Birds
Birds of the St. Louis River
The lower St. Louis River and its surroundings are home to a diverse array of native animal species. Nearly 300 bird species are commonly found in Minnesota, and over 230 have been documented in the lower St. Louis River. This area serves as both a critical migratory stopover and an important breeding ground.
In addition to songbirds, high numbers of raptors, shorebirds, waterbirds, gulls, and terns pass through the area each spring and fall. Several factors make the lower St. Louis River an important stopover site. Many migrating birds avoid flying over large bodies of water, channeling them along the western edge of Lake Superior and through the estuary. Large wetlands provide an essential source of food for both migrants and resident birds, while sandy beach habitats—rare in the Upper Midwest—offer key resting areas for shorebirds. The estuary is particularly important during spring migration, as it is often the only area with open water. At peak times, observers have recorded thousands of waterbirds concentrated in this relatively small area. The diversity and extent of wetlands and shoreline habitats also make the lower St. Louis River ideal for breeding.
Birds of conservation concern in the estuary include piping plover, black tern, common tern, American bittern, least bittern, Virginia rail, yellow-headed blackbird, sedge wren, marsh wren, northern waterthrush, and green heron. Populations of these species have declined regionally or nationally, and they are now rarely seen in the St. Louis River estuary. Two notable raptors—the bald eagle and peregrine falcon—also breed in the estuary, with populations that have either increased or remained stable in recent years.
Given the widespread loss of wetland and shoreline habitats across the Great Lakes region, protecting the lower St. Louis River is vital to support these declining bird species and maintain the ecological richness of the estuary.
Check out this Duluth/Superior Birding Map created by Northeaster Minnesota Bird Alliance, formerly Duluth Audubon Society.
Birds Commonly Seen in the St. Louis River Estuary
Snow Goose
Canada Goose
Tundra Swan
Wood Duck
Gadwall
American Widgeon
American Black Duck
Mallard
Blue Winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Green-winged Teal
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Greater Scaup
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Hooded Merganser
Common Merganser
Red-breasted Merganser
Common Loon
Pied-billed Grebe
Horned Grebe
Red-necked Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
American White Pelican
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Broad-winged Hawk
American Kestrel
Merlin
American Coot
Black-bellied Plover
American Golden-Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Killdeer
Spotted Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Ruddy Turnstone
Sanderling
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Dunlin
Wilson’s Snipe
Bonaparte’s Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Glaucous Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Caspain Tern
Common Tern
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Snowy Owl
Common Nighthawk
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Pileated Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Alder Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Northern Shrike
Blue-headed Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Common Raven
Horned Lark
Tree Swallow
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breated Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
House Wren
Winter Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Veery
Swainson’s Thrush
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
American Pipit
Bohemian Waxwing
Cedar Waxwing
Lapland Longspur
Snow Bunting
Tennessee Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Magnolia Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Palm Warbler
Black-and-white warbler
American Redstart
Ovenbird
Mourning Warbler
Common Yellow-throat
Wilson’s Warbler
Canada Warbler
American Tree Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Clay-colored Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln’s Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Rusty Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Baltimore Oriole
Pine Grosbeak
Purple Finch
House Finch
Common Redpoll
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
