightjars are medium-sized nocturnal or crepuscular birds with long wings, short legs and very short bills. They are sometimes referred to as goatsuckers from the mistaken belief that they suck milk from goats . Some New World species are named as nighthawks...

s are medium-sized nocturnal birds with long wings, short legs and very short bills that usually nest on the ground. Most have small feet, of little use for walking, and long pointed wings. Their soft plumage is camouflaged to resemble bark or leaves. There are 86 species worldwide and 6 species which occur in Benin.
  • Fiery-necked Nightjar
    Fiery-necked Nightjar
    The Fiery-necked Nightjar is a species of nightjar in the Caprimulgidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...

     Caprimulgus pectoralis
  • Swamp Nightjar
    Swamp Nightjar
    The Swamp Nightjar is a species of nightjar in the Caprimulgidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone,...

     Caprimulgus natalensis
  • Plain Nightjar
    Plain Nightjar
    The Plain Nightjar is a species of nightjar in the Caprimulgidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger,...

     Caprimulgus inornatus
  • Freckled Nightjar
    Freckled Nightjar
    The Freckled Nightjar is a species of nightjar in the Caprimulgidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia,...

     Caprimulgus tristigma
  • Long-tailed Nightjar
    Long-tailed Nightjar
    The Long-tailed Nightjar is a species of nightjar in the Caprimulgidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,...

     Caprimulgus climacurus
  • Standard-winged Nightjar
    Standard-winged Nightjar
    The Standard-winged Nightjar, Macrodipteryx longipennis, is a bird in the nightjar family.-Distribution and habitat:It is a resident breeder in Africa from Senegal east to Ethiopia...

     Macrodipteryx longipennis

Swifts

Order: Apodiformes
Apodiformes
Traditionally, the bird order Apodiformes contained three living families: the swifts , the tree swifts , and the hummingbirds . In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this order is raised to a superorder Apodimorphae in which hummingbirds are separated as a new order, Trochiliformes...

. Family: Apodidae

Swift
Swift
The swifts are a family, Apodidae, of highly aerial birds. They are superficially similar to swallows, but are actually not closely related to passerine species at all; swifts are in the separate order Apodiformes, which they share with hummingbirds...

s are small aerial birds, spending the majority of their lives flying. These birds have very short legs and never settle voluntarily on the ground, perching instead only on vertical surfaces. Many swifts have long swept-back wings that resemble a crescent or a boomerang. There are 98 species worldwide and 7 species which occur in Benin.
  • Mottled Spinetail
    Mottled Spinetail
    The Mottled Spinetail is a species of swift in the Apodidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia,...

     Telacanthura ussheri
  • African Palm-Swift Cypsiurus parvus
  • Alpine Swift
    Alpine Swift
    The Alpine Swift syn. is a species of Swift. The bird is superficially similar to a large Barn Swallow or House Martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since swifts are in the order Apodiformes...

     Tachymarptis melba
  • Common Swift
    Common Swift
    The Common Swift is a small bird, superficially similar to the Barn Swallow or House Martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since swifts are in the separate order Apodiformes...

     Apus apus
  • Pallid Swift
    Pallid Swift
    The Pallid Swift is a small bird, superficially similar to a Barn Swallow or House Martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since the swifts are in the order Apodiformes...

     Apus pallidus
  • Little Swift
    Little Swift
    The Little Swift , is a small bird, superficially similar to a Barn Swallow or House Martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since swifts are in the order Apodiformes. The resemblances between the groups are due to convergent evolution reflecting similar life styles...

     Apus affinis
  • White-rumped Swift
    White-rumped Swift
    The White-rumped Swift is a small swift. Although this bird is superficially similar to a House Martin, it is completely unrelated to that passerine species. The resemblances between the swallows and swifts are due to convergent evolution reflecting similar life styles.Swifts have very short legs...

     Apus caffer

Mousebirds

Order: Coliiformes. Family: Coliidae

The mousebirds are slender greyish or brown birds with soft, hairlike body feathers and very long thin tails. They are arboreal and scurry through the leaves like rodents in search of berries, fruit and buds. They are acrobatic, and can feed upside down. All species have strong claws and reversible outer toes. They also have crests and stubby bills. There are 6 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Blue-naped Mousebird
    Blue-naped Mousebird
    The Blue-naped Mousebird, Urocolius macrourus, is a bird found in the drier parts of eastern Africa. It has also been known as the "Blue-naped Coly" under binomial Colius macrourus.- Physical characteristics :...

     Urocolius macrourus

Trogons and Quetzals

Order: Trogoniformes. Family: Trogonidae

The family Trogonidae includes trogons and quetzals. Found in tropical woodlands worldwide, they feed on insects and fruit, and their broad bills and weak legs reflect their diet and arboreal habits. Although their flight is fast, they are reluctant to fly any distance. Trogons have soft, often colourful, feathers with distinctive male and female plumage. There are 33 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Narina Trogon
    Narina Trogon
    The Narina Trogon, Apaloderma narina, is a medium-sized , largely green forest bird in the Trogonidae family, the most widespread and catholic in habitat choice of three Apaloderma trogons...

     Apaloderma narina

Kingfishers

Order: Coraciiformes
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Alcedinidae

Kingfishers are medium-sized birds with large heads, long pointed bills, short legs, and stubby tails. There are 93 species worldwide and 9 species which occur in Benin.
  • Shining-blue Kingfisher Alcedo quadribrachys
  • Malachite Kingfisher
    Malachite Kingfisher
    The Malachite Kingfisher is a river kingfisher which is widely distributed in Africa south of the Sahara. It is largely resident except for seasonal climate related movements....

     Alcedo cristata
  • African Pygmy-Kingfisher
    African Pygmy-Kingfisher
    The African Pygmy Kingfisher is a small insectivorous kingfisher found in the Afrotropics, mostly in woodland habitats. Some texts refer to this species as Ceyx pictus.-Description:...

     Ispidina picta
  • Gray-headed Kingfisher Halcyon leucocephala
  • Woodland Kingfisher
    Woodland Kingfisher
    The Woodland Kingfisher is a tree kingfisher.-Description:This is a medium-sized kingfisher, 20–23 cm in length. The adult has a bright blue back, wing panel and tail. Its head, neck and underparts are white, and its shoulders are black. The flight of the Woodland Kingfisher is rapid and direct...

     Halcyon senegalensis
  • Blue-breasted Kingfisher
    Blue-breasted Kingfisher
    The Blue-breasted Kingfisher, Halcyon malimbica, is a tree kingfisher which is widely distributed in tropical west Africa. This kingfisher is essentially resident, but retreats from drier savanna areas to wetter habitats in the dry season....

     Halcyon malimbica
  • Striped Kingfisher
    Striped Kingfisher
    The Striped Kingfisher is a species of bird in the tree kingfisher family. It was first described by Edward, Lord Stanley, in Salt's Voyage to Abyssinia in 1814 as "Chelicut Kingfisher" Alaudo Chelicuti....

     Halcyon chelicuti
  • Giant Kingfisher
    Giant Kingfisher
    The Giant Kingfisher is the largest kingfisher in Africa, where it is a resident breeding bird over most of the continent south of the Sahara Desert other than the arid southwest....

     Megaceryle maximus
  • Pied Kingfisher
    Pied Kingfisher
    The Pied Kingfisher is a water kingfisher and is found widely distributed across Africa and Asia. Their black and white plumage, crest and the habit of hovering over clear lakes and rivers before diving for fish makes it distinctive. Males have a double band across the breast while females have a...

     Ceryle rudis

Bee-eaters

Order: Coraciiformes
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Meropidae

The bee-eaters are a group of near passerine
Near passerine
Near passerine or higher land-bird assemblage are terms often given to arboreal birds or those most often believed to be related to the true passerines due to ecological similarities; the group corresponds to some extent with the Anomalogonatae of Garrod All near passerines are land birds...

 birds in the family Meropidae. Most species are found in Africa but others occur in southern Europe, Madagascar, Australia and New Guinea. They are characterised by richly coloured plumage, slender bodies and usually elongated central tail feathers. All are colorful and have long downturned bills and pointed wings, which give them a swallow-like appearance when seen from afar. There are 26 species worldwide and 9 species which occur in Benin.
  • Red-throated Bee-eater
    Red-throated Bee-eater
    The Red-throated Bee-eater is a species of bird in the Meropidae family.This species has a large range, and is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania,...

     Merops bulocki
  • Little Bee-eater
    Little Bee-eater
    The little Bee-eater, Merops pusillus is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It is resident in much of sub-Saharan Africa. It should not be confused with the Little Green Bee-eater, Merops orientalis. Migration is limited to seasonal movements depending on rainfall...

     Merops pusillus
  • Swallow-tailed Bee-eater
    Swallow-tailed Bee-eater
    The Swallow-tailed Bee-eater is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It breeds in savannah woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. It is partially migratory, moving in response to rainfall patterns....

     Merops hirundineus
  • White-throated Bee-eater
    White-throated Bee-eater
    The White-throated Bee-eater, Merops albicollis is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It breeds in semi-desert along the southern edge of the Sahara, Africa...

     Merops albicollis
  • Green Bee-eater Merops orientalis
  • Blue-cheeked Bee-eater
    Blue-cheeked Bee-eater
    The Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, Merops persicus, is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family, Meropidae. It breeds in Northern Africa, and the Middle East from eastern Turkey to Kazakhstan and India. It is generally strongly migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, although some populations breed...

     Merops persicus
  • European Bee-eater
    European Bee-eater
    The European Bee-eater, Merops apiaster, is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It breeds in southern Europe and in parts of north Africa and western Asia. It is strongly migratory, wintering in tropical Africa, India and Sri Lanka...

     Merops apiaster
  • Rosy Bee-eater
    Rosy Bee-eater
    The Rosy Bee-eater is a species of bird in the Meropidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria, and Togo....

     Merops malimbicus
  • Northern Carmine Bee-eater
    Northern Carmine Bee-eater
    The Northern Carmine Bee-eater Merops nubicus is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. Alternative common names include the Carmine Bee-eater or the Nubian Bee-eater.-Distribution:...

     Merops nubicus

Typical rollers

Order: Coraciiformes
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Coraciidae

Rollers resemble crow
Crow
Crows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...

s in size and build, but are more closely related to the kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfishers are a group of small to medium sized brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species being found in the Old World and Australia...

s and bee-eater
Bee-eater
The bee-eaters are a group of near-passerine birds in the family Meropidae. Most species are found in Africa and Asia but others occur in southern Europe, Australia, and New Guinea. They are characterised by richly coloured plumage, slender bodies, and usually elongated central tail feathers...

s. They share the colourful appearance of those groups with blues and browns predominating. The two inner front toes are connected, but the outer toe is not. There are 12 species worldwide and 6 species which occur in Benin.
  • European Roller
    European Roller
    The European Roller, Coracias garrulus, is the only member of the roller family of birds to breed in Europe. Its overall range extends into the Middle East and Central Asia and Morocco....

