About the
Utah Bird Records Committee 
Official Utah Bird Checklist
  
2021, 2019, 2018, 2009,  2004 and Others
  

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2023 Checklist

  
Briefly

Periodically, the checklist committee of the American Ornithology Society will split, combine, or rename species and reorder the list according to their studies on  how the species are related.  This updated checklist for Utah reflects these changes.

Some or the more noticeable changes are:  our Northern Goshawk had been split from the Eurasian species and is now called the American Goshawk.  The Pacific-slope  and  Cordilleran Flycatchers were reunited, after a previous split, as the Western Flycatcher.  There are also new genus and species names which will show up in the taxonomic lists.  The abundance and status codes will remain the same for this version.

| 2023 Utah Checklist |
  

2021 Checklist

  
Briefly

With the change in the bylaws requiring physical evidence or two accepted sightings without physical evidence, to put a species on our main checklist, there were six species removed from our official checklist and put on the new Provisional Species List.

The new Provisional Species List contains species that are NOT on the main checklist but have one sight record that has been accepted by the Committee without physical evidence.  The six of the seven species on this list that were removed from the previous checklist are: Garganey, Bar-tailed Godwit, Elf Owl, Louisiana Waterthrush, Field Sparrow and Baird's Sparrow.  The other species on this list is Blue-throated Mountain-gem which was added to the list after accepting a record taken from an old report on a sighting of this species.      

| 2021 Utah Checklist |
  

2019 Checklist

  
Briefly

The code system for the Bird Checklist for Utah has been simplified removing the "Fairly Common" and the "Irregular" categories from the "Abundance Codes" and "Provisional species" and the "Northern Utah" designations for the Status Codes. All codes were reviewed and updated when appropriate.. The names and order of the birds are according to the 7th edition of AOU checklist, 58th supplement.

Since the 2018 checklist,  four new species (Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Dusky-capped flycatcher, Blue-footed Booby and Great Black-backed Gull) have been added to the checklist and one has been removed because of a species merge. (Thayer's Gull is now a subspecies of Iceland Gull), making a total of 465 species on this checklist. 

                 | Changes to the 2019 Utah Checklist |
    

2018 Checklist

  
Briefly

The Bird Checklist for Utah has been revised  and updated with changed names, combined species, and updated abundance and status codes. The names and order of the birds are according to the 7th edition of AOU checklist, 58th supplement.

Since the 2009 checklist, 20 new species have been added, and two species combined,  making a total of 462 species on this checklist..

  | 2018 Utah Checklist |       

Bald Eagle  photo  by Kent Keller  ©Kent R. Keller    

Species added to the 2018 Checklist since the 2009 Checklist
    

Species Name		Date Added	Sight Record #
	Pacific-slope Flycatcher	6 Jan 2018	2015-24R
	Arctic Tern	20 Oct 2017	2017-46
	Bell's Sparrow	19 Jun 2017	2017-06
	Black-throated Green Warbler	31 May 2017	2017-19
	Common Crane	15 May 2017	2017-18
	California Condor	18 Jun 2016	Sightings
	Laughing Gull	20 Feb 2015	2015-03
	Nelson's Sparrow	8 Nov 2014	2014-027
	Mississippi Kite	9 Aug 2014	2014-013
	Allen's Hummingbird	25 Feb 2014	2013-83
	Streak-backed Oriole	21 Feb 2014	2014-001
	Bar-tailed Godwit	5 Jan 2014	2013-64
	Winter Wren †	24 Apr 2013	2012-22
	Tropical Kingbird	16 Dec 2012	2012-35
	Gilded Flicker	15 Sep 2012	2012-27
	Purple Sandpiper	4 Feb 2011	2010-48
	Pyrrhuloxia	30 Oct 2010	2010-33
	Thick-billed Kingbird	20 Feb 2010	2009-29
	Brown-capped Rosy-Finch	22 Jan 2010	2008-36
	Iceland Gull	21 Nov 2009	2008-31
*Thayer's Gull and Iceland Gull have been combined under the species name, "Iceland Gull."    (See First State Records page)

