Birds of Israel

There are close to 600 species of birds in Israel, which live comfortably in the temperate and tropical habitats of the country. Over 500 million birds pass through the country while migrating, making it a popular destination for birdwatchers.

The common hoopoe is the national bird of Israel. Other notable avifauna include several birds of prey like the Barbary Falcon, the Bonelli’s Eagle, and the Black-winged Kite.

List of Common Birds Found in Israel

Native Birds

Arabian Babbler
Barbary Falcon
Barn Swallow
Bar-tailed Desert Lark
Black-eared Wheatear
Black Francolin
Black-headed Bunting
Black Kite
Black-winged Kite
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater
Bonelli’s Eagle
Brown-necked Raven
Calandra Lark
Caspian Tern
Chukar Partridge
Citrine Wagtail
Common Chaffinch
Common Chiffchaff
Common Hoopoe
Common Nightingale
Common Rosefinch
Common Whitethroat
Crested Lark
Dead Sea Sparrow
Desert Finch
Desert Lark
Desert Wheatear
Eastern Olivaceous Warbler
Egyptian Vulture
Eurasian Blackbird
Eurasian Blackcap
Eurasian Collared Dove
Eurasian Crag Martin
Eurasian Griffon
Eurasian Kestrel
Eurasian Penduline Tit
Eurasian Scops Owl
Eurasian Skylark
Eurasian Spoonbill
Eurasian Teal
Eurasian Wryneck
European Bee-eater
European Goldfinch
European Nightjar
European Roller
European Serin
European Turtle Dove
Fan-tailed Raven
Fire-fronted Serin
Golden Eagle
Graceful Warbler
Great Cormorant
Great Grey Shrike
Great Reed Warbler
Great Spotted Cuckoo
Great Tit
Griffon Vulture
Hooded Crow
Houbara Bustard
House Sparrow
Isabelline Shrike
Isabelline Wheatear
Laughing Dove
Lesser Grey Shrike
Lesser Kestrel
Lesser Whitethroat
Levant Sparrowhawk
Little Bittern
Little Crake
Little Egret
Little Green Bee-eater
Little Owl
Long-legged Buzzard
Mallard
Marsh Sandpiper
Masked Shrike
Ménétries’s Warbler
Montagu’s Harrier
Northern Wheatear
Nubian Nightjar
Orphean Warbler
Palestine Sunbird
Pallid Swift
Pied Kingfisher
Red-footed Falcon
Red-rumped Swallow
Red-throated Diver
Red-throated Pipit
Rock Bunting
Rock Nuthatch
Rock Sparrow
Ruddy Shelduck
Rufous Bush Robin
Rüppell’s Warbler
Sandgrouse
Sardinian Warbler
Slender-billed Gull
Sooty Falcon
Spectacled Bulbul
Steppe Buzzard
Steppe Eagle
Striated Heron
Syrian Serin
Syrian Woodpecker
Tawny Pipit
Temminck’s Lark
Tristram’s Starling
Trumpeter Finch
Western Rock Nuthatch
White-breasted Kingfisher
White-eared Bulbul
White-eyed Gull
White Spectacled Bulbul
White Stork
White-throated Kingfisher
White-throated Robin
White Wagtail
White-winged Black Tern
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Yellow Wagtail

Non-native Birds

Alexanderine Parakeet
Common Myna
Common Waxbill
Egyptian Goose
House Crow
Indian Silverbill
Monk Parakeet
Nanday Parakeet
Rose-ringed Parakeet
Senegal Parrot
Vinous-breasted Myna

Some of Israel’s best sites to go birdwatching include Hula Valley Nature Reserve, Jerusalem Bird Observatory, and Ein Gedi Nature Reserve. The best time to see the birds of this country is between March and May, during the peak migration period of many birds, and between August and November, when these birds make their way back.