     Coracias garrulus
  • Abyssinian Roller
    Abyssinian Roller
    The Abyssinian Roller, Coracias abyssinicus, is a member of the roller family of birds which breeds across tropical Africa in a belt south of the Sahara, known as the Sahel...

     Coracias abyssinica
  • Rufous-crowned Roller
    Rufous-crowned Roller
    The Purple Roller , also called the Rufous-crowned Roller, is found over sub-Saharan Africa to as far south as Namibia and the Transvaal. Compared with other rollers its colours are rather dull and its voice rather harsh and grating...

     Coracias naevia
  • Blue-bellied Roller
    Blue-bellied Roller
    The Blue-bellied Roller, Coracias cyanogaster is a member of the roller family of birds which breeds across Africa in a narrow belt from Senegal to northeast Zaire. It is resident, apart from some local seasonal movements, in mature moist savannah dominated by Isoberlinia trees.The Blue-bellied...

     Coracias cyanogaster
  • Broad-billed Roller
    Broad-billed Roller
    The Broad-billed Roller, Eurystomus glaucurus, is a member of the roller family of birds which breeds across tropical Africa and Madagascar in all but the driest regions. It is a wet season breeder, which migrates from the northern and southern areas of its range towards the moister equatorial...

     Eurystomus glaucurus
  • Blue-throated Roller
    Blue-throated Roller
    The Blue-throated Roller is a species of bird in the Coraciidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra...

     Eurystomus gularis

Hoopoes

Order: Coraciiformes
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Upupidae

Hoopoes have black, white and orangey-pink colouring with a large erectile crest on their head. There are 2 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Hoopoe
    Hoopoe
    The Hoopoe is a colourful bird that is found across Afro-Eurasia, notable for its distinctive 'crown' of feathers. It is the only extant species in the family Upupidae. One insular species, the Giant Hoopoe of Saint Helena, is extinct, and the Madagascar subspecies of the Hoopoe is sometimes...

     Upupa epops

Woodhoopoes

Order: Coraciiformes
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Phoeniculidae

The woodhoopoes are related to the kingfisher
Kingfisher
Kingfishers are a group of small to medium sized brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species being found in the Old World and Australia...

s, roller
Roller
The rollers are an Old World family, Coraciidae, of near passerine birds. The group gets its name from the aerial acrobatics some of these birds perform during courtship or territorial flights. Rollers resemble crows in size and build, and share the colourful appearance of kingfishers and...

s and hoopoe
Hoopoe
The Hoopoe is a colourful bird that is found across Afro-Eurasia, notable for its distinctive 'crown' of feathers. It is the only extant species in the family Upupidae. One insular species, the Giant Hoopoe of Saint Helena, is extinct, and the Madagascar subspecies of the Hoopoe is sometimes...

. They most resemble the last species with their long curved bills, used for probing for insects, and short rounded wings. However, they differ in that they have metallic plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...

, often blue, green or purple, and lack an erectile crest. There are 8 species worldwide and 3 species which occur in Benin.
  • Green Woodhoopoe Phoeniculus purpureus
  • White-headed Woodhoopoe
    White-headed Woodhoopoe
    The White-headed Wood Hoopoe is a species of bird in the Phoeniculidae family. It is found in Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.-References:* BirdLife...

     Phoeniculus bollei
  • Black Scimitar-bill Rhinopomastus aterrimus

Hornbills

Order: Coraciiformes
Coraciiformes
The Coraciiformes are a group of usually colorful near passerine birds including the kingfishers, the Hoopoe, the bee-eaters, the rollers, and the hornbills...

. Family: Bucerotidae

Hornbills are a group of birds whose bill is shaped like a cow's horn, but without a twist, sometimes with a casque on the upper mandible. Frequently, the bill is brightly coloured. There are 57 species worldwide and 12 species which occur in Benin.
  • White-crested Hornbill
    White-crested Hornbill
    The White-crested Hornbill , also known as the Long-tailed Hornbill, is a species of hornbill found in humid forests of Central and West Africa...

     Tockus albocristatus
  • Black Dwarf Hornbill
    Black Dwarf Hornbill
    The Black Dwarf Hornbill is a species of hornbill in the Bucerotidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, and...

     Tockus hartlaubi
  • Red-billed Dwarf Hornbill
    Red-billed Dwarf Hornbill
    The Red-billed Dwarf Hornbill is a species of hornbill in the Bucerotidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan,...

     Tockus camurus
  • Red-billed Hornbill
    Red-billed Hornbill
    Red-billed Hornbill is a relatively small species of hornbill found in savanna and woodland of sub-Saharan Africa. It is sometimes split into five species, the Northern Red-billed Hornbill , Western Red-billed Hornbill , Tanzania Red-billed Hornbill , Southern Red-billed Hornbill Red-billed...

     Tockus erythrorhynchus
  • African Pied Hornbill
    African Pied Hornbill
    African Pied Hornbill, Tockus fasciatus, is a hornbill. Hornbills are a family of tropical near-passerine birds found in the Old World.African Pied Hornbill is a common resident breeder in much of equatorial Africa from The Gambia to western Uganda and northern Angola. This is a bird mainly of...

     Tockus fasciatus
  • African Gray Hornbill Tockus nasutus
  • Piping Hornbill
    Piping Hornbill
    The Piping Hornbill is a hornbill in the Bucerotidae family. This black-and-white species is found in humid forest and second growth in Central and West Africa, ranging from Senegal east to Uganda and south to Angola. At about in length, it is the smallest member of the genus...

     Ceratogymna fistulator
  • Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill
    Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill
    The Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill, Bycanistes subcylindricus, also known as Grey-cheeked Hornbill, is a large, approximately 70 cm long, black and white hornbill. It has an over-sized blackish bill with large casque on top...

     Ceratogymna subcylindricus
  • Brown-cheeked Hornbill
    Brown-cheeked Hornbill
    The Brown-cheeked Hornbill is a species of hornbill in the Bucerotidae family.It is found in Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Togo....

     Ceratogymna cylindricus
  • White-thighed Hornbill
    White-thighed Hornbill
    The White-thighed Hornbill is a species of hornbill in the Bucerotidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Nigeria, Sudan, and Uganda...

     Ceratogymna albotibialis
  • Yellow-casqued Hornbill
    Yellow-casqued Hornbill
    The Yellow-casqued Wattled Hornbill , also known as the Yellow-casqued Hornbill, is found in the rainforest of coastal regions of West Africa, for example in Côte d'Ivoire....

     Ceratogymna elata
  • Abyssinian Ground-Hornbill
    Abyssinian Ground-hornbill
    The Abyssinian Ground Hornbill or Northern Ground Hornbill, Bucorvus abyssinicus, is one of two species of ground hornbill. The other is the Southern Ground Hornbill....

     Bucorvus abyssinicus

Barbets

Order: Piciformes
Piciformes
Nine families of largely arboreal birds make up the order Piciformes, the best-known of them being the Picidae, which includes the woodpeckers and close relatives...

. Family: Capitonidae

The barbets are plump birds, with short necks and large heads. They get their name from the bristles which fringe their heavy bills. Most species are brightly coloured. There are 84 species worldwide and 12 species which occur in Benin.
  • Naked-faced Barbet
    Naked-faced Barbet
    The Naked-faced Barbet is a bird species in the family Lybiidae. It used to be placed in the family Bucconidae which has been split up; alternatively, it may be included in a vastly expanded Ramphastidae....

     Gymnobucco calvus
  • Bristle-nosed Barbet
    Bristle-nosed Barbet
    The Bristle-nosed Barbet is a bird species in the family Lybiidae. It used to be placed in the family Bucconidae which has been split up; alternatively, it may be included in a vastly expanded Ramphastidae....

     Gymnobucco peli
  • Speckled Tinkerbird
    Speckled Tinkerbird
    The Speckled Tinkerbird is a species of bird in the Lybiidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, and...

     Pogoniulus scolopaceus
  • Red-rumped Tinkerbird
    Red-rumped Tinkerbird
    The Red-rumped Tinkerbird is a species of bird in the Lybiidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and...

     Pogoniulus atroflavus
  • Yellow-throated Tinkerbird
    Yellow-throated Tinkerbird
    The Yellow-throated Tinkerbird is a species of bird in the Lybiidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and...

     Pogoniulus subsulphureus
  • Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird
    Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird
    The Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird is a bird species in the family Lybiidae. It used to be placed in the family Bucconidae which has been split up; alternatively, it may be included in a vastly expanded Ramphastidae....

     Pogoniulus bilineatus
  • Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird
    Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird
    The Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird, Pogoniulus chrysoconus, is a small African barbet formerly known as Yellow-fronted Tinker Barbet. Barbets are near passerine birds with bristles around the base of the bill and a world-wide tropical distribution....

     Pogoniulus chrysoconus
  • Hairy-breasted Barbet
    Hairy-breasted Barbet
    The Hairy-breasted Barbet is a species of bird in the Lybiidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone,...

     Tricholaema hirsuta
  • Vieillot's Barbet
    Vieillot's Barbet
    The Vieillot's Barbet, Lybius vieilloti, is a small African barbet. Barbets and toucans are a group of near passerine birds with a world-wide tropical distribution. The barbets get their name from the bristles which fringe their heavy bills....

     Lybius vieilloti
  • Double-toothed Barbet
    Double-toothed Barbet
    The Double-toothed Barbet is a species of bird in the Lybiidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia,...

     Lybius bidentatus
  • Bearded Barbet
    Bearded Barbet
    The Bearded Barbet is an African barbet. Barbets and toucans are a group of near passerine birds with a worldwide tropical distribution. The barbets get their name from the bristles which fringe their heavy bills....

     Lybius dubius
  • Yellow-billed Barbet
    Yellow-billed Barbet
    The Yellow-billed Barbet is a species of bird in the Lybiidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra...

     Trachyphonus purpuratus

Honeyguides

Order: Piciformes
Piciformes
Nine families of largely arboreal birds make up the order Piciformes, the best-known of them being the Picidae, which includes the woodpeckers and close relatives...

. Family: Indicatoridae

Honeyguides are among the few birds that feed on wax
Wax
thumb|right|[[Cetyl palmitate]], a typical wax ester.Wax refers to a class of chemical compounds that are plastic near ambient temperatures. Characteristically, they melt above 45 °C to give a low viscosity liquid. Waxes are insoluble in water but soluble in organic, nonpolar solvents...

. They are named for the behaviour of the Greater Honeyguide
Greater Honeyguide
The Greater Honeyguide is a bird in the family Indicatoridae, paleotropical near passerine birds related to the woodpeckers. Its English and scientific names refer to its habit of guiding people to bee colonies....

 which leads large animals to bees' nests and then feeds on the wax once the animal has broken the nest open to get at the honey. There are 17 species worldwide and 6 species which occur in Benin.
  • Spotted Honeyguide
    Spotted Honeyguide
    The Spotted Honeyguide is a species of bird in the Indicatoridae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria,...