Name Changes since 2009
    

Old Name		New Name	Reason
	Thayer's Gull	Iceland Gull	Merge
	Whip-poor-will	Mesican Whip-poor-will	Split
	Magnificent Hummingbird	Rivoli's Hummingbird	Split
	Winter Wren	Pacific Wren	Split
	Western Scrub-Jay	Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay	Split
	Sage Sparrow	Sagebrush Sparrow	Split
	Common Moorhen	Common Gallinule	Split

2009 Checklist

  
Briefly

The Bird Checklist for Utah has revised and updated abundance and status codes and has a new indicator (+) for "provisional species," which are species accepted on sight records alone (no physical evidence). The names and order of the birds are according to the 7th edition of AOU checklist, 49th supplement.

Since the 2004 checklist, 17 new species have been added,  making a total of 443 species on this checklist..

 | 2009 Utah Checklist | 
     

Wilson's Snipe  photo  by Jack Binch  ©Jack Binch

2009 Revision of the Checklist:

According to the new abundance and status codes some species are becoming more common in the state while others are becoming less common.  Below is a table of the code changes showing a increase or decrease of abundance:
  

Becoming more common		Old Codes	New Codes
	Horned Grebe	RT	UT,RW
	Great Egret	RT,RS	US,RW
	Broad-winged Hawk	OT	RT
	Ferruginous Hawk	US,RW	UP
	Baird's Sandpiper	UT	FT
	Bonaparte's Gull	UT	FT
	Eurasian Collared-Dove	RP	CP
	Common Poorwill	FS	CS
	Calliope Hummingbird	RS	UT,RS
	Vermilion Flycatcher	RS	R
	Cassin's Vireo	RT	UT
	Juniper Titmouse	FP	CP
	Verdin	FP	CP
	Winter Wren	RW	RP
	Glossy Ibis	A	O
Becoming less common
	Greater White-fronted Goose	RT,RW	RT
	Tundra Swan	CT,CW	UT,UW
	Surf Scoter	RW	RT
	White-winged Scoter	RW	RT
	Black Scoter	OW	OT
	Gyrfalcon	OT,OW	A
	Mountain Plover	RS	OS
	Western Sandpiper	CT,RW	CT
	Long-tailed Jaeger	O	A
	Glaucous Gull	R	RW
	Yellow-billed Cuckoo	RS	OS
	Northern Saw-whet Owl	UP	RP
	Least Flycatcher	OS	OT
	Blue-headed Vireo	O	A
	Northern Mockingbird	CS,UW	UP
	Brown Thrasher	OW	OT
	Le Conte's Thrasher	O	A
	Blue Grosbeak	FS	US
	Bobolink	US	RS

  Other Changes
   Species added to the Washington County list:
      Zone-tailed Hawk
      Common Moorhen
   Species added to the Northern Utah list: 
      Lark Bunting
      Snow Bunting
  

Provisional Species:

Eighteen species listed on the checklist have been accepted on sight records alone.  The individual sight records of group of sight records are deemed to be of sufficient weight to include that species on the official state list.  These species are listed on the Auxiliary Lists along with species that have been reported but have not been accepted by the committee and also a list introduced species some that are on the checklist and others that are not..

  
Species added to the 2009 checklist:  (with links to the initial sight record)
  

	Whip-poor-will	Painted Bunting	Ruby-throated Hummingbird
	Baird's Sparrow	Neotropic Cormorant	Cackling Goose
	Purple Finch	Western Gull	White Ibis
	Pine Warbler	Gray Hawk	Blue-headed Vireo
	Sharp-tailed Sandpiper	Pacific Golden-Plover	Rufous-backed Robin
	Cape May Warbler	Glossy Ibis

