List of birds of Chennai

This is a lists the birds of Chennai, the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Over 130 species of birds have been spotted there.^[1] The list includes the local Tamil name.

Table of contents
Non-passerines: Grebes • Cormorants • Darters • Bitterns, herons and egrets • Storks • Ibises and spoonbills • Flamingos • Ducks • Hawks, kites and eagles • Falcons • Pheasants and partridges • Rails, crakes, and coots • Jacanas • Plovers and lapwings • Sandpipers and allies • Snipes and curlew • Gulls • Terns • Sandgrouses • Doves and pigeons • Parrots and parakeets • Cuckoos • Barn owls • Typical owls • Nightjars • Swifts • Kingfishers • Bee-eaters • Rollers and hoopoe • Barbets • Woodpeckers
Passerines: Pitta and larks • Swallows and martins • Wagtails and pipits • Cuckooshrikes • Bulbuls • Thrushes and allies • Prinias • Cisticolas • Acrocephalid warblers • Old World warblers • Old World flycatchers • Laughingthrushes • Sunbirds • Old World orioles • Shrikes • Woodshrikes • Drongos • Woodswallows • Crows and treepies • Starlings • Weavers • Munias • Sparrows
References

Grebes

• Little grebe, mukkulippan

Cormorants

• Little cormorant, chinna neer kagam

Darters

• Darter, pambu thara

Bitterns, herons and egrets

• Grey heron, sambal narai
• Purple heron, sen narai
• Indian pond heron, kuruttu kokku
• Cattle egret, unni kokku
• Striated heron, dhosi kokku
• Great egret, peria kokku
• Black bittern, karunkurugu
• Little egret, chinna kokku
• Chestnut bittern, sengurugu
• Yellow bittern, manal naarai
• Intermediate egret, vellai kokku
• Black-crowned night heron, erakokku or vakkaa

Storks

• Painted stork, manjal mooku naarai or sanguvalai naarai
• Asian open-billed stork, nathai kuthi naarai

Ibises and spoonbills

• Glossy ibis, arival mookan or anril
• Black-headed ibis, vellai arival mookkan or thaalaikothi chondan

Flamingos

• Greater flamingo, poo narai

Ducks

• Northern pintail, maarkaliyan
• Spot-billed duck, pulli mookku vathu
• Lesser whistling duck, cheezhkai siragi or chilli thaaraa

Hawks, kites and eagles

• Shikra, valluru
• Eurasian sparrowhawk, kuruvi valluru
• Besra, chinna valluru
• Black-shouldered kite, siria karum parundhu or karuntholl parundhu
• Brahminy kite, semparundhu or garudan
• Black kite, kalla parundhu
• Egyptian vulture, manjal thirudi kazhugu
• Crested honey buzzard, thaen parundhu
• Crested serpent eagle, paambu parundhu
• White-bellied sea eagle
• White-rumped vulture
• Short-toed snake eagle

Falcons

• Common kestrel, sivappu valluru

Pheasants and partridges

• Grey francolin, kowdhari
• Indian peafowl, neela mayil
• White-breasted waterhen, kaanang kozhi

Rails, crakes and coots

• Common coot, naamak kozhi
• Common moorhen, thaazhai kozhi
• Grey-headed swamphen, neela thazhai kozhi or neerk kozhi

Jacanas

• Pheasant-tailed jacana, neela vaal ilai kozhi

Plovers and lapwings

• Kentish plover, chinna kottan
• Little ringed plover, pattani uppukkothi or sinna kottan
• Pacific golden plover, kalporukki uppukkothi or uppukkothi
• Red-wattled lapwing, sivappu mookku aalkatti
• Yellow-wattled lapwing, manjhal mookku aalkatti

Sandpipers and allies

• Common sandpiper, ullan or kottan
• Little stint, kosu ullan
• Black-tailed godwit, karuvaal mukkan
• Ruff, pedhai ullan
• Wood sandpiper, pori ullan or vayal ullaan
• Common greenshank, pachai kaali or periya kottaan
• Marsh sandpiper, chinna pachai kaali
• Common redshank, pavazha kaali or sigappukkaal ullan

Snipes and curlew

• Common snipe, visirivaal ullan or korai kuthi
• Eurasian curlew, peria kottan or kuthiraimalai kottan
• Black-winged stilt, pavazhakkaal ullaan
• Stone curlew, kankiledi or kannadi aalkaatti

Gulls

• Black-headed gull, kadal kaakkai

Terns

• Gull-billed tern, parutha alagu aala or kadal kuruvi
• river tern, aatru aala

Doves and pigeons

• Blue rock pigeon, mada pura
• Spotted dove, pulli pura or mani pura
• Little brown dove, chinna thavittu pura