     Indicator maculatus
  • Greater Honeyguide
    Greater Honeyguide
    The Greater Honeyguide is a bird in the family Indicatoridae, paleotropical near passerine birds related to the woodpeckers. Its English and scientific names refer to its habit of guiding people to bee colonies....

     Indicator indicator
  • Lesser Honeyguide
    Lesser Honeyguide
    The Lesser Honeyguide is a species of bird in the Indicatoridae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia,...

     Indicator minor
  • Thick-billed Honeyguide
    Thick-billed Honeyguide
    The Thick-billed Honeyguide is a bird of the honeyguide family Indicatoridae. It has been reported interbreeding with the related Lesser Honeyguide and the two are sometimes treated as a single species....

     Indicator conirostris
  • Willcock's Honeyguide Indicator willcocksi
  • Least Honeyguide
    Least Honeyguide
    The Least Honeyguide is a species of bird in the Indicatoridae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra...

     Indicator exilis

Woodpeckers and allies

Order: Piciformes
Piciformes
Nine families of largely arboreal birds make up the order Piciformes, the best-known of them being the Picidae, which includes the woodpeckers and close relatives...

. Family: Picidae
Picidae
The woodpeckers, piculets and wrynecks are a family, Picidae, of near-passerine birds. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia and New Zealand, Madagascar, and the extreme polar regions...



Woodpeckers are small to medium sized birds with chisel like beaks, short legs, stiff tails and long tongues used for capturing insects. Some species have feet with two toes pointing forward, and two backward, while several species have only three toes. Many woodpeckers have the habit of tapping noisily on tree trunks with their beaks. There are 218 species worldwide and 10 species which occur in Benin.
  • Eurasian Wryneck
    Eurasian Wryneck
    The Eurasian Wryneck, Jynx torquilla, is a species of wryneck in the family of woodpeckers.This species breeds in temperate regions of Europe and Asia. It is migratory, wintering in tropical Africa and southern Asia. It is a bird of open woodland and orchards...

     Jynx torquilla
  • Fine-spotted Woodpecker
    Fine-spotted Woodpecker
    The Fine-spotted Woodpecker, Campethera punctuligera, is a bird. It is a widespread and frequently common resident breeder in much of west and central tropical Africa.It is a species associated with open forest and bush...

     Campethera punctuligera
  • Golden-tailed Woodpecker
    Golden-tailed Woodpecker
    The Golden-tailed Woodpecker is a species of bird in the Picidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Canada, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Malawi, Mali,...

     Campethera abingoni
  • Green-backed Woodpecker
    Green-backed Woodpecker
    The Green-backed Woodpecker is a species of bird in the Picidae family.It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan,...

     Campethera cailliautii
  • Buff-spotted Woodpecker
    Buff-spotted Woodpecker
    The Buff-spotted Woodpecker is a species of bird in the Picidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania,...

     Campethera nivosa
  • Brown-eared Woodpecker
    Brown-eared Woodpecker
    The Brown-eared Woodpecker is a species of bird in the Picidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania,...

     Campethera caroli
  • Cardinal Woodpecker
    Cardinal Woodpecker
    The Cardinal Woodpecker, Dendropicos fuscescens, is a widespread and common resident breeder in much of sub-Saharan Africa. It is a species found in a wide range of habitats from dense forest to thornbush...

     Dendropicos fuscescens
  • Fire-bellied Woodpecker
    Fire-bellied Woodpecker
    The Fire-bellied Woodpecker is a species of bird in the Picidae family.It is found in Benin, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo.-References:...

     Dendropicos pyrrhogaster
  • Gray Woodpecker Dendropicos goertae
  • Brown-backed Woodpecker
    Brown-backed Woodpecker
    The Brown-backed Woodpecker is a species of bird in the Picidae family. It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria,...

     Dendropicos obsoletus

Larks

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Alaudidae

Larks are small terrestrial birds with often extravagant songs and display flights. Most larks are fairly dull in appearance. Their food is insects and seeds. There are 91 species worldwide and 6 species which occur in Benin.
  • Singing Bushlark
    Singing Bushlark
    The Singing Bush Lark is a species of lark found in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia.- Range and population :The range of M. cantillans is quite extensive, with an estimated global Extent of Occurrence of 10,000,000 km2; and its global population is thought to be large, though it has...

     Mirafra cantillans
  • Flappet Lark
    Flappet Lark
    The Flappet Lark is a species of lark in the Alaudidae family.- Range and population :Mirafra rufocinnamomea has a large range covering much of the African continent with an estimated global Extent of Occurrence of 10,000,000 square km...

     Mirafra rufocinnamomea
  • Rufous-rumped Lark
    Rufous-rumped Lark
    The Rufous-rumped Lark is a species of lark in the Alaudidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, and Uganda.Its natural...

     Pinarocorys erythropygia
  • Chestnut-backed Sparrow-Lark
    Chestnut-backed Sparrow-lark
    The Chestnut-backed Sparrow-lark, Eremopterix leucotis, is a passerine bird which is a resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara Desert.This lark is a bird of open dry habitats. It nests on the ground and lays one egg. The food is insects and seeds....

     Eremopterix leucotis
  • Crested Lark
    Crested Lark
    The Crested Lark, Galerida cristata, breeds across most of temperate Eurasia from Portugal to northeast China and eastern India, and in Africa south to Niger...

     Galerida cristata
  • Sun Lark
    Sun Lark
    The Sun Lark is a species of lark in the Alaudidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, and Uganda.Its...

     Galerida modesta

Swallows and martins

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Hirundinidae

The Hirundinidae family is a group of passerines characterized by their adaptation to aerial feeding. Their adaptations include a slender streamlined body, long pointed wings and short bills with wide gape. The feet are designed for perching rather than walking, and the front toes are partially joined at the base. There are 75 species worldwide and 18 species which occur in Benin.
  • Bank Swallow Riparia riparia
  • Plain Martin Riparia paludicola
  • Banded Martin
    Banded Martin
    The Banded Martin or Banded Sand Martin, Riparia cincta, is a small passerine bird in the swallow family.The Banded Martin is found in open habitats such as farmland, grassland and savannah, usually near water...

     Riparia cincta
  • Gray-rumped Swallow Pseudhirundo griseopyga
  • Rock Martin Ptyonoprogne fuligula
  • Barn Swallow
    Barn Swallow
    The Barn Swallow is the most widespread species of swallow in the world. It is a distinctive passerine bird with blue upperparts, a long, deeply forked tail and curved, pointed wings. It is found in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas...

     Hirundo rustica
  • Red-chested Swallow
    Red-chested Swallow
    The Red-chested Swallow is a small non-migratory passerine bird found in Africa in West Africa, the Congo basin and Ethiopia. It has a long, deeply forked tail and curved, pointed wings....

     Hirundo lucida
  • Ethiopian Swallow
    Ethiopian Swallow
    The Ethiopian Swallow is a species of bird in the Hirundinidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Israel, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan,...

     Hirundo aethiopica
  • Wire-tailed Swallow
    Wire-tailed Swallow
    The Wire-tailed Swallow is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. Swallows are somewhat similar in habits and appearance to other aerial insectivores, such as the related martins and the unrelated swifts ....

     Hirundo smithii
  • White-throated Blue Swallow
    White-throated Blue Swallow
    The White-bibbed Swallow , also known as the White-throated Blue Swallow, is a species of bird in the Hirundinidae family...

     Hirundo nigrita
  • Pied-winged Swallow
    Pied-winged Swallow
    The Pied-winged Swallow is a species of bird in the Hirundinidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo....

     Hirundo leucosoma
  • Lesser Striped-Swallow Cecropis abyssinica
  • Rufous-chested Swallow
    Rufous-chested Swallow
    The Rufous-chested Swallow , also known as the Red-breasted Swallow, is a large swallow. It breeds in equatorial Africa, although most common in the east. It is partially migratory, following the rains beyond the breeding range in the wet season.This is a bird of dry open country...

     Cecropis semirufa
  • Mosque Swallow
    Mosque Swallow
    The Mosque Swallow is a large swallow. It is a resident breeder in much of sub-Saharan Africa, although most common in the west. It does not migrate, but will follow the rains to some extent....

     Cecropis senegalensis
  • Red-rumped Swallow
    Red-rumped Swallow
    The Red-rumped Swallow is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. It breeds in open hilly country of temperate southern Europe and Asia from Portugal and Spain to Japan, India and tropical Africa. The Indian and African birds are resident, but European and other Asian birds are migratory...

     Cecropis daurica
  • Preuss's Swallow
    Preuss's Swallow
    Preuss's Cliff Swallow , also known as Preuss's Swallow, is a species of bird in the Hirundinidae family.-Distribution and habitat:...

     Petrochelidon preussi
  • Common House-Martin Delichon urbica
  • Fanti Sawwing Psalidoprocne obscura

Wagtails and pipits

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Motacillidae
Motacillidae
The Motacillidae are a family of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. There are around 65 species in 6 genera and they include the wagtails, longclaws and pipits. The longclaws are entirely restricted to the Afrotropics, and the wagtails are predominately found in Europe, Africa and...



The Motacillidae are a family of small passerine birds with medium to long tails. They include the wagtails, longclaws and pipits. They are slender, ground feeding insectivores of open country. There are 54 species worldwide and 8 species which occur in Benin.
  • African Pied Wagtail
    African Pied Wagtail
    The African Pied Wagtail is a species of bird in the Motacillidae family.-Habitat and distribution:It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Equatorial...

     Motacilla aguimp
  • Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava
  • Yellow-throated Longclaw
    Yellow-throated Longclaw
    The Yellow-throated Longclaw is a species of bird in the Motacillidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya,...

     Macronyx croceus
  • Plain-backed Pipit Anthus leucophrys
  • African Pipit
    African Pipit
    The African Pipit is a fairly small passerine bird belonging to the pipit genus Anthus in the family Motacillidae. It is also known as the Grassveld Pipit or Grassland Pipit...

     Anthus cinnamomeus
  • Tawny Pipit
    Tawny Pipit
    The Tawny Pipit, Anthus campestris, is a medium-large passerine bird which breeds in much of temperate Europe and Asia, and northwest Africa. It is a migrant moving in winter to tropical Africa and the Indian subcontinent....

     Anthus campestris
  • Tree Pipit
    Tree Pipit
    Tree Pipit, Anthus trivialis, is a small passerine bird which breeds across most of Europe and temperate western and central Asia. It is a long-distance migrant moving in winter to Africa and southern Asia....

     Anthus trivialis
  • Red-throated Pipit
    Red-throated Pipit
    The Red-throated Pipit is a small passerine bird which breeds in the far north of Europe and Asia, with a foothold in northern Alaska. It is a long-distance migrant moving in winter to Africa, south and east Asia and west coast USA...