2004 Checklist

Black-necked Stilt photo  by Kent Keller  ©Kent Keller

   
Briefly
The Utah Bird Checklist for Utah has been thoroughly revised and updated. 
The abundance and status codes are current and
the names and order of the birds is according to the latest AOU checklist.
In March of 2004, 22 new species were added, two were taken off and the names of five species
were changed. Making a total of 426 when published
In April of 2005, four new species were added making a total of 430 species on the checklist..

 | 2004 Utah Checklist | 
  

2004 Revision of the Checklist:

The Checklist committee was made up of four members of the Utah Bird Records Committee.  Terry Sadler and Merrill Webb were co-chairmen of the committee, Ron Ryel was a consultant for the northern part of the state and Rick Fridell was a consultant for the southern part of the state.  Two new abundance codes were added to round out the set.  A "fairly common" category was added to bridge the gap between "common" and "uncommon," and a new category "accidental" was added to indicate that the species would be out of its normal range, as opposed to an "occasional' species which would not be seen every year, but would be expected to show up now and then.  A "^" code was added to indicate that the species was found primarily in the northern part of the state as a complement to the already existing "*" code which indicates that the species is found primarily in Washington County in the southwest corner of Utah.

All members of the committee submitted their abundance and status codes for all of the species independently and then the differences were discussed and the  final decisions were made.  It is significant to note that there were very few differences among the codes of all four committee members and the differences that did come up were quite minor.   This would possibly indicate that although the codes are not scientific, they do describe very well how often you would expect to see a certain species during the course of normal observation.

Names and list order:

The name and list order correspond with the recently updated 7th American Ornithologist's Union Check-list of North American Birds and the 44th supplement of that Check-list.  There were some name changes and new species split from old ones:

• American Three-toed Woodpecker, Picoides dorsalis, was separated from the Three-toed Woodpecker of Europe, Picoides tridactylus.

• Greater Sage-Grouse was renamed when the old "Sage Grouse," species was split.

• Gunnison Sage-Grouse became a new species, Centrocercus minimus, as a split-off of  the above mentioned "Sage Grouse."

• Long-tailed Duck was rename, for reasons of political correctness most likely, from "Oldsquaw."

• Rock Pigeon is the new name for the old "Rock Dove," better placing it with a more similar group of birds.

• Wilson’s Snipe, Gallinago delicata, was split from the Common Snipe, Gallinago gallinago, of Europe and Asia.

• Black-billed Magpie became a new species Pica hudsonia being split from the Magpie of Europe and elsewhere, Pica pica.

The main changes in order are that the "duck, swans and geese" group (Answeriiformes) has been moved to the beginning of the list and is followed by the the "grouse and quail" group (Galliformes).  Other than that, the order is about the same.

Species added to the 2004 checklist:

There were 22 new species added to the 1998 checklist in March of 2004. All but one of them were new sightings for Utah.  The Gunnison Sage-Grouse was added because of a species split: (Click the name to see the record submitted to the Records Committee). 

• Blue-winged Warbler

• Canyon Towhee

• Cassin's Sparrow (2nd record)

• Curve-billed Thrasher

• Elf Owl  (record not available)

• Eurasian Collared-Dove

• Field Sparrow  (record not available)

• Garganey  (record not available)

• Golden-winged Warbler (2nd record)

• Gunnison Sage-Grouse (split from Sage Grouse)

• Hoary Redpoll  (record not available)

• Lawrence's Goldfinch  (additional record)

• Louisiana Waterthrush

• Magnificent Frigatebird

• Philadelphia Vireo  (additional record)

• Prairie Warbler

• Prothonotary Warbler

• Reddish Egret

• Ruff

• Scaled Quail  (record not available)

• Yellow-footed Gull  (record not available)

• Yellow-throated Vireo  (record not available)

Species removed from the previous checklist:

Because there were two species whose records were not able to be completely validated by the  Records Committee, they were removed from the list so that the committee can fully stand behind the contents of this checklist. These species are:

• Bar-tailed Godwit

• Laughing Gull

Other Utah Checklists

Tundra Swans   
by Margaret T. Sanchez   ©Margaret T. Sanchez