sbcobirding.com

Dedicated to the avifauna of Santa Barbara County

Species The Santa Barbara County Bird List contains more than 500 bird species. This list is updated when new birds have been recorded in the county, or when CA Bird Records Committee decisions and taxonomic updates are published. 

 Discussion Send and receive birding reports, read about rarities, and participate in general discussion through the sbcobirding email forum. Also check out the active Santa Barbara Birders Slack messaging app which includes the local RBA. 

 eBird eBird is a real-time, online checklist program that has revolutionized the way birders report and access information about birds. Participate in citizen science! Learn more about local birds by exploring the SBA county eBird page links. 

For everything birding in Santa Barbara County:

sbcobirding.com

Project Feederwatch Project FeederWatch turns your love of feeding birds into scientific discoveries. FeederWatch is a winter-long (November-April) survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, community areas, and other locales in North America. Anyone interested in birds can participate. 

News, Articles, & Events

Fall Hawk Migration Golden Gate Raptor Observatory programs start in mid-August when volunteers count thousands of migrating raptors at Marin Headlands. Daily counts often suggest the possibility of raptors moving south along the Pacific coast into to our area. Visit the Daily Hawk Count page: 

October Big Day Results The final results are in from the October Big Day. This annual count was held on 11 October 2025. A total of 168 species were recorded by 69 observers in Santa Barbara County. Your checklists help eBird better understand global bird populations. See all the results here: 

A Birder’s Guide to

Santa Barbara County

Visit the Birder’s Guide for a listing of popular local birding spots. This guide aligns with the four districts in Paul Lehman’s, The Birds of Santa Barbara County, California, and includes descriptions and eBird Hotspot links. 

Santa Barbara County boasts a rich diversity of bird life and there are many places to explore. Where the Birds Are

eBird RBA The eBird Rare Bird Alert displays observations of rarities in Santa Barbara County over the past seven days. Reports include un-reviewed and reviewed/validated sightings. 

Slack Group for SB Birders You can participate in a wide-range of discussion and monitor the Rare Bird Alert for SBA County through Slack. Access the group through the desktop version or the Slack mobile app. 

SB Breeding Bird Study The Santa Barbara County Breeding Bird Study (BBS) provides a database of accounts of breeding bird records in the county. Contribute your own observations at this website link: 

County Statistics

eBird

Hotspots

There are over 500 eBird Hotspots in the county. Explore all the data from these shared locations.

Total

Species

The Santa Barbara County Bird Checklist has surpassed the 500 species milestone.

Big Day

Record

A dedicated trio logged a record setting 193 species in a single day on April 25, 2008.

400 Club

You can participate in this “non- competitive” listing game. Contact the webmaster to play.

509

557

193

County Birding Resources

Recent Rarities

Email sbcobirding@protonmail.com

Webmaster Jamie Chavez

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 sbcobirding This website was created as a resource for everything birding in Santa Barbara County. The goal is simply to promote the activity of field birding in the county and to provide information to interested birders. If you have comments about this website or would like more information about local birding, please contact me.

sbcobirding receives the generous support of the Santa Barbara Audubon Society. For more than 50 years SBAS has helped to preserve the biological diversity of the Santa Barbara area.