Parrots and parakeets

• Rose-ringed parakeet, senthaar pynkili or kili

Cuckoos

Female Asian koel photographed in C.I.T. Nagar, Chennai, showing red eye-ring

• Greater coucal, shenbagam or kalli kaakka
• Red-winged crested cuckoo, sevviragu kondai kuyil or kondai kuyil
• Jacobin cuckoo, sudalai kuyil or paruthi kuyil
• Asian koel, kokilam or kuyil
• Brainfever bird, akka kuyil parundhu kuyil
• Blue-faced malkoha, pachai vayan kuyil

Barn owls

• Barn owl, koogai andhai or saavu kuruvi

Typical owls

• Short-eared owl, kuttai kaadhu aandhai or aandhai
• Spotted owlet, pulli aandhai
• Eurasian eagle owl, komban aandhai

Nightjars

• Indian nightjar, chinna pakki or pakki

Swifts

• House swift, nattu uzhavaran
• Asian palm swift, panai uzhavaran or uzhavaarakkuruvi

Kingfishers

• Small blue kingfisher, siraal meenkothi
• Pied kingfisher, karuppu vellai meenkothi
• Stork-billed kingfisher, peria alagu meenkothi
• Black-capped kingfisher, karunthalai meenkothi
• White-throated kingfisher, venthondai meenkothi

Bee-eaters

• Green bee-eater, pachai panchuruttan or panchuruttan
• Blue-tailed bee-eater, neelawal panchuruttan

Rollers and hoopoe

• Indian roller, panangadai
• Hoopoe, kondalathi

Barbets

• Coppersmith barbet, chemmarbu kukkuruvaan or kalutharuppan

Woodpeckers

• Lesser golden-backed woodpecker, ponmudhugu maram kothi

Pitta and larks

• Indian pitta, thottakkallan or arumani kuruvi
• Oriental skylark, chinna vaanambadi
• Ashy-crowned sparrow lark, sambalthalai vaanambadi
• Jerdon's bushlark, pudhar vaanambadi

Swallows and martins

• Barn swallow, thagaivilaan or thaampaadi

Wagtails and pipits

• Paddyfield pipit, pullu porukki
• Grey wagtail, kodikkaal vaalatti
• yellow wagtail, manjal vaalatti
• White-browed wagtail, kulathu kuruvi

Cuckooshrikes

• Black-headed cuckooshrike, karunthalai kuyil keechaan
• Small minivet, chinna minchittu

Bulbuls

• Red-vented bulbul, kondai kuruvi
• Red-whiskered bulbul, thondai koluthi
• White-browed bulbul, manjal thondaikuruvi
• Common iora, maambazha kuruvi

Thrushes and allies

• Orange-headed thrush, senthalai poonkuruvi

Prinias

• Plain prinia, thinu kuruvi
• Ashy prinia, saambal kadhirkuruvi

Cisticolas

• Common tailorbird, thaiyal chittu

Acrocephalid warblers

• Blyth's reed warbler, kadhirkuruvi

Old World warblers

• Yellow-billed babbler, thavittu kuruvi

Old World flycatchers

• Indian robin, vannaathi kuruvi
• Oriental magpie robin, vannathi kuruvi
• Indian paradise flycatcher, vethi vaalkuruvi
• Pied bushchat, pudhar chittu

Laughingthrushes

• Common babbler, thavittu chilamban
• Large grey babbler, periya saambal silamban
• Jungle babbler, kaattu silamban

Sunbirds

• Purple sunbird, thaen chittu
• Loten's sunbird
• Purple-rumped sunbird

Old World orioles

• Golden oriole, manjal kuruvi

Shrikes

• Brown shrike, pazhuppu keechaan
• Long-tailed shrike, kattukuruvi or pey kuruvi

Woodshrikes

• Common woodshrike, kattu keechaan

Drongos

• Black drongo, karichchaan

Woodswallows

• Ashy woodswallow, madam puraa

Crows and treepies

• Jungle crow, andan kakkai or karun kakkai
• House crow, kakkai
• Rufous treepie, maan kuyil

Starlings

• Common myna, naahanavaai
• Brahminy starling, pappathi naahanavai
• Rosy starling, chola kuruvi

Weavers

• Streaked weaver, thookanaan kuruvi
• Baya weaver, thongaa nathaan

Munias

• Tricoloured munia, thinaikuruvi
• Scaly-breasted munia, nellu kuruvi
• White-rumped munia, venmudhugu chillai

Sparrows

• House sparrow, oor kuruvi
• Indian silverbill, nellu kuruvi

References

1. G. Thirumalai and S. Krishnan (July 2005). Pictorial Handbook: Birds Of Chennai. Kolkata: Zoological Survey of India.