List of largest birds

Largest birds ever

Largest extant birds

Table of heaviest extant bird species

By families

Birds of prey ([Accipitriformes])

• The New World vultures are still generally considered a member of this order, although the inclusion is dubious at best. If they are included, the largest species in the order, if measured in regard to body weight and wingspan, is the Andean condor of western South America. The great bird can reach a wingspan of and a weight of.
• The largest extant species is the Eurasian black vulture, attaining a maximum size of, long and across the wings. Other vultures can be nearly as large, with the Himalayan vulture reaching lengths up to thanks in part to its long neck.
• The largest living eagle is a source of contention, with the Philippine eagle, at up to, being the longest. The Steller's sea eagle of Asia's North Pacific, at unconfirmed weights of up to and an average weight of, is regarded as the heaviest eagle. The harpy eagle of neotropical forests is often cited as the largest eagle, as well, and captive females have weighed up to. The white-tailed eagle measures in length with a wingspan. The wingspan, with a midpoint of, is on average the largest of any eagle. It is sometimes considered the fourth-largest eagle in the world and is on average the fourth-heaviest eagle in the world. The martial eagle is the largest eagle in Africa and is the fifth-heaviest eagle in the world, with a length of, weight of and a wingspan of. The longest-winged eagle ever was an Australian wedge-tailed eagle at, though this species is not as heavy as the previous species. The golden eagle is barely smaller-winged, with the Himalayan subspecies recorded to. Less substantiated records indicate that the Steller's sea eagle may reach up to 2.74 m, potentially rivaling the two previous species. The harpy and Philippine eagles, due to having to navigate in deep forest, are relatively short-winged, and do not exceed, respectively, in wingspan. The now extinct Haast's eagle, which existed alongside early aboriginal people in New Zealand, was easily the largest eagle known and perhaps the largest raptor ever. Adult female Haast's were estimated to average up to long, a body weight and a relatively short wingspan.

Waterfowl ([Anseriformes])

• The largest waterfowl species in average size is the trumpeter swan of Northern North America, which can reach an overall length of, a wingspan of, and a weight of. However, other species have greater individual variation. Thus the heaviest single waterfowl ever recorded was a cob mute swan from Poland, which weighed and was allegedly too heavy to take flight.

  Swifts and allies ([Apodiformes])

• The largest species are the white-naped swift, endemic to southern Mexico, and the purple needletail, of the Philippine islands. Both reach similar large sizes, at up to, more than across the wings and in length.
• The hummingbirds are also traditionally included in this order, the largest species of which is easily the giant hummingbird of the Andes Mountains. "Giant" is a relative term among the hummingbirds, the smallest-bodied variety of birds, and this species weighs up to at a length of.
• The longest hummingbird species, indeed the longest in the order, is the adult male black-tailed trainbearer, which can measure up to, but a majority of this length is due to the extreme tail streamers. Another size champion among hummingbirds is the sword-billed hummingbird, a fairly large species in which about half of its length is from its bill.

Nightjars and allies ([Caprimulgiformes])

• The largest species of this order of nocturnal, mysterious birds is the neotropical great potoo, the maximum size of which is about and. Heavier specimens have been recorded in the bulky Australian tawny frogmouth species, especially juvenile birds, which can weigh up to. Other species nearly as large as the potoo are the Papuan frogmouth of New Guinea and the neotropic, cave-dwelling oilbird, both at up to.
• The largest species in the true nightjar family, the great eared nightjar of East Asia, is rather smaller at up to and. The wingspan in the great potoo and the oilbird can be more than, the largest of the order.

  Shorebirds ([Charadriiformes])

• The largest species in this diverse order is the great black-backed gull of the North Atlantic, attaining a size of as much as, a wingspan of and weighing up to. The glaucous gull is, on average, somewhat smaller than the black-back but has been weighed at as much as.
• Among the most prominent family of "small waders", the sandpipers reach their maximum size in the Far Eastern curlew at up to across the wings, although the more widespread Eurasian curlew can weigh up to.
• Less variable in size, the plovers largest species is the Australasian masked lapwing at up to long, a wingspan and a weight of. The terns, previously considered members of the gull family, are usually slender and dainty-looking in comparisonm but the largest species, the widely distributed Caspian tern, is quite large and heavily built. Caspians can range up to, a wingspan and in length.
• The largest extant alcid is the sub-Arctic thick-billed murre, which can range up to, a length of and a small wingspan of. However, until its extinction, the flightless great auk of the North Atlantic was both the largest alcid and the second-largest member of the order. Great auks could range up to and tall.
• Miomancalla howardi was the largest charadriiform of all time, weight about a pound-and-a-half more than the Great Auk and being about tall.

