Birds of Grenada (First Edition Grenada Handbook)

Brown Hummingbird (Doctor Bird)

Glaucis hirsuta

• Length: ~5 in
• Brown and green; very long bill
• Status: Endemic to Grenada; very rare

Green Hummingbird

Sericotes holosericeus

• Length: ~4 in
• Green, sometimes very dark
• Status: Common

Crested Hummingbird (Coulibri)

Orthorhyncus cristatus

• Length: ~3 in
• Green and black with a crest
• Status: Quite common

Mountain Swift

Chaetura martinica

• Length: ~4 in
• Black overall
• Status: Not common

Grey-rumped Swift

Chaetura cinereiventris

• Length: ~4 in
• Black with grey rump
• Status: Fairly common (notably along Grand Etang Road)

Black Swift

Nephoecetes niger

• Length: 6–7 in
• Long curved wings
• Status: Very rare; may appear in any month

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Purple Swallow (Purple Martin)

Progne dominicensis

• Length: ~7 in
• Dark above, light below, black face
• Status: Common except November–January

Cave or Cliff Swallow

Petrochelidon fulva

• Length: ~5 in
• Black and brown with white markings
• Status: Migrant (November–January); common when present

Rufous-bellied Swallow

Hirundo erythrogaster

• Length: ~7 in
• Dark above, mottled below; no black face
• Status: Very rare spring migrant

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Pippiree

Tyrannus dominicensis vorax

• Length: ~9 in
• Black head, grey-brown body, white breast
• Status: Very common

Yellow Pippiree

Tyrannus melancholicus

• Length: ~9 in
• Less black on head; yellow underparts
• Status: Very rare

Gros-tête Pippiree

Myiarchus tyrannulus nugator

• Length: ~8 in
• Brown head; russet in tail; shy
• Status: Common

Top-knot Pippiree

Elaenia flavogaster

• Length: ~6 in
• Crested; barred wings; yellowish below
• Status: Common

Fork-tailed Flycatcher

Muscivora tyrannus

• Length: 11–16 in
• Very long forked tail
• Status: Very rare migrant

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House Wren (God-bird)

Troglodytes musculus grenadensis

• Length: ~5 in
• Rich brown; sings readily
• Status: Common

Pied Carreau (Mockingbird)

Mimus gilvus

• Length: ~10 in
• Grey with white markings; excellent singer
• Status: Very common

Spotted Grieve

Allenia fusca

• Length: ~9 in
• Dull brown; white-tipped feathers
• Status: Very rare

Yellow-eyed Thrush (Grieve)

Turdus nudigenis

• Length: ~9 in
• Brown with yellow eye-ring
• Status: Common

Mountain Grieve

Turdus fumigatus

• Length: ~9 in
• Dark brown; no eye-ring
• Status: Not common

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Yellow See-see

Coereba flaveola

• Length: 4–5 in
• Bright yellow below; white eyebrow
• Status: Rare in Grenada

Black See-see

Coereba flaveola atrata

• Length: ~4 in
• Melanistic (black) form
• Status: Very common in Grenada

Blue-black See-see

Volatinia jacarina

• Length: ~4 in
• Male blue-black; female brown
• Status: Rare migrant from Trinidad

Ground Quit (See-see z’Herbes)

Tiaris bicolor

• Length: ~4 in
• Male with black face
• Status: Tame and common

Merle (Blackbird)

Holoquiscalus lugubris

• Length: ~10 in
• Black with keel-shaped tail
• Status: Very common

Cowbird

Molothrus bonariensis

• Length: ~7 in
• Migrant (May–September)
• Status: Common

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Ramier

Columba squamosa

• Length: ~14 in
• Dark blue-purple
• Status: Common

Grenada Dove (Pea Dove)

Leptotila wellsi

• Length: ~12 in
• White crown
• Status: Extremely rare and endemic

Seaside Dove

Zenaida aurita

• Length: ~10 in
• Reddish-brown with white wing patches
• Status: Common

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Owl (Chawan)

Tyto insularis

• Length: ~12 in
• Screeches rather than hoots
• Status: Common

Chicken Hawk (Gree-gree)

Buteo platypterus

• Length: ~15 in
• Whistling call
• Status: Common

Mountain Hawk

Chondrohierax uncinatus

• Length: ~16 in
• Strongly hooked bill
• Status: Very rare

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Waterbirds and Shorebirds

(Includes herons, plovers, sandpipers, rails, ducks, and grebes — migrants and residents)

Examples:

• Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps) – Not rare
• Caribbean Coot (Fulica caribaea) – Locally common
• Wilson’s Snipe (Capella delicata) – Winter migrant
• Least Sandpiper (Pisobia minutilla) – Not uncommon
• Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) – Rare migrant

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Brown Pelican

Pelecanus occidentalis

• Length: ~50 in
• Present most of the year

Laughing Gull

Larus atricilla

• Length: ~16 in
• Common in spring and summer

Roseate Tern

Sterna dougallii

• Length: ~15 in
• Breeds locally; common in season

Audubon’s Shearwater (Diablotin)

Puffinus lherminieri

• Length: ~11 in
• Rare; heard at night during breeding season