     Anthus cervinus

Cuckoo-shrikes

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Campephagidae

The cuckoo-shrikes are small to medium-sized passerine birds. They are predominantly greyish with white and black, although some species are brightly coloured. There are 82 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • White-breasted Cuckoo-shrike
    White-breasted Cuckoo-shrike
    The White-breasted Cuckooshrike is a species of bird in the Campephagidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Malawi, Mali,...

     Coracina pectoralis
  • Red-shouldered Cuckoo-shrike
    Red-shouldered Cuckoo-shrike
    The Red-shouldered Cuckooshrike is a species of bird in the Campephagidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya,...

     Campephaga phoenicea

Bulbuls

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Pycnonotidae

Bulbuls are medium-sized songbirds. Some are colourful with yellow, red or orange vents, cheeks, throat or supercilia, but most are drab, with uniform olive brown to black plumage. Some species have distinct crests.There are 130 species worldwide and 9 species which occur in Benin.
  • Common Bulbul
    Common Bulbul
    The Common Bulbul is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is a ubiquitous resident breeder throughout Africa...

     Pycnonotus barbatus
  • Little Greenbul
    Little Greenbul
    The Little Greenbul is a species of songbird in the Pycnonotidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya,...

     Andropadus virens
  • Simple Greenbul
    Simple Greenbul
    The Simple Greenbul is a species of songbird in the Pycnonotidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone,...

     Chlorocichla simplex
  • Yellow-throated Greenbul
    Yellow-throated Greenbul
    The Yellow-throated Greenbul is a species of songbird in the Pycnonotidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,...

     Chlorocichla flavicollis
  • Swamp Greenbul
    Swamp Greenbul
    The Swamp Palm Bulbul , also known as the Swamp Greenbul, is a species of songbird in the Pycnonotidae family...

     Thescelocichla leucopleura
  • Leaf-love
    Leaf-love
    The Red-tailed Leaf-love, Pyrrhurus scandens, is a species of songbird in the Pycnonotidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Pyrrhurus.-Distribution and habitat:...

     Phyllastrephus scandens
  • White-throated Greenbul
    White-throated Greenbul
    The White-throated Greenbul is a species of songbird in the Pycnonotidae family.-Distribution and habitat:...

     Phyllastrephus albigularis
  • Gray-headed Bristlebill Bleda canicapilla
  • Yellow-spotted Nicator
    Yellow-spotted Nicator
    The Western Nicator is a species of songbird in the Pycnonotidae family.-Distribution:It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia,...

     Nicator chloris

Thrushes and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Turdidae

The thrushes
Thrush (bird)
The thrushes, family Turdidae, are a group of passerine birds that occur worldwide.-Characteristics:Thrushes are plump, soft-plumaged, small to medium-sized birds, inhabiting wooded areas, and often feed on the ground or eat small fruit. The smallest thrush may be the Forest Rock-thrush, at and...

 are a group of passerine birds that occur mainly in the Old World. They are plump, soft plumaged, small to medium-sized insectivores or sometimes omnivores, often feeding on the ground. Many have attractive songs. There are 335 species worldwide and 4 species which occur in Benin.
  • Finsch's Flycatcher-Thrush
    Finsch's Flycatcher-thrush
    Finsch's Rufous Thrush , also known as Finsch's Flycatcher-thrush, Finsch's Rusty Flycatcher, Finsch's Ant Thrush or Finsch's Rufous Ant Thrush, is a little-known flycatcher-like thrush of West African forests...

     Neocossyphus finschii
  • Rufous-tailed Rock-Thrush Monticola saxatilis
  • Olive Thrush
    Olive Thrush
    The Olive Thrush is, in its range, one of the most common members of the thrush family . It occurs in east African highlands from Eritrea and Ethiopia in north to the Cape of Good Hope in south...

     Turdus olivaceus
  • African Thrush
    African Thrush
    The African Thrush is a passerine bird in the thrush family Turdidae. It is common in well-wooded areas over much of sub-Saharan Africa. Populations are resident....

     Turdus pelios

Cisticolas and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Cisticolidae
Cisticolidae
The Cisticolidae family of small passerine birds is a group of about 110 warblers found mainly in warmer southern regions of the Old World. They are often included within the Old World warbler family Sylviidae....



The Cisticolidae are warblers found mainly in warmer southern regions of the Old World. They are generally very small birds of drab brown or grey appearance found in open country such as grassland or scrub. There are 111 species worldwide and 19 species which occur in Benin.
  • Red-faced Cisticola
    Red-faced Cisticola
    The Red-faced Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia,...

     Cisticola erythrops
  • Singing Cisticola
    Singing Cisticola
    The Singing Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali,...

     Cisticola cantans
  • Whistling Cisticola
    Whistling Cisticola
    The Whistling Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria,...

     Cisticola lateralis
  • Rock-loving Cisticola Cisticola aberrans
  • Red-pate Cisticola
    Red-pate Cisticola
    The Red-pate Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, and Uganda.Its natural...

     Cisticola ruficeps
  • Winding Cisticola
    Winding Cisticola
    The Winding Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family. It has a scattered distribution across Africa south of the Sahara.-Taxonomy:...

     Cisticola galactotes
  • Croaking Cisticola
    Croaking Cisticola
    The Croaking Cisticola, Cisticola natalensis, is an Old World warbler in the genus Cisticola. This genus is sometimes split off with various other southern warbler genera and given family status as the Cisticolidae....

     Cisticola natalensis
  • Siffling Cisticola
    Siffling Cisticola
    The Short-winged Cisticola , also known as the Siffling Cisticola, is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family...

     Cisticola brachypterus
  • Rufous Cisticola
    Rufous Cisticola
    The Rufous Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo....

     Cisticola rufus
  • Zitting Cisticola
    Zitting Cisticola
    The Zitting Cisticola or Streaked Fantail Warbler , is widely distributed Old World warbler whose breeding range includes southern Europe, Africa outside the deserts and rainforest, and southern Asia down to northern Australia...

     Cisticola juncidis
  • Black-necked Cisticola
    Black-necked Cisticola
    The Black-necked Cisticola is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Burkina Faso, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo,...

     Cisticola eximius
  • Tawny-flanked Prinia
    Tawny-flanked Prinia
    The Tawny-flanked Prinia is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus Prinia in the family Cisticolidae, a family of Old World warblers. It is widespread and common in most parts of Africa south of the Sahara. The Plain Prinia The Tawny-flanked Prinia (Prinia subflava) is a small passerine...

     Prinia subflava
  • Red-winged Prinia Prinia erythroptera
  • Black-capped Apalis
    Black-capped Apalis
    The Black-capped Apalis is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Uganda.Its natural habitat...

     Apalis nigriceps
  • Yellow-breasted Apalis
    Yellow-breasted Apalis
    The Yellow-breasted Apalis is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Apalis flavida
  • Oriole Warbler
    Oriole Warbler
    The Oriole Warbler is a small warbler, the only member of the genus Hypergerus. This bird is a resident breeder in west Africa from southern Senegal to Cameroon and north Zaire....

     Hypergerus atriceps
  • Green-backed Camaroptera Camaroptera brachyura
  • Yellow-browed Camaroptera
    Yellow-browed Camaroptera
    The Yellow-browed Camaroptera is a species of bird in the Cisticolidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, and...

     Camaroptera superciliaris
  • Olive-green Camaroptera
    Olive-green Camaroptera
    The Olive-green Camaroptera is a bird species in the family Cisticolidae.It is found in Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal,...

     Camaroptera chloronota

Old World warblers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Sylviidae
Sylviidae
Sylviidae is a family of passerine birds that was part of an assemblage known as the Old World warblers. The family was formerly a wastebin taxon with over 400 species of bird in over 70 genera. The family was poorly defined with many characteristics shared with other families...



The family Sylviidae is a group of small insectivorous passerine birds. The Sylviidae mainly occur as breeding species, as the common name implies, in Europe, Asia and, to a lesser extent Africa. Most are of generally undistinguished appearance, but many have distinctive songs. There are 291 species worldwide and 19 species which occur in Benin.
  • Moustached Grass-Warbler
    Moustached Grass-warbler
    The Moustached Grass-Warbler is a species of African Warbler, formerly placed in the Sylviidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Melocichla mentalis
  • Sedge Warbler
    Sedge Warbler
    The Sedge Warbler is an Old World warbler in the genus Acrocephalus. It is a medium-sized warbler with a brown, streaked back and wings and a distinct pale supercilium. Sedge Warblers are migratory, crossing the Sahara to get from their European and Asian breeding grounds to spend winter in Africa...

     Acrocephalus schoenobaenus
  • Eurasian Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus
  • Great Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus
  • Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
    Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
    The Eastern Olivaceous Warbler is a "warbler", formerly placed in the Old World warblers when these were a paraphyletic wastebin taxon. It is now considered a member of the acrocephaline warbelrs, Acrocephalidae, in the tree warbler genus Hippolais ...

     Hippolais pallida
  • Melodious Warbler
    Melodious Warbler
    The Melodious Warbler is an Old World warbler in the tree warbler genus Hippolais. It breeds in southwest Europe and northwest Africa. It is migratory, wintering in sub-Saharan Africa....

     Hippolais polyglotta
  • Senegal Eremomela
    Senegal Eremomela
    The Senegal Eremomela, Eremomela pusilla, is a warbler.These 10.5 cm long warblers have olive upperparts and yellow underparts. The throat is white. The sexes are similar in appearance.Like most warblers, the Green-backed Eremomela is insectivorous...

     Eremomela pusilla
  • Rufous-crowned Eremomela
    Rufous-crowned Eremomela
    The Rufous-Crowned Eremomela is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone,...

     Eremomela badiceps
  • Green Crombec
    Green Crombec
    The Green Crombec is a species of African warbler, formerly placed in the family Sylviidae.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali,...

     Sylvietta virens
  • Northern Crombec
    Northern Crombec
    The Northern Crombec is a species of African warbler, formerly placed in the family Sylviidae.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali,...

     Sylvietta brachyura
  • Kemp's Longbill
    Kemp's Longbill
    The Kemp's Longbill is a species of Old World warbler in the Macrosphenidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone....

     Macrosphenus kempi
  • Gray Longbill Macrosphenus concolor
  • Green Hylia
    Green Hylia
    The Green Hylia is a songbird species traditionally included in the "Old World warbler" assemblage, but probably belonging to the bush-warbler family...

     Hylia prasina
  • Willow Warbler
    Willow Warbler
    The Willow Warbler is a very common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and Asia, from Ireland east to the Anadyr River basin in eastern Siberia...

     Phylloscopus trochilus
  • Common Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita
  • Western Bonelli's Warbler
    Western Bonelli's Warbler
    Western Bonelli's Warbler is a "warbler" in the leaf warbler genus Phylloscopus. It was formerly regarded as the western subspecies of a wider "Bonelli's Warbler" species, but as a result of modern taxonomic developments, this species is now usually considered to be two species :* Western Bonelli's...

     Phylloscopus bonelli
  • Wood Warbler
    Wood Warbler
    The Wood Warbler is a common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe, and just into the extreme west of Asia in the southern Ural Mountains...