Herons and allies ([Ciconiiformes])

• The longest-bodied and tallest species in the order is probably the slender, towering saddle-billed stork of Africa, which often exceeds tall and has a wingspan of up to. Reaching a similar or slightly shorter height but more heavily built among the storks are the neotropical jabiru, the Asian greater adjutant and the African marabou stork, all of which are believed to weigh up to. are either Oriental stork long, tall, a weight of and a wingspan of. The greater adjutant and marabou nearly equal the Andean condor in maximum wingspan. All three are believed to reach or exceed and are regarded as having the largest wingspan of any landbirds. Standing up to, with a wingspan of up to and a weight up to is the African goliath heron, the largest of the diverse and well-known herons and egrets. The white-bellied heron is generally smaller, but gigantic, unverified juveniles have been reported to and.
• Many of the largest flying birds in the fossil record may have been members of the Ciconiiformes. The heaviest flying bird ever, Argentavis magnificens, is part of a group, the teratorns, that are considered an ally of the New World vultures.
• The largest ibis is the giant ibis. Adults are reportedly long, with an upright standing height of up to and are estimated to weigh about. Among standard measurements, the wing chord is, the tail is, the tarsus is and the culmen is. The adults have overall dark greyish-brown plumage with a naked, greyish head and upper neck. There are dark bands across the back of the head and shoulder area and the pale silvery-grey wing tips also have black crossbars. The beak is yellowish-brown, the legs are orange, and the eyes are dark red. Juveniles have short black feathers on the back of the head down to the neck, shorter bills and brown eyes. having this crested ibis of Japan is a large, white-plumaged ibis of pine forest. Its head is partially bare, showing red skin, and it has a dense crest of white plumes on the nape. This species is the only member of the genus Nipponia.

  Mousebirds ([Coliiformes])

Pigeons ([Columbiformes])

• The largest species of the pigeon/dove complex is the Victoria crowned pigeon of Northern New Guinea, although the other crowned pigeons approach similar sizes. Some exceptionally large Victoria crowneds have reached and. The largest arboreal pigeon is the Marquesan imperial pigeon, which is up to about across the wings and can weigh.
• The passenger pigeon of North America. The average weight of these pigeons was 340–400 g and, per John James Audubon's account, length was in males and in females.
• Some flightless birds found on islands off East Africa are the largest extinct pigeons and doves known to have existed: the dodo, which was physically somewhat like an outsized pigeon, and the Rodrigues solitaire, a brown, long-necked bird that was superficially ratite-like. Both species may have exceeded in height. All were carelessly hunted into extinction by humans and introduced animals. The dodo is most frequently cited as the largest-ever pigeon, as it could have weighed as much as, although recent estimates have indicated that an average wild dodo would have weighed around, scarcely larger than a male turkey. If dodos were this light, the Rodrigues solitaire may have been larger. Some estimates claim the solitaire was merely swan-sized but others estimate weights of up to.

Kingfishers and allies ([Coraciiformes])

• The largest species is the southern ground hornbill, reaching sizes of as much as and in length. Several arboreal, Asian hornbills can grow very large as well, with the great hornbill weighing to and the helmeted hornbill measuring as much as in total length. The larger hornbills have a wingspan of up to.
• The largest kingfisher overall is the giant kingfisher, at up to long and, with a large crest and finely spotted white on black upperparts. However, the common Australian species, the laughing kookaburra, may be heavier still, since individuals exceeding are not uncommon. A kookaburra wingspan can range up to.

  Cuckoos, coucals and roadrunners ([Cuculiformes])

• The largest of the cuckoos is the Australasian channel-billed cuckoo, which can range up to a weight of, a wingspan and a length of.

  Falcons ([Falconiformes])

• Many authorities now support the split of falcons from the Accipitriformes, despite similar adaptations, due to the genetic evidence showing they are not closely related. The largest species of falcon is the gyrfalcon. Large females of this species can range up to, span across the wings and measure long.

Gamebirds ([Galliformes])

• The heaviest member of this diverse order is the North American wild turkey. The largest specimen ever recorded was shot in 2015, and weighed. The heaviest domesticated turkey on record, a very obese bird, weighed.
• The longest species, if measured from the tip of the bill to the end of the long tail coverts, is the male green peafowl of Southeast Asia, at up to long. This is the longest overall length for any flying bird, although about two-thirds of the length is made up by the tail coverts, and this species weighs less than its cousin, the Indian peafowl, at up to. Although, wingspan is relatively small in most galliformes, both larger peafowl species can span as much as across the wings.
• The largest member of the grouse family is the Eurasian western capercaillie, at up to and. A prehistoric, flightless family, sometimes called "giant megapodes" of New Caledonia were the most massive galliformes ever, up to long and weighing up to about.

