37 Birds That Start with D: From the Dickcissel to the Dusky Eagle-Owl
October 24, 2026
Bird names that start with D cover an unusually wide slice of the avian world, from a six-inch prairie songbird to the heaviest flying bird on the planet. This list pulls together 37 species and subspecies groups whose common names begin with the letter D, spanning six continents and habitats as different as Arctic cliffs, Amazonian rainforest, and the open deserts of the American Southwest.
Whether this list is a stop on a longer alphabetical bird species list or a standalone reference for a birdwatching trip, each entry below includes the scientific name, family, and the field marks that make the species recognizable. This guide sits alongside companion pieces covering birds that start with K and birds that start with I, part of a broader ornithology reference built one letter at a time.
| Bird | Region | Typical Habitat |
|---|---|---|
| Dickcissel | Central and eastern North America | Grasslands and weedy fields |
| Dalmatian Pelican | Southeastern Europe to China | Freshwater lakes and deltas |
| Dovekie | North Atlantic and Arctic | Open ocean and sea cliffs |
| Downy Woodpecker | North America | Deciduous woodlands and backyards |
| Dwarf Cassowary | New Guinea | Montane rainforest |
1. Dickcissel
The Spiza americana is a sparrow-sized grassland bird best known for the buzzy, repetitive song that gave it its name. According to Britannica, the male dickcissel is a streaky brown bird with a black bib on its yellow breast, named for its song—is a streaky brown bird 16 cm (6.5 inches) long, with a black bib on its yellow breast, looking somewhat like a miniature meadowlark.
Dickcissels breed across the central and eastern United States and winter far south of the border. When winter comes, they fly south to Central America, northern Colombia, and northern Venezuela, often gathering in massive flocks once they arrive. A-Z Animals notes that despite its sparrow-like build, the species is not a true sparrow despite its grassland habits, as it belongs to the Cardinalidae family alongside cardinals and grosbeaks. The quirky, self-descriptive name puts the dickcissel in good company among other birds with weird names.
2. Dalmatian Pelican
Few birds on this list command attention the way the Pelecanus crispus does. Wikipedia describes it as the largest member of the pelican family and among the heaviest flying birds in the world, with a wingspan typically ranging between 2.7 and 3.2 metres, placing it among the largest soaring birds anywhere.
Its shaggy, curled nape feathers and oversized bill make it unmistakable on the water. iNaturalist notes that this massive member of the pelican family is the world’s largest freshwater bird, with flocks that fly in graceful synchrony. The orange-red pouch beneath that enormous bill puts it among other birds with orange beaks, and the species breeds across a huge stretch of Eurasia, from the Mediterranean to the Taiwan Strait.
Pro Tip: Many D-named birds take their common names from physical quirks rather than color alone — double teeth, double bands, and double crests all describe anatomy, not appearance at a glance. Reading the name closely before scanning a field guide photo often speeds up identification.
3. Double-Toothed Kite
The Double-toothed Kite (Harpagus bidentatus) is a small forest raptor of Central and South America named for a tooth-like notch along the edge of its upper bill. It hunts lizards, insects, and small birds in the canopy and understory of tropical rainforest. This kite has a memorable foraging habit: it often trails troops of monkeys through the treetops, snatching up insects the primates startle into flight as they move through branches.
4. Doubleday’s Hummingbird
Doubleday’s Hummingbird (Cynanthus doubledayi) is a small, iridescent hummingbird associated with the arid scrub and tropical deciduous woodlands of southern Mexico, particularly along the Pacific slope of Oaxaca and Guerrero. Males show glittering green upperparts and a slightly forked tail, typical of the broader Cynanthus group of hummingbirds found across Mexico. Like most hummingbirds, it feeds on nectar from flowering shrubs and supplements its diet with small insects for protein.
5. Downy Woodpecker
The Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) is the smallest woodpecker in North America and one of the most familiar backyard birds across the continent. Its black-and-white plumage, spotted wings, and the small red patch on the male’s nape make it easy to pick out at a suet feeder or along a wooded trail. Downy Woodpeckers drum on dead branches to communicate and to excavate insect larvae from beneath the bark, producing a soft, rapid tapping that differs from the louder hammering of larger woodpecker species.
6. Drab Hemispingus
The Drab Hemispingus (Hemispingus xanthophthalmus) lives up to its understated name with olive-gray plumage that blends easily into the Andean cloud forest understory where it forages. Found in the mountains of Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador, this small tanager typically travels in mixed-species flocks, hopping through dense foliage in search of insects and small fruit. A pale eye offers one of the few visible contrasts against its otherwise muted coloring.