     Phylloscopus sibilatrix
  • Blackcap
    Blackcap
    The Blackcap is a common and widespread sylviid warbler which breeds throughout temperate Europe, western Asia and northwestern Africa, and winters from northwestern Europe south to tropical Africa...

     Sylvia atricapilla
  • Garden Warbler
    Garden Warbler
    The Garden Warbler, Sylvia borin, is a common and widespread typical warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe into western Asia. This small passerine bird is strongly migratory, and winters in central and southern Africa...

     Sylvia borin

Old World flycatchers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Muscicapidae

Old World flycatchers are a large group of small passerine birds native to the Old World. They are mainly small arboreal insectivores. The appearance of these birds is very varied, but they mostly have weak songs and harsh calls. There 274 species worldwide and 24 species which occur in Benin.
  • Pale Flycatcher
    Pale Flycatcher
    The Pale Flycatcher is a bird species of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae, found in Africa.- Range :It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea,...

     Bradornis pallidus
  • Northern Black-Flycatcher Melaenornis edolioides
  • African Forest-Flycatcher
    African Forest-flycatcher
    Fraser's Forest Flycatcher , also known as the African Forest-flycatcher is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Fraseria ocreata
  • White-browed Forest-Flycatcher
    White-browed Forest-flycatcher
    The White-browed Forest-flycatcher is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria,...

     Fraseria cinerascens
  • Spotted Flycatcher
    Spotted Flycatcher
    The Spotted Flycatcher, Muscicapa striata, is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. It breeds in most of Europe and western Asia, and is migratory, wintering in Africa and south western Asia. It is declining in parts of its range....

     Muscicapa striata
  • Gambaga Flycatcher
    Gambaga Flycatcher
    The Gambaga Flycatcher is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Uganda,...

     Muscicapa gambagae
  • Swamp Flycatcher
    Swamp Flycatcher
    The Swamp Flycatcher or Swamp Alseonax is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal,...

     Muscicapa aquatica
  • Dusky-blue Flycatcher
    Dusky-blue Flycatcher
    The Dusky-blue Flycatcher is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, and...

     Muscicapa comitata
  • Tessmann's Flycatcher
    Tessmann's Flycatcher
    The Tessmann's Flycatcher is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone....

     Muscicapa tessmanni
  • Cassin's Flycatcher
    Cassin's Flycatcher
    Cassin's Flycatcher or Cassin's Alseonax is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda,...

     Muscicapa cassini
  • Ashy Flycatcher
    Ashy Flycatcher
    The Ashy Flycatcher or Ashy Alseonax is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Muscicapa caerulescens
  • Gray Tit-Flycatcher Myioparus plumbeus
  • European Pied Flycatcher
    European Pied Flycatcher
    The Pied Flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca, is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family, one of the four species of Western Palearctic black-and-white flycatchers. It breeds in most of Europe and western Asia. It is migratory, wintering mainly in western Africa. It hybridizes with...

     Ficedula hypoleuca
  • Common Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos
  • Bluethroat
    Bluethroat
    The Bluethroat is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae...

     Luscinia svecica
  • Snowy-crowned Robin-Chat
    Snowy-crowned Robin-chat
    The Snowy-crowned Robin-chat is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family. It is also known as the Snowy-headed Robin-chat....

     Cossypha niveicapilla
  • White-crowned Robin-Chat
    White-crowned Robin-chat
    The White-crowned Robin-chat is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and Togo.Its natural habitats are...

     Cossypha albicapilla
  • Common Redstart
    Common Redstart
    The Common Redstart , or often simply Redstart, is a small passerine bird in the redstart genus Phoenicurus...

     Phoenicurus phoenicurus
  • Whinchat
    Whinchat
    The Whinchat Saxicola rubetra is a small migratory passerine bird breeding in Europe and western Asia and wintering in Africa.Its scientific name means "small rock-dweller", in reference to its habitat...

     Saxicola rubetra
  • Northern Wheatear
    Northern Wheatear
    The Northern Wheatear or Wheatear is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae...

     Oenanthe oenanthe
  • Heuglin's Wheatear
    Heuglin's Wheatear
    Heuglin's Wheatear is a small passerine bird in the wheatear genus Oenanthe. It occurs in a band across Africa to the south of the Sahara. It was formerly classified as a subspecies of Botta's Wheatear of the Ethiopian Highlands and Arabia but is now usually regarded as a separate species...

     Oenanthe heuglini
  • Familiar Chat
    Familiar Chat
    The Familiar Chat, Cercomela familiaris, is a small passerine bird of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae. It is a common resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara in rocky and mountainous habitat and around human habitation.-Description:...

     Cercomela familiaris
  • White-fronted Black-Chat
    White-fronted Black-chat
    The White-fronted Black Chat is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria,...

     Myrmecocichla albifrons
  • Mocking Cliff-Chat
    Mocking Cliff-chat
    The Mocking Cliff Chat is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania,...

     Thamnolaea cinnamomeiventris

Wattle-eyes

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Platysteiridae

The wattle-eyes or puffback flycatchers are small stout passerine birds of the African tropics. They get their name from the brightly coloured fleshy eye decorations found in most species in this group. There are 31 species worldwide and 8 species which occur in Benin.
  • African Shrike-flycatcher
    African Shrike-flycatcher
    The African Shrike-flycatcher is a species of bird in the Platysteiridae family. It is monotypic within the genus Megabyas....

     Megabyas flammulatus
  • Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher
    Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher
    The Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher , also known as the Black-and-white Flycatcher or Vanga Flycatcher, is a species of passerine bird found in Africa...

     Bias musicus
  • Brown-throated Wattle-eye Platysteira cyanea
  • Chestnut Wattle-eye
    Chestnut Wattle-eye
    The Chestnut Wattle-eye is a species of bird in the Platysteiridae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan,...

     Platysteira castanea
  • Red-cheeked Wattle-eye
    Red-cheeked Wattle-eye
    The Red-cheeked Wattle-eye is a species of bird in the Platysteiridae family.It is found in Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo....

     Platysteira blissetti
  • Senegal Batis
    Senegal Batis
    The Senegal Batis is a species of bird in the Platysteiridae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.Its natural habitats are dry savanna and subtropical or...

     Batis senegalensis
  • Fernando Po Batis
    Fernando Po Batis
    The Fernando Po Batis is a species of bird in the Platysteiridae family.It is endemic to Equatorial Guinea.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 25 July 2007....

     Batis poensis
  • West African Batis
    West African Batis
    The West African Batis is a species of bird in the Platysteiridae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone....

     Batis occulta

Monarch flycatchers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Monarchidae

The monarch flycatchers are small to medium-sized insectivorous passerines, which hunt by flycatching. There are 99 species worldwide and 5 species which occur in Benin.
  • Chestnut-capped Flycatcher
    Chestnut-capped Flycatcher
    The Chestnut-capped Flycatcher is a species of bird in the Monarchidae family.-Distribution and habitat:It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria,...

     Erythrocercus mccallii
  • African Blue-Flycatcher
    African Blue-flycatcher
    The African Blue-flycatcher is a species of bird in the Stenostiridae family.-Distribution:It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Elminia longicauda
  • Blue-headed Crested-Flycatcher
    Blue-headed Crested-flycatcher
    The Blue-headed Crested-flycatcher is a species of bird in the Monarchidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo,...

     Trochocercus nitens
  • Black-headed Paradise-Flycatcher Terpsiphone rufiventer
  • African Paradise-Flycatcher Terpsiphone viridis

Babblers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Timaliidae

The babblers or timaliids are somewhat diverse in size and coloration, but are characterised by soft fluffy plumage. There are 270 species worldwide and 6 species which occur in Benin.
  • Blackcap Illadopsis
    Blackcap Illadopsis
    The Blackcap Illadopsis is a species of bird in the Timaliidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland...

     Illadopsis cleaveri
  • Pale-breasted Illadopsis
    Pale-breasted Illadopsis
    The Pale-breasted Illadopsis is a species of bird in the Timaliidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, and...

     Illadopsis rufipennis
  • Brown Illadopsis
    Brown Illadopsis
    The Brown Illadopsis is a species of bird in the Timaliidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria,...

     Illadopsis fulvescens
  • Blackcap Babbler
    Blackcap Babbler
    The Blackcap Babbler, Turdoides reinwardtii, is an Old World babbler. The Old World babblers are a large family of Old World passerine birds characterised by soft fluffy plumage. These are birds of tropical areas, with the greatest variety in southeast Asia.The Blackcap Babbler is a common resident...

     Turdoides reinwardtii
  • Brown Babbler
    Brown Babbler
    The Brown Babbler is a species of bird in the Timaliidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra...

     Turdoides plebejus
  • Capuchin Babbler
    Capuchin Babbler
    The Capuchin Babbler is a species of bird in the Timaliidae family.-Distribution and habitat:It is found in Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Uganda...

     Phyllanthus atripennis

Chickadees and titmice

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Paridae

The Paridae are mainly small stocky woodland species with short stout bills. Some have crests. They are adaptable birds, with a mixed diet including seeds and insects. There are species 59 worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • White-shouldered Black-Tit Melaniparus guineensis

Treecreepers

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Certhiidae

Treecreepers are small woodland birds, brown above and white below. They have thin pointed down-curved bills, which they use to extricate insects from bark. They have stiff tail feathers, like woodpeckers, which they use to support themselves on vertical trees. There are 6 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Spotted Creeper
    Spotted Creeper
    The Spotted Creeper is a small passerine bird, which is the only member of the subfamily Salpornithinae of the treecreeper family Certhiidae. It is found in sub-Saharan Africa and northern India in open deciduous forest and mango groves...

     Salpornis spilonotus

Penduline tits

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Remizidae

The penduline tits are a group of small passerine birds, related to the true tits. They are insectivores. There are 13 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Yellow Penduline-Tit
    Yellow Penduline-tit
    The Yellow Penduline-tit is a species of bird in the Remizidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, and Togo.Its natural habitat is dry...

     Anthoscopus parvulus
  • Tit-hylia
    Tit-hylia
    The Tit Hylia is a species of bird in the Remizidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Pholidornis....

     Pholidornis rushiae

Sunbirds and Spiderhunters

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Nectariniidae

The sunbirds and spiderhunters are very small passerine birds which feed largely on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young. Flight is fast and direct on their short wings. Most species can take nectar by hovering like a hummingbird, but usually perch to feed. There are 131 species worldwide and 23 species which occur in Benin.
  • Scarlet-tufted Sunbird
    Scarlet-tufted Sunbird
    The Fraser's Sunbird or Scarlet-tufted Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra...

     Deleornis fraseri
  • Mouse-brown Sunbird
    Mouse-brown Sunbird
    The Mouse-brown Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal, and Sierra...

     Anthreptes gabonicus
  • Western Violet-backed Sunbird
    Western Violet-backed Sunbird
    The Western Violet-backed Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family. It is the most widely ranging species in the violet-backed sunbird superspecies, ranging throughout a large part of tropical mainland sub-Saharan Africa not inhabited by other members of the superspecies...