  Loons ([Gaviiformes])

• The largest species on average is the yellow-billed loon of the Arctic, at up to and. However, one exceptionally large North American common loon, weighed, heavier than any recorded yellow-billed loon. Wingspan in these largest loons can reach.

Cranes and allies ([Gruiformes])

• The males of the Eurasian great bustard and the African kori bustard are the heaviest birds capable of flight, averaging up to and weighing 2 to 3 times as much as their female counterparts. It is not resolved if one of these species is larger than the other, but both can reach a weight of at least and measure up to long. Some kori bustards have been reported from to even, but all such reports are unverified or dubious.
• The tallest flying bird on earth, also represented in the Gruiformes, is the sarus crane of Southern Asia and Australia, which can reach a height of. Heavier cranes are reported in other species, the red-crowned crane and the Siberian crane, both from Northeast Asia and both at up to, as opposed to a top weight of in the sarus. Wingspan in both the largest cranes and the largest bustards can range up to.
• The most species-rich family in this order, the rails, reaches their largest size in the bulky takahē of New Zealand, an endangered species that can weigh up to and measure long. The aforementioned "terror bird", Brontornis burmeisteri, has traditionally been classified as a member of this order, although this may not be an accurate classification.

Songbirds ([Passeriformes])

• The passerine or songbird order comprises more than half of all bird species, and are known for their generally small size, their strong voices and their frequent perching. Corvids are the largest of passerines, particularly the large races of the common raven and the Northeast African thick-billed raven. Large ravens can weigh, attain a wingspan and measure long.
• The closest non-corvid contender to largest size is the Australian superb lyrebird, which can reach a length of, much of it comprised by their spectacular tail, and a weight of.
• The largest species in the most species-rich passerine family, Tyrannidae or tyrant-flycatchers, is the great shrike-tyrant of the South Andes, at and, although the fork-tailed flycatcher, to, is longer thanks to its extreme tail.
• The namesake of the previous family, the Old World flycatchers, reaches its maximum size in the green cochoa of Southeast Asia, if it is indeed a proper member of the family, at up to and a length of.
• Closely related to the Old World flycatchers, the thrush family's largest representative is the blue whistling thrush of India and Southeast Asia, at up to and.
• The largest bird family in Eurasia is the Old World warblers. As previously classified these warblers could get fairly large, up to and in the striated grassbird of Southeast Asia. The Old World warblers have been split into several families, however, which leaves the barred warbler of central Eurasia, up to and, as the largest "true warbler".
• Not to be confused with the previous family, the largest of the well-known New World warblers is the aberrant yellow-breasted chat, which can exceptionally measure up to and weigh.
• Another large family is the bulbuls, the largest of which is the south Asian straw-headed bulbul, to and. The diverse, large family of babblers can reach and in the south Asian greater necklaced laughingthrush.
• The familiar domesticated species, the Java sparrow, is the largest estrild, at up to and. The largest honeyeater, perhaps the most diverse Australasian bird family, is the crow honeyeater, at up to and. The largest of the "true finches" is the collared grosbeak of central and south Asia at up to and.
• Among the largest bird families, the emberizids, reaches its largest size in the Abert's towhee of Southwest United States and north Mexico at up to and.
• Closely related to the previous family is the tanagers, which can range up to in the Andean-forest-dwelling white-capped tanager. Another species-rich neotropical family is the ovenbirds, the largest of which, the great rufous woodcreeper of the Amazonian rainforest, can weigh up to and. The specialized antbird family can range up to and in the giant antshrike. Among the most variably sized passerine families is the icterids.
• The largest icterid is the olive oropendola, in which males can range up to and. The latter species competes with the similarly sized Amazonian umbrellabird as the largest passerine in South America.

Cormorants and allies ([Pelecaniformes])

• The pelicans rank amongst the largest flying birds. The largest species of pelican is the Eurasian Dalmatian pelican, which attains a length of and a body weight of. The great white pelican of Europe and Africa is nearly as large. The Australian pelican is slightly smaller but has the largest bill of any bird, at as much as long. A large pelican can attain a wingspan of, second only to the great albatrosses among all living birds.
• The largest of the cormorants is the flightless cormorant of the Galapagos Islands, at up to and, although large races in the great cormorant can weigh up to. The spectacled cormorant of the North Pacific, which became extinct around 1850, was larger still, averaging around and.
• The widely distributed magnificent frigatebird is of note for having an extremely large wingspan, up to, for its relatively light body, at up to only.
• A family of birds, Pelagornithidae or pseudotooth birds, included several species that were behind only Argentavis magnificens in size among all flying birds. Characterized by the tooth-like protrusions along their bills, this unique family has been variously allied with the Pelecaniformes, the tubenoses, the large waders and even the waterfowl. Their true linkage to extant birds remains in question, though pelecaniformes are the group most regularly considered related. Some of the largest pseudotooth birds have included, Osteodontornis of the late Miocene from the North Pacific, Gigantornis eaglesomei, from the Eocene era in what is now Nigeria and Dasornis, from Eocene era Europe. A new, unnamed species has been discovered which may outsize even these giants. Superficially albatross-like, each of these pseudotooth species may have attained lengths of and wingspans of at least. Body mass in these slender birds was probably only up to around.