7. Dark-Winged Miner
The Dark-winged Miner (Geositta saxicolina) belongs to the ovenbird family and lives in one of the harshest environments on this list: the rocky, high-altitude puna grasslands of the Peruvian Andes. True to its name, it forages almost entirely on the ground, probing rocky slopes and sparse vegetation for insects. Like other members of the miner group, it nests in burrows or rock crevices rather than building an exposed nest.
8. Dark-Winged Trumpeter
The Dark-winged Trumpeter (Psophia obscura), sometimes called the Obscure Trumpeter, is a large, turkey-sized ground bird found in the Brazilian Amazon south of the Amazon River. Trumpeters travel in close-knit social groups and communicate with the deep, resonant calls that give the family its name. Deforestation across its limited Amazonian range has made this species one of the more vulnerable members of the trumpeter family, Psophiidae.
9. Dimorphic Fantail
The Dimorphic Fantail (Rhipidura brachyrhyncha) takes its name from the two distinct color morphs found within the species, a rufous form and a gray form, both occurring in the same mountain forests of New Guinea. Like other fantails, it flares its tail into a fan shape while hopping through foliage, a behavior that helps flush hidden insects into the open. The species is common within its restricted montane range despite the unusual variation in plumage.
10. Dinelli’s Doradito
Dinelli’s Doradito (Pseudocolopteryx dinelliana) is a small tyrant flycatcher named after the Italian-Argentine naturalist who first documented it. It favors reedbeds and marsh vegetation across northern Argentina and parts of Bolivia, where its yellowish underparts and short, fine bill help distinguish it from similar marsh-dwelling flycatchers. Doraditos are agile foragers, picking insects directly from reed stems rather than flying out to catch prey in open air.
11. Dja River Scrub Warbler
The Dja River Scrub Warbler (Bradypterus grandis) is one of the least-studied birds on this list, known mainly from dense understory vegetation along the Dja River basin of Cameroon and neighboring Gabon. As a skulking member of the grassbird family, it spends most of its life low in thick cover, making it far easier to hear than to see. Its restricted range within the Congo Basin rainforest has kept detailed population data scarce.
Important Note: Several species on this list, including the Dja River Scrub Warbler and the Dark-winged Trumpeter, occupy narrow ranges in regions with limited field research. Population figures for these birds should be treated as general estimates rather than precise counts.
12. Dovekie
The Dovekie (Alle alle) is a chunky little seabird that nests in enormous colonies on Arctic cliffs across Greenland and Svalbard before spending the rest of the year far out on the North Atlantic. The name reflects its dove-sized proportions. As with many auks, it dives underwater to catch small crustaceans and other zooplankton rather than fish, using its stubby wings to swim as much as fly.
13. Drongo
Drongos make up the family Dicruridae, roughly 30 species spread across Africa, Asia, and Australia, most of them glossy black with long, forked tails. The Fork-tailed Drongo is one of the best-known members of the group, famous for fiercely mobbing much larger birds of prey and for mimicking the alarm calls of other species to scare rivals away from food. That glossy, all-dark plumage puts drongos squarely among other birds with black heads, and their range stretches from birds that start with X in Australia’s arid interior to species found deep in African savanna, filling in territory between birds beginning with Z and this very D list.
14. Dotterel
The Eurasian Dotterel (Charadrius morinellus) is a small, confiding plover that breeds on Arctic and alpine tundra across Scandinavia, Scotland, and Siberia. Dotterels reverse the usual roles seen in most birds: females display the brighter plumage and compete for mates, while males take on most of the incubation and chick-rearing duties. After breeding, the species migrates to winter across North Africa and the Middle East.
15. Dolphin Gull
The Dolphin Gull (Leucophaeus scoresbii) is a coastal gull restricted to the far southern tip of South America. Field guides describe it as a bird of muddy, sandy, or rocky shores across southern Chile, Argentina, and the Falkland Islands, with a diet that ranges from marine invertebrates and bird eggs to carrion. It often nests close to other seabird colonies, scavenging opportunistically rather than hunting live prey outright.
16. Dartford Warbler
The Dartford Warbler (Curruca undated, commonly written Curruca undata) is a small, secretive warbler tied closely to heathland habitats in southern England and across parts of western Europe. Unlike most European warblers, it does not migrate long distances, making it unusually vulnerable to hard winters that can wipe out local populations. Gorse and heather scrub provide both food and shelter for this reddish-brown bird with its distinctive red eye-ring.