     Anthreptes longuemarei
  • Little Green Sunbird
    Little Green Sunbird
    The Little Green Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family. It is sometimes placed in Anthreptes....

     Anthreptes seimundi
  • Green Sunbird
    Green Sunbird
    The Grey-chinned Sunbird or Green Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia,...

     Anthreptes rectirostris
  • Collared Sunbird
    Collared Sunbird
    The Collared Sunbird, Hedydipna collaris , is a sunbird. The sunbirds are a group of very small Old World passerine birds which feed largely on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young. Collared Sunbird is in fact mainly insectivorous.Sunbird flight is fast and...

     Hedydipna collaris
  • Pygmy Sunbird
    Pygmy Sunbird
    The Pygmy Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra...

     Hedydipna platura
  • Reichenbach's Sunbird
    Reichenbach's Sunbird
    The Reichenbach's Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, and Nigeria.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . ...

     Anabathmis reichenbachii
  • Green-headed Sunbird
    Green-headed Sunbird
    The Green-headed Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,...

     Cyanomitra verticalis
  • Blue-throated Brown Sunbird
    Blue-throated Brown Sunbird
    The Blue-throated Brown Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone,...

     Cyanomitra cyanolaema
  • Eastern Olive-Sunbird Cyanomitra olivacea
  • Western Olive-Sunbird Cyanomitra obscura
  • Buff-throated Sunbird
    Buff-throated Sunbird
    The Buff-throated Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family. It is found in Benin, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo.-References:...

     Chalcomitra adelberti
  • Carmelite Sunbird
    Carmelite Sunbird
    The Carmelite Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. ...

     Chalcomitra fuliginosa
  • Scarlet-chested Sunbird
    Scarlet-chested Sunbird
    The Scarlet-chested Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya,...

     Chalcomitra senegalensis
  • Olive-bellied Sunbird
    Olive-bellied Sunbird
    The Olive-bellied Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,...

     Cinnyris chloropygius
  • Tiny Sunbird
    Tiny Sunbird
    The Tiny Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Uganda.-References:* BirdLife...

     Cinnyris minullus
  • Beautiful Sunbird
    Beautiful Sunbird
    The Beautiful Sunbird, Cinnyris pulchella , is a sunbird. The sunbirds are a group of very small Old World passerine birds which feed largely on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young. Flight is fast and direct on their short wings...

     Cinnyris pulchellus
  • Splendid Sunbird
    Splendid Sunbird
    The Splendid Sunbird, Cinnyris coccinigaster , is a sunbird. The sunbirds are a group of very small Old World passerine birds which feed largely on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young.Their flight is fast and direct on short wings...

     Cinnyris coccinigaster
  • Johanna's Sunbird
    Johanna's Sunbird
    The Johanna's Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and...

     Cinnyris johannae
  • Superb Sunbird
    Superb Sunbird
    The Superb Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra...

     Cinnyris superbus
  • Variable Sunbird
    Variable Sunbird
    The Variable Sunbird, Cinnyris venustus , is a sunbird. The sunbirds are a group of very small Old World passerine birds which feed largely on nectar, although they will also take insects, especially when feeding young. Flight is fast and direct on their short wings...

     Cinnyris venustus
  • Copper Sunbird
    Copper Sunbird
    The Copper Sunbird is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,...

     Cinnyris cupreus

White-eyes

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Zosteropidae

The white-eyes are small and are mostly of undistinguished appearance, the plumage above being generally either some dull color like greenish olive, but some species have a white or bright yellow throat, breast or lower parts, and several have buff flanks. As their name suggests many species have a white ring around the eyes. There are 96 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • African Yellow White-eye
    African Yellow White-eye
    The African Yellow White-eye is a species of bird in the Zosteropidae family.-Taxonomy:The taxa stenocricotus from Central Africa and kirki from the Comoros, by most authorities considered subspecies of the African Yellow White-eye, are occasionally considered separate species, the Cameroon Green...

     Zosterops senegalensis

Old World orioles

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Oriolidae

The Old World Orioles are colourful passerine birds. They are not related to the New World orioles. There are 29 species worldwide and 3 species which occur in Benin.
  • African Golden Oriole
    African Golden Oriole
    The African Golden Oriole is a member of the oriole family of passerine birds which is a resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara....

     Oriolus auratus
  • Western Black-headed Oriole
    Western Black-headed Oriole
    The Western Oriole , also known as the Western Black-headed Oriole, is a species of bird in the Oriolidae family that is native to Africa.-Distribution and habitat:...

     Oriolus brachyrhynchus
  • Black-winged Oriole
    Black-winged Oriole
    The Black-winged Oriole is a species of bird in the Oriolidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone,...

     Oriolus nigripennis

Shrikes

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Laniidae

Shrikes are passerine birds known for their habit of catching other birds and small animals and impaling the uneaten portions of their bodies on thorns. A typical shrike's beak is hooked, like a bird of prey. There are 31 species worldwide and 3 species which occur in Benin.
  • Common Fiscal
    Common Fiscal
    The Common Fiscal is a member of the shrike family found through most of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is also sometimes named Fiscal Shrike, as well as Jackie Hangman or Butcher Bird due to its habit of impaling its prey on acacia thorns to store the food for later consumption. It is sometimes split...

     Lanius collaris
  • Woodchat Shrike
    Woodchat Shrike
    The Woodchat Shrike is a member of the shrike family Laniidae.The Woodchat breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa. It breeds in open cultivated country, preferably with orchard trees and some bare or sandy ground.This migratory medium-sized...

     Lanius senator
  • Yellow-billed Shrike
    Yellow-billed Shrike
    The Yellow-billed Shrike is a small passerine bird in the shrike family. It is sometimes known as Long-tailed Shrike but this is to be discouraged since it invites confusion with the Long-tailed Shrike, Lanius schach, of tropical southern Asia.The Yellow-billed Shrike is a common resident breeding...

     Corvinella corvina

Bushshrikes and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Malaconotidae

Bushshrikes are similar in habits to shrikes, hunting insects and other small prey from a perch on a bush. Although similar in build to the shrikes, these tend to be either colourful species or largely black; some species are quite secretive. There are 46 species worldwide and 13 species which occur in Benin.
  • Brubru
    Brubru
    The Brubru is a member of the bushshrike family found in much of sub-Saharan Africa apart from the western rainforests and southern South Africa. It is the only member of the genus Nilaus.-Distribution and habitat:...

     Nilaus afer
  • Northern Puffback
    Northern Puffback
    The Northern Puffback is a species of bird in the Malaconotidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana,...

     Dryoscopus gambensis
  • Large-billed Puffback
    Large-billed Puffback
    Sabine's Puffback , also known as the Large-billed Puffback, is a species of bird in the Malaconotidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia,...

     Dryoscopus sabini
  • Marsh Tchagra
    Marsh Tchagra
    The Marsh Tchagra is a species of bird in the Malaconotidae family.It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra...

     Tchagra minuta
  • Black-crowned Tchagra
    Black-crowned Tchagra
    The Black-crowned Tchagra is a bushshrike. This family of passerine birds is closely related to the true shrikes in the family Laniidae, and was once included in that group....

     Tchagra senegala
  • Brown-crowned Tchagra
    Brown-crowned Tchagra
    The Brown-crowned Tchagra is a species of bird in the Malaconotidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique,...

     Tchagra australis
  • Tropical Boubou
    Tropical Boubou
    The Tropical Boubou or Bell Shrike is a medium-sized passerine bird of sub-Saharan Africa. This very diverse "species" with its numerous subspecies and morphs has since long posed a taxonomic problem, and recent research suggests it is a cryptic species complex that ought to be split into several...

     Laniarius aethiopicus
  • Common Gonolek Laniarius barbarus
  • Sooty Boubou
    Sooty Boubou
    The Lowland Sooty Boubou , also known as the Sooty Boubou, is a species of bird in the Malaconotidae family...

     Laniarius leucorhynchus
  • Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike
    Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike
    The Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike or Orange-breasted Bush-Shrike is a species of bird in the Malaconotidae family....

     Telophorus sulfureopectus
  • Many-colored Bushshrike Telophorus multicolor
  • Fiery-breasted Bushshrike Malaconotus cruentus
  • Gray-headed Bushshrike Malaconotus blanchoti

Helmetshrikes

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Prionopidae

The helmetshrikes are similar in build to the shrikes, but tend to be colourful species with distinctive crests or other head ornaments, such as wattles, from which they get their name. There are 12 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • White Helmetshrike
    White Helmetshrike
    The White-crested Helmetshrike , also known as the White Helmetshrike, is a species of passerine bird in the helmetshrike family Prionopidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae.-Distribution and habitat:...

     Prionops plumatus
  • Chestnut-bellied Helmetshrike
    Chestnut-bellied Helmetshrike
    The Chestnut-bellied Helmetshrike or Red-billed Helmetshrike is a species of bird in the helmetshrike family Prionopidae, formerly usually included in the Malaconotidae....

     Prionops caniceps

Drongos

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Dicruridae

The drongos are mostly are black or dark grey in colour, sometimes with metallic tints. They have long forked tails, and some Asian species have elaborate tail decorations. They have short legs and sit very upright whilst perched, like a shrike. They flycatch or take prey from the ground. There are 24 species worldwide and 4 species which occur in Benin.
  • Square-tailed Drongo
    Square-tailed Drongo
    The Square-tailed Drongo, Dicrurus ludwigii, is a drongo. The drongos are small passerine birds of the Old World tropics. They were previously classed as the family Dicruridae, but that has been much enlarged to include a number of largely Australasian groups, such as the Australasian fantails,...

     Dicrurus ludwigii
  • Shining Drongo
    Shining Drongo
    The Shining Drongo is a species of bird in the Dicruridae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo.Its natural habitat is...

     Dicrurus atripennis
  • Fork-tailed Drongo
    Fork-tailed Drongo
    The Fork-tailed Drongo, Dicrurus adsimilis, also called the Common Drongo, African Drongo or Savanna Drongo, is a drongo, a type of small passerine bird of the Old World tropics. The species was earlier considered to cover Asia, but the Asian species is now called the Black Drongo...

     Dicrurus adsimilis
  • Velvet-mantled Drongo Dicrurus modestus

Crows, jays, ravens and magpies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Corvidae
Corvidae
Corvidae is a cosmopolitan family of oscine passerine birds that contains the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs and nutcrackers. The common English names used are corvids or the crow family , and there are over 120 species...