  Tropicbirds ([Phaethontiformes])

Flamingos ([Phoenicopteriformes])

Woodpeckers and allies ([Piciformes])

• The largest species of this diverse order is the toco toucan of the neotropic forest. Large specimens of this toucan can weigh to and, at which size the magnificent beak alone could measure about.
• The largest woodpecker was, at least until the 20th century, the imperial woodpecker of Mexico. This species had a length of up to and is generally believed to have gone extinct following habitat destruction and hunting. The closely related ivory-billed woodpecker of the Southeast United States and Cuba approached similar sizes at up to, a wingspan and a mass of at least. Despite possibilities that it has survived in some deep swamp forests in Arkansas or Florida, the ivory-billed is generally considered to have succumbed to the same man-made pressures as its larger cousin. Faring better so far, the great slaty woodpecker of southeast Asia is the largest woodpecker certain to exist, with a weight of up to and a length of up to.
• Less well-known than the woodpeckers and toucans, the barbets can range up to and in the great barbet.
• The largest jacamar is the great jacamar. It measures in length and weighs between

  Grebes ([Podicipediformes])

Tubenoses ([Procellariiformes])

• The largest species is wandering albatross of the sub-Antarctic oceans, which also has the largest wingspan of any living bird. The maximum dimensions in this species are a length of and a wingspan of. Unverified albatross have been reported to. Immature wandering albatrosses have weighed as much as at the time of their first flights, though the maximum reported weight in adults in.
• The southern royal albatross lags behind the wandering only slightly in all aspects of size. These great birds can fly for hours on the ocean winds without flapping or needing to land.
• The wandering albatross can travel 6,000 kilometres in 12 days. Their long wingspan help them to travel easily for several hours without flapping.

  Hoatzin ([Opisthocomiformes])

• The hoatzin, the only member of its order, is a pheasant-sized South American bird, with a total length of and a maximum weight of, and has a long neck and small head.

Parrots ([Psittaciformes])

• The largest parrot by length and wingspan is the endangered hyacinth macaw of the neotropic lowlands, reaching a length of nearly long, and a wingspan of ; it weighs only. The heaviest parrot is the nearly extinct kakapo, which is part of the unique New Zealand parrot family. The strange, flightless kakapo may not exceed in length, it can however weigh up to.
• The largest species in the cockatoo family is the Australasian palm cockatoo, at up to long and a weight of.

  Sandgrouse ([Pterocliformes])

Penguins ([Sphenisciformes])

Owls ([Strigiformes])

• The most massive owl is certainly either the Eurasian eagle-owl or the endangered and similarly sized Blakiston's fish owl of coastal Russia and Japan. Record-sized specimens of both species have weighed about and measured over long. In either species, the wingspan can range up to. Longer still, but not as massive as the previous species, a large female great gray owl from the northern boreal forest can range up to.
• The largest of the barn or masked owl family is the Tasmanian masked owl, which weighs up to and measures to. The largest owl known to have existed was Ornimegalonyx oteroi of Cuba, a uniquely cursorial owl. The giant bird was estimated to stand over on the ground and to weigh at least.

Ratites ([Struthioniformes])

• The largest ratites ostrich, from the plains of Africa and Arabia. A large male ostrich can reach a height of and weigh over. A mass of has been cited for the ostrich but no wild ostriches of this massive weight have been verified. Eggs laid by the ostrich can weigh and are the largest eggs in the world today. The emu of Australia in height, at the shoulder. In length measured from the bill to the tail, emus range from. The southern cassowary from Australia and Papua New Guinea. The three-toed feet are thick and powerful, equipped with a lethal dagger-like claw up to. The greater rhea from South America and often measure long from beak to tail; they usually stand about. The great spotted kiwi from New Zealand, while weight ranges between for males and for females
• The largest bird in the fossil record may be the extinct elephant birds of Madagascar, which were related to the ostrich. They exceeded in height and. The last of the elephant birds became extinct about 300 years ago.
• The tallest bird ever, however, was the giant moa, part of the moa family of New Zealand that went extinct about 500 years ago. This moa stood up to tall, but weighed about half as much as a large elephant bird or mihirung due to its comparatively slender frame.

  Tinamous ([Tinamiformes])

Trogons ([Trogoniformes])