17. Dwarf Cassowary
The Dwarf Cassowary (Casuarius bennetti) is the smallest of the three cassowary species, though it still stands as a powerful, flightless bird of New Guinea’s montane rainforests. The scientific name commemorates the Australian naturalist George Bennett, who contributed early descriptions of the species. Like its larger relatives, it carries a bony casque on its head and relies on dense forest cover for both food and protection.
18. Dwarf Fruit Dove
The Dwarf Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus nainus) is one of the smallest members of the Columbidae family, found in lowland and foothill forest across New Guinea and the Raja Ampat Islands. Its compact green body carries small patches of color on the crown and underparts, helping it blend into fruiting canopy trees. Like other fruit doves, it feeds almost entirely on small forest fruits and plays an important role in seed dispersal.
19. Desert Thrasher
Desert Thrasher is a name sometimes applied to Le Conte’s Thrasher (Toxostoma lecontei), a pale, sandy-colored bird built for life in the sparse scrub of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts of the American Southwest and northern Mexico. Its long, down-curved bill is well suited to probing loose soil for insects, and when startled it tends to run rather than fly, disappearing quickly behind low desert vegetation. The species is notoriously difficult to spot against its matching sandy backdrop.
20. Diamond Firetail
The Diamond Firetail (Stagonopleura guttata) is an Australian finch known for the row of white spots across its black flanks, which give the bird its gem-like name. A scarlet rump and a striking coral-red bill place it among other birds with red beaks, and it favors open grassy woodlands across southeastern Australia. Diamond Firetails typically forage in small flocks on the ground, feeding on grass seeds close to cover.
21. Double-Banded Plover
The Double-banded Plover (Anarhynchus bicinctus) breeds on the braided riverbeds and open coastlines of New Zealand, where breeding adults display the two chest bands, one black and one chestnut, that give the species its name. Outside the breeding season, most of the population crosses the Tasman Sea to winter along the coasts of Australia. This long-distance movement makes it one of the more notable migratory shorebirds in the Southern Hemisphere.
22. Double-Barred Finch
The Double-barred Finch (Taeniopygia bichenovii) is a small Australian grassfinch recognizable by the black-and-white barring across its flanks and the dark “spectacles” that ring its face. It favors grassy woodlands across northern and eastern Australia, where it moves in tight flocks searching for seed. The owl-like facial pattern is one of the more distinctive features among Australia’s estrildid finches.
Key Insight: Australia contributes an outsized share of birds that start with D, including the Diamond Firetail, Double-barred Finch, Diamond Dove, and Dimorphic Fantail relatives. The continent’s long isolation produced a wealth of small, boldly patterned finches and doves found nowhere else.
23. Duck
Duck is a broad common name covering dozens of species in the family Anatidae, with the Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) standing as the most widespread and familiar representative across the Northern Hemisphere. Ducks fall into several feeding groups:
- Dabbling ducks, like the Mallard, that tip forward to feed near the water’s surface
- Diving ducks that submerge fully to reach food deeper underwater
- Sea ducks adapted to coastal and offshore marine environments
- Perching ducks that nest in tree cavities rather than on the ground
Backyard feeders that attract ducks to ponds should also check which plants are poisonous to birds, since several common ornamental species pose a real risk to waterfowl grazing nearby.
24. Dove
Dove is the common name shared by many smaller members of the pigeon family Columbidae, with the Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) ranking among the most familiar across North America. Its soft, mournful cooing call and the whistling sound of its wings in flight make it one of the more recognizable backyard and farmland birds in the United States. Mourning Doves also rank among the most frequently hunted game birds in the country, thanks to healthy populations and wide distribution.
25. Dunlin
The Dunlin (Calidris alpina) is a small sandpiper that breeds across Arctic tundra in both North America and Eurasia before wintering along temperate coastlines worldwide. Breeding adults show a distinctive black belly patch paired with a slightly drooped bill tip, two features that separate them from similar small shorebirds. Dunlins often gather in dense flocks on mudflats, wheeling together in tight formation when a predator approaches.
26. Dark-Eyed Junco
The Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) is one of the most common sparrows in North America, instantly recognizable by its pink bill and the sharp contrast between dark upperparts and a bright white belly. Several regional subspecies exist, including an Oregon form with a near-black hood that places it among other birds with black heads. Many people know this species simply as the “snowbird,” since flocks often appear at feeders just as winter sets in.
27. Darter
Darter is the common name for members of the family Anhinganidae, cormorant-like waterbirds with an unusually long, S-shaped neck used to spear fish underwater. The African Darter (Anhinga rufa) swims with its body almost fully submerged, leaving only its thin neck and head visible above the surface, a habit that earned the group the nickname “snakebird.” Because darter feathers are not fully waterproof, the birds must spend long stretches perched with wings spread to dry after each dive.
28. Dunnock
The Dunnock (Prunella modularis) is a small, brown European songbird often mistaken for a sparrow, though it actually belongs to the separate accentor family, Prunellidae. It shuffles quietly through hedgerows and garden undergrowth, foraging for insects and seeds close to the ground. Dunnocks are also known among ornithologists for an unusually flexible mating system, with some individuals practicing polyandry, where one female mates with multiple males who help raise the brood.
29. Dipper
Dippers make up the small family Cinclidae, aquatic songbirds that forage by walking along the bottoms of fast-flowing mountain streams. The American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus) is the only species found in western North America, bobbing on rocks between dives and flashing pale eyelids as it hunts aquatic insects and small fish. Few songbirds anywhere are as thoroughly adapted to life underwater as this stocky, slate-gray bird.
30. Diamond Dove
The Diamond Dove (Geopelia cuneata) is the smallest dove native to Australia, favoring the arid scrub of the continent’s dry interior. A bold red ring around each eye places it among other birds with red eyes, while the scattering of white spots across its wings puts it among birds with white wings as well. Its small size and calm temperament have also made it one of the more popular doves kept in aviaries outside its native range.
Common Mistake: The Diamond Dove and Diamond Firetail are frequently confused by name alone, but they belong to entirely different families — one a dove, the other a finch — and share no close relationship beyond the coincidence of common names.
31. Desert Owl
The Desert Owl (Strix hadorami), also known as Hume’s Owl, hunts the rocky canyons and arid landscapes of the Middle East, including parts of Israel, Egypt, and the Arabian Peninsula. Pale, sandy-colored plumage helps it blend into bare rock and sparse desert vegetation during the day. Like most owls, oversized eyes give it the low-light vision needed to hunt small mammals, reptiles, and insects after dark, a trait shared with many other birds with big eyes.
32. Desert Lark
The Desert Lark (Ammomanes deserti) ranges across arid stretches of North Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Central Asia, and its plumage color actually shifts from population to population to match the color of local rock and sand. This regional camouflage makes the species one of the clearer examples of local adaptation among desert songbirds. Desert Larks forage on the ground for seeds and insects, rarely straying far from sparse, rocky cover.
33. Double-Crested Cormorant
The Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum) is widespread across North America, found on both freshwater lakes and coastal waters, where it dives to catch fish with a hooked bill. During the breeding season, adults grow the small double tufts of feathers on the head that give the species its name, though the crests are often hard to see except at close range. An orange-yellow patch of bare skin near the base of the bill adds a splash of color to its otherwise dark plumage.
34. Darjeeling Woodpecker
The Darjeeling Woodpecker (Dendrocopos darjellensis) lives in Himalayan forests stretching from Nepal through northeastern India and into parts of Southeast Asia’s mountain ranges. Its black-and-white barred back resembles that of several other pied woodpeckers, while the male’s red crown offers the clearest way to distinguish the sexes in the field. Mixed coniferous and broadleaf forest at mid to high elevation provides the dead and decaying wood the species needs for nesting and foraging.
35. Dusky Hummingbird
The Dusky Hummingbird (Cynanthus sordidus) lives up to its name with grayish-brown plumage that looks notably duller than the glittering greens typical of most hummingbirds. It is found in the dry highlands of central Mexico, favoring arid scrub and oak woodland rather than the lush tropical habitats many hummingbirds prefer. Despite its subdued coloring, the species shares the same rapid wingbeat and nectar-feeding habits common to the rest of its family.
36. Dusky Nightjar
The Dusky Nightjar (Antrostomus saturatus) is a nocturnal insectivore found in the highland forests of Costa Rica and western Panama. Mottled brown plumage provides near-perfect camouflage against leaf litter during the day, when the bird rests motionless and almost invisible on the forest floor. At dusk it becomes active, calling and hunting flying insects in open clearings and along forest edges.
37. Dusky Eagle-Owl
The Dusky Eagle-Owl (Bubo coromandus) is a large, grayish-brown owl found across South and Southeast Asia, typically near rivers and wetlands lined with tall trees. Its deep, resonant hooting call carries well across open water at night, often the first clue to its presence in riverine forest. Orange eyes and prominent ear tufts give this owl a striking, almost fierce expression that fits its role as a top nighttime predator in its range.
From the prairie fields where the Dickcissel sings to the Himalayan slopes patrolled by the Darjeeling Woodpecker, these 37 birds that start with D show just how much variety a single letter of the alphabet can hold. Anyone building out a full bird identification guide, letter by letter, can continue exploring with birds that start with Q or branch out into the wider animals that start with T for a broader look beyond birds alone.