The Corvidae family includes crow
Crow
Crows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...

s, raven
Raven
Raven is the common name given to several larger-bodied members of the genus Corvus—but in Europe and North America the Common Raven is normally implied...

s, jay
Jay
The jays are several species of medium-sized, usually colorful and noisy, passerine birds in the crow family Corvidae. The names jay and magpie are somewhat interchangeable, and the evolutionary relationships are rather complex...

s, chough
Chough
The Red-billed Chough or Chough , Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax, is a bird in the crow family; it is one of only two species in the genus Pyrrhocorax...

s, magpie
Magpie
Magpies are passerine birds of the crow family, Corvidae.In Europe, "magpie" is often used by English speakers as a synonym for the European Magpie, as there are no other magpies in Europe outside Iberia...

s, treepie
Treepie
The treepies comprise four closely related genera of long-tailed passerine birds in the family Corvidae...

s, nutcracker
Nutcracker (bird)
The nutcrackers are a genus of two species of passerine bird, in the family Corvidae, related to the jays and crows. One, the Spotted Nutcracker , occurs in Europe and Asia, the other, Clark's Nutcracker , in western North America.The most important food resources for both these species are the...

s, and ground jay
Ground jay
The ground jays or ground choughs belong to a distinct group of the passerine order of birds in the genus Podoces of the crow family Corvidae...

s. Corvids are above average in size for the bird order Passeriformes. Some of the larger species show high levels of learning behavior. There are 120 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Piapiac
    Piapiac
    The Piapiac is a member of the crow family, and is the only member of the genus Ptilostomus. According to recent findings, it is most closely related to the Central Asian ground jays .-Description:...

     Ptilostomus afer
  • Pied Crow
    Pied Crow
    The Pied Crow is a widely distributed African bird species in the crow genus.Structurally, the Pied Crow is better thought of as a small crow-sized Raven, especially as it can hybridise with the Somali Crow where their ranges meet in the Horn of Africa...

     Corvus albus

Starlings

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Sturnidae

Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds. Their flight is strong and direct, and they are very gregarious. Their preferred habitat is fairly open country. They eat insects and fruit. Plumage is typically dark with a metallic sheen. There are 125 species worldwide and 12 species which occur in Benin.
  • Greater Blue-eared Glossy-Starling
    Greater Blue-eared Glossy-starling
    The Greater Blue-eared Glossy-starling or Greater Blue-eared Starling is a bird that breeds from Senegal east to Ethiopia and south through eastern Africa to northeastern South Africa and Angola...

     Lamprotornis chalybaeus
  • Lesser Blue-eared Glossy-Starling
    Lesser Blue-eared Glossy-starling
    The Lesser Blue-eared Glossy-starling or Lesser Blue-eared Starling is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family....

     Lamprotornis chloropterus
  • Bronze-tailed Glossy-Starling
    Bronze-tailed Glossy-starling
    The Bronze-tailed Glossy-starling is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Togo,...

     Lamprotornis chalcurus
  • Splendid Glossy-Starling
    Splendid Glossy-starling
    The Splendid Starling , also known as the Splendid Glossy-starling, is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family...

     Lamprotornis splendidus
  • Purple Glossy-Starling Lamprotornis purpureus
  • Long-tailed Glossy-Starling Lamprotornis caudatus
  • Chestnut-bellied Starling
    Chestnut-bellied Starling
    The Chestnut-bellied Starling is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family.It is found in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, and Togo.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. ....

     Lamprotornis pulcher
  • Violet-backed Starling
    Violet-backed Starling
    The Violet-backed Starling , also known as the Plum-coloured Starling or Amethyst Starling, is a relatively small species of starling in the Sturnidae family. This strongly sexually dimorphic species is found widely in woodland of mainland sub-Saharan Africa.-References:* BirdLife International 2004....

     Cinnyricinclus leucogaster
  • Chestnut-winged Starling
    Chestnut-winged Starling
    The Chestnut-winged Starling is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, São Tomé and Príncipe,...

     Onychognathus fulgidus
  • Neumann's Starling
    Neumann's Starling
    Neumann's Starling, or Neumann's Red-winged Starling Onychognathus neumanni, is a bird native to Africa. This starling breeds on rocky cliffs, outcrops and gorges mainly in the Sahel from Mauretania and Equatorial Guinea to western Sudan...

     Onychognathus neumanni
  • Narrow-tailed Starling
    Narrow-tailed Starling
    The Narrow-tailed Starling is a species of starling in the Sturnidae family.It is found in West and Central Africa from Sierra Leone to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.. The male is dark blue and the female is dark gray with chestnut-colored patches on the wings, visible in flight. Both sexes...

     Poeoptera lugubris
  • Yellow-billed Oxpecker
    Yellow-billed Oxpecker
    The Yellow-billed Oxpecker, Buphagus africanus, is a passerine bird in the starling and myna family Sturnidae; some ornithologists regard the Oxpeckers to be a separate family, the Buphagidae . It is native to the savannah of sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal east to Sudan...

     Buphagus africanus

Weavers and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Ploceidae

The weavers are small passerine birds related to the finch
Finch
The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...

es. They are seed-eating birds with rounded conical bills. The males of many species are brightly coloured, usually in red or yellow and black, some species show variation in colour only in the breeding season. There are 116 species worldwide and 29 species which occur in Benin.
  • White-billed Buffalo-Weaver
    White-billed Buffalo-weaver
    The White-billed Buffalo Weaver is a resident breeding bird species in most of Africa south of the Sahara Desert....

     Bubalornis albirostris
  • Speckle-fronted Weaver
    Speckle-fronted Weaver
    The Speckle-fronted Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.Its natural...

     Sporopipes frontalis
  • Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver
    Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-weaver
    The Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver is a species of bird in the Passeridae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria,...

     Plocepasser superciliosus
  • Slender-billed Weaver
    Slender-billed Weaver
    The Slender-billed Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, and Zambia.-References:*...

     Ploceus pelzelni
  • Little Weaver
    Little Weaver
    The Little Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan,...

     Ploceus luteolus
  • Black-necked Weaver
    Black-necked Weaver
    The Black-necked Weaver is a resident breeding bird species in much of tropical Africa from Senegal and northern Angola, South Sudan and Tanzania.-Distribution and biology:This weaver occurs in forests, especially in wet habitats...

     Ploceus nigricollis
  • Orange Weaver
    Orange Weaver
    The Orange Weaver Finch is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, and Uganda...

     Ploceus aurantius
  • Heuglin's Masked-Weaver
    Heuglin's Masked-weaver
    The Heuglin's Masked Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Togo, and Uganda.-References:* BirdLife...

     Ploceus heuglini
  • Vitelline Masked-Weaver
    Vitelline Masked-weaver
    The Vitelline Masked Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, São Tomé and Príncipe,...

     Ploceus vitellinus
  • Village Weaver
    Village Weaver
    The Village Weaver , also known as the Spotted-backed Weaver or Black-headed Weaver , is a species of bird found in much of sub-Saharan Africa...

     Ploceus cucullatus
  • Vieillot's Weaver Ploceus nigerrimus
  • Black-headed Weaver
    Black-headed Weaver
    The Black-headed Weaver , also known as the Yellow-backed Weaver, is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. It is found in savanna and similar habitats, typically near water, in West, Central and East Africa. It has also been introduced to Spain and Portugal.-References:* BirdLife International...

     Ploceus melanocephalus
  • Yellow-mantled Weaver
    Yellow-mantled Weaver
    The Yellow-mantled Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan,...

     Ploceus tricolor
  • Maxwell's Black Weaver
    Maxwell's Black Weaver
    The Maxwell's Black Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Uganda.-References:*...

     Ploceus albinucha
  • Preuss's Weaver
    Preuss's Weaver
    The Preuss's Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. ....

     Ploceus preussi
  • Compact Weaver
    Compact Weaver
    The Compact Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria,...

     Pachyphantes superciliosus
  • Red-vented Malimbe
    Red-vented Malimbe
    The Red-vented Malimbe is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Benin, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical swamps....

     Malimbus scutatus
  • Gray's Malimbe
    Gray's Malimbe
    The Blue-billed Malimbe is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali,...

     Malimbus nitens
  • Crested Malimbe
    Crested Malimbe
    The Crested Malimbe is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Uganda.Its...

     Malimbus malimbicus
  • Red-headed Malimbe
    Red-headed Malimbe
    The Red-headed Malimbe is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Sierra...

     Malimbus rubricollis
  • Red-headed Weaver
    Red-headed Weaver
    The Red-headed Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Anaplectes....

     Anaplectes rubriceps
  • Red-headed Quelea
    Red-headed Quelea
    The Red-headed Quelea is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana,...

     Quelea erythrops
  • Red-billed Quelea
    Red-billed Quelea
    The Red-billed Quelea is the world's most abundant wild bird species, with an estimated adult breeding population of 1.5 billion pairs. Some estimates of the overall population have been as large as 10 billion...

     Quelea quelea
  • Yellow-crowned Bishop
    Yellow-crowned Bishop
    The Yellow-crowned Bishop is a species of passerine bird in the family Ploceidae native to Africa south of the Sahara. It is highly sexually dimorphic in its breeding season, during which the male adopts a distinctive yellow and black plumage, contrasting with the female's predominantly brown...

     Euplectes afer
  • Black-winged Bishop Euplectes hordeaceus
  • Orange Bishop Euplectes franciscanus
  • Yellow-shouldered Widowbird
    Yellow-shouldered Widowbird
    The Yellow-mantled Widowbird is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. It is the type species of the Euplectes genus, originally named from the city of Ouidah in Benin. Nowadays the name Whydah The Yellow-mantled Widowbird (Euplectes macroura) is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. It...

     Euplectes macrourus
  • Red-collared Widowbird
    Red-collared Widowbird
    The Red-collared Widowbird is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau,...

     Euplectes ardens
  • Grosbeak Weaver
    Grosbeak Weaver
    The Thick-billed Weaver or Thick-billed Weaver is a species of bird in the Ploceidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Amblyospiza....

     Amblyospiza albifrons

Waxbills and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Estrildidae

The estrildid finch
Estrildid finch
The estrildid finches are small passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia. They can be classified as the family Estrildidae , or as a sub-group within the family Passeridae, which also includes the true sparrows....

es are small passerine birds of the Old World tropics and Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...

. They are gregarious and often colonial seed-eaters with short thick but pointed bills. They are all similar in structure and habits, but have a wide variation in plumage colours and pattern. There are 141 species worldwide and 27 species which occur in Benin.
  • White-breasted Negrofinch
    White-breasted Negrofinch
    The White-breasted Negrofinch is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global Extent of Occurrence of 2,700,000 km²....

     Nigrita fusconota
  • Chestnut-breasted Negrofinch
    Chestnut-breasted Negrofinch
    The Chestnut-breasted Negrofinch is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 3,000,000 km².-Habitat:...

     Nigrita bicolor
  • Gray-headed Negrofinch Nigrita canicapilla
  • Gray-headed Oliveback Nesocharis capistrata
  • Red-winged Pytilia
    Red-winged Pytilia
    The Red-winged Pytilia is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 370,000 km²....

     Pytilia phoenicoptera
  • Red-faced Pytilia
    Red-faced Pytilia
    The Yellow-winged Pytilia , also known as the Red-faced Pytilia, is an African estrildid finch. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 250,000 km²....

     Pytilia hypogrammica
  • Green-backed Twinspot
    Green-backed Twinspot
    The Green-backed Twinspot is an estrildid finch found in sub-saharan Africa. This species is evaluated as Least Concern.-Subspecies:The Green-backed Twinspot has four sub-species:* Mandingoa nitidula chubbi...

     Mandingoa nitidula
  • Black-bellied Seedcracker
    Black-bellied Seedcracker
    The Black-bellied Seedcracker is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 4,500,000 km²....

     Pyrenestes ostrinus
  • Western Bluebill
    Western Bluebill
    The Western Bluebill is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 1,900,000 km²....

     Spermophaga haematina
  • Dybowski's Twinspot
    Dybowski's Twinspot
    The Dybowski's Twinspot is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 450,000 km²....

     Euschistospiza dybowskii
  • Bar-breasted Firefinch
    Bar-breasted Firefinch
    The Bar-breasted Firefinch is a common species of estrildid finch found in central Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 2,900,000 km²....

     Lagonosticta rufopicta
  • Red-billed Firefinch
    Red-billed Firefinch
    The Red-billed Firefinch or Senegal Firefinch is a very small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is a resident breeding bird in almost all parts of sub-Saharan Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 10,000,000 km²...

     Lagonosticta senegala
  • Black-bellied Firefinch
    Black-bellied Firefinch
    The Black-bellied Firefinch is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 2,300,000 km²....

     Lagonosticta rara
  • African Firefinch
    African Firefinch
    The African Firefinch , also called the Blue-billed Firefinch due to the color of its bill, is a common species of estrildid finch found in almost all parts of Africa...

     Lagonosticta rubricata
  • Black-faced Firefinch Lagonosticta larvata
  • Red-cheeked Cordonbleu Uraeginthus bengalus
  • Lavender Waxbill
    Lavender Waxbill
    The Lavender Waxbill is a common species of estrildid finch native to Central Africa and widely introduced in the USA...

     Estrilda caerulescens
  • Orange-cheeked Waxbill
    Orange-Cheeked Waxbill
    The Orange-cheeked Waxbill Estrilda melpoda is a common species of estrildid finch native to western and central Africa, with an estimated global extent of occurrence of 3,600,000 km².-Lifestyle:...

     Estrilda melpoda
  • Black-rumped Waxbill
    Black-rumped Waxbill
    The Black-rumped Waxbill is a common species of estrildid finch found in Southern Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 2,000,000 km²....

     Estrilda troglodytes
  • Common Waxbill
    Common Waxbill
    The Common Waxbill , also known as the St Helena Waxbill, is a small passerine bird belonging to the estrildid finch family. It is native to sub-Saharan Africa but has been introduced to many other regions of the world and now has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 10,000,000 km²...

     Estrilda astrild
  • Zebra Waxbill
    Zebra Waxbill
    The Zebra Waxbill or Orange-breasted Waxbill is a small sparrow-like bird with a reddish iris, orange breast, red bill and dark olive-green plumage. The male has a red rump, dark bars on the whitish flank and a scarlet eyebrow stripe...

     Sporaeginthus subflavus
  • Black-faced Quailfinch Ortygospiza atricollis
  • African Silverbill
    African Silverbill
    The African Silverbill is a small passerine bird formerly considered conspecific with the Asian species Indian Silverbill, . This estrildid finch is a common resident breeding bird in dry savanna habitat, south of the Sahara Desert...

     Euodice cantans
  • Bronze Mannikin
    Bronze Mannikin
    The Bronze Mannikin or Bronze Munia Lonchura cucullata is a small passerine bird. This estrildid finch is an abundant resident breeding bird in much of Africa south of the Sahara Desert of dry savanna habitats...

     Spermestes cucullatus
  • Black-and-white Mannikin
    Black-and-white Mannikin
    The Black-and-white Mannikin or Black-and-white Munia Lonchura bicolor is a species of estrildid finch found in southern and central Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 4,200,000 km²....

     Spermestes bicolor
  • Magpie Mannikin
    Magpie Mannikin
    The Magpie Mannikin or Magpie Munia Lonchura fringilloides is a species of estrildid finch found in southern and central Africa. It has an estimated global extent of occurrence of 1,400,000 km²....

     Spermestes fringilloides
  • Cut-throat
    Cut-throat Finch
    The Cut-throat Finch Amadina fasciata is a common species of estrildid finch found in Africa and originated in Africa, also known as the Bearded Finch, the Ribbon Finch, the Cut Throat, or the Weaver Finch....

     Amadina fasciata

Indigobirds

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Viduidae

The indigobirds are finch-like species which usually have black or indigo predominating in their plumage. All are brood parasites, which lay their eggs in the nests of estrildid finch species. There are 20 species worldwide and 8 species which occur in Benin.
  • Village Indigobird
    Village Indigobird
    The Village Indigobird, Vidua chalybeata, is a small songbird. It is a resident breeding bird in most of Africa south of the Sahara Desert....

     Vidua chalybeata
  • Jambandu Indigobird
    Jambandu Indigobird
    The Jambandu Indigobird is a species of bird in the Viduidae family. It is also known as the Goldbreast Indigobird....

     Vidua raricola
  • Baka Indigobird
    Baka Indigobird
    The Barka Indigobird is a species of bird in the Viduidae family. It is found in Cameroon, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Nigeria, and Sudan. It is also known as the Baka Indigobird but the spelling "barka" is more correct; the word is a greeting in the Hausa language.-References:* BirdLife...

     Vidua larvaticola
  • Pale-winged Indigobird
    Pale-winged Indigobird
    Wilson's Indigobird or Pale-winged Indigobird is a species of bird in the Viduidae family. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, and Togo.-References:*...

     Vidua wilsoni
  • Cameroon Indigobird
    Cameroon Indigobird
    The Cameroon Indigobird is a species of bird in the Viduidae family. It is considered by some authors to be a subspecies of the Variable Indigobird . Range Sierra Leone to east Cameroon, north east Zaire and southern Sudan....

     Vidua camerunensis
  • Pin-tailed Whydah
    Pin-tailed Whydah
    The Pin-tailed Whydah, Vidua macroura, is a small songbird. It is a resident breeding bird in most of Africa south of the Sahara Desert.This whydah is found in many open habitats including open woodland, scrub and cultivation....

     Vidua macroura
  • Togo Paradise-Whydah
    Togo Paradise-whydah
    The Togo Paradise-whydah is a species of bird in the Viduidae family.It is found in Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Mali, Sierra Leone, and Togo.-References:...

     Vidua togoensis
  • Long-tailed Paradise-Whydah
    Long-tailed Paradise-whydah
    The Exclamatory Paradise Whydah or Uelle Paradise Whydah is a species of bird in the Viduidae family. It is also known as the Long-tailed Paradise Whydah, a name which can refer to Vidua paradisaea....

     Vidua interjecta

Weavers and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Ploceidae

The weavers are small passerine birds related to the finch
Finch
The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...

es. They are seed-eating birds with rounded conical bills. The males of many species are brightly coloured, usually in red or yellow and black, some species show variation in colour only in the breeding season. There are 116 species worldwide and 1 species which occurs in Benin.
  • Parasitic Weaver
    Parasitic Weaver
    The Cuckoo Finch , also known as the Parasitic Weaver or Cuckoo Weaver, is a small passerine bird now placed in the family Viduidae with the indigobirds and whydahs. It occurs in grassland in Africa south of the Sahara. The male is mainly yellow and green while the female is buff with dark streaks...

     Anomalospiza imberbis

Buntings, sparrows, seedeaters and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Emberizidae
Emberizidae
The Emberizidae are a large family of passerine birds. They are seed-eating birds with a distinctively shaped bill.In Europe, most species are called buntings. In North America, most of the species in this family are known as sparrows, but these birds are not closely related to the sparrows, the...



The emberizids are a large family of passerine birds. They are seed-eating birds with a distinctively shaped bill. In Europe, most species are named as buntings. In North America, most of the species in this family are known as Sparrows, but these birds are not closely related to the Old World sparrows which are in the family Passeridae. Many emberizid species have distinctive head patterns. There are species 275 worldwide and 4 species which occur in Benin.
  • Cinnamon-breasted Bunting
    Cinnamon-breasted Bunting
    The Cinnamon-breasted Bunting is a species of bird in the Emberizidae family. It is found in Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon,...

     Emberiza tahapisi
  • Golden-breasted Bunting
    Golden-breasted Bunting
    The Golden-breasted Bunting, Emberiza flaviventris, is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae. It occurs in dry open woodlands in Africa south of the Sahara, but is absent from the equatorial forest belt.There are three subspecies:...

     Emberiza flaviventris
  • Brown-rumped Bunting
    Brown-rumped Bunting
    The Brown-rumped Bunting is a species of bird in the Emberizidae family.It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal,...

     Emberiza affinis
  • Cabanis's Bunting
    Cabanis's Bunting
    The Cabanis's Bunting is a species of bird in the Emberizidae family.It is found in Angola, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique,...

     Emberiza cabanisi

Siskins, crossbills and allies

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Fringillidae

Finch
Finch
The true finches are passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. They are predominantly seed-eating songbirds. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere, but one subfamily is endemic to the Neotropics, one to the Hawaiian Islands, and one subfamily – monotypic at genus level – is found...

es are seed-eating passerine birds, that are small to moderately large and have a strong beak, usually conical and in some species very large. All have 12 tail feathers and 9 primaries. These birds have a bouncing flight with alternating bouts of flapping and gliding on closed wings, and most sing well. There are 137 species worldwide and 3 species which occur in Benin.
  • White-rumped Seedeater
    White-rumped Seedeater
    The White-Rumped Seedeater is a species of finch in the Fringillidae family.It is found in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Togo, Uganda, and the United...

     Serinus leucopygius
  • Yellow-fronted Canary
    Yellow-fronted Canary
    The Yellow-fronted Canary is a small passerine bird in the finch family. It is known elsewhere and in aviculture as the Green Singing Finch....

     Serinus mozambicus
  • Streaky-headed Seedeater
    Streaky-headed Seedeater
    The Streaky-headed Seedeater or Streaky-headed Canary is a small passerine bird in the finch family. It is a common resident breeder in suitable habitat in much of Africa south of the Sahara....

     Serinus gularis

Sparrows

Order: Passeriformes. Family: Passeridae

Sparrow
Sparrow
The sparrows are a family of small passerine birds, Passeridae. They are also known as true sparrows, or Old World sparrows, names also used for a genus of the family, Passer...

s are small passerine birds. In general, sparrows tend to be small, plump, brown or grey birds with short tails and short powerful beaks. Sparrows are seed-eaters, and they also consume small insects. There are 35 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Benin.
  • Gray-headed Sparrow Passer griseus
  • Bush Petronia
    Bush Petronia
    The Bush Petronia is a species of bird in the Passeridae family. It is found in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Ivory Coast, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, Uganda, and Yemen...

    Petronia dentata

External links

  • Birds of Benin Birdlist, multi-lingual website by country with standardized codes for abundance and seasonal